Those who have repeatedly declared jazz dead were proven wrong yet again in St. Louis two weeks ago.
Jazz St. Louis and its two-night Swing for Tomorrow’s Stars Gala had capacity crowds in the middle of the week – and raised more than $600,000 to ensure that the music’s legacy lives on.
Night one was held at Jazz St. Louis’ home in the Harold and Dorothy Steward Center for Jazz. The Ferring Jazz Bistro had standing room only for Wednesday night. Thursday the party moved to the Khorassan Ballroom at The Royal Sonesta Chase Park Plaza. Rows of chairs lined up from the stage nearly to the exit of the massive ballroom.
There were no seats to spare as Jazz superstars Branford and Wynton Marsalis got in the swing to support Jazz St. Louis and its education and community engagement programs.
“St. Louis, y’all got me feeling so good that I’m about to stand up here and make a fool out of myself,” Wynton said before he stepped to the microphone and unexpectedly offered up a song instead of his trumpet Thursday night. “It’s alright baby, baby it’s alright,” Wynton sang just after Mayor Tishaura O. Jones presented the brothers with a proclamation and declared February 22, 2024, to be Branford and Wynton Marsalis Day in St. Louis.
He directed those blues in Mayor Jones’ direction in response to a cute jab she made to fuel the friendly rivalry between St. Louis and the Marsalis’ hometown of New Orleans. Though all in love, the feud has continued for generations due to common threads in the heritages of the respective cities. After he sang the blues. He played them. Branford joined with the type of perfect timing that only brothers who spent their childhood sleeping in the same room – and with the power to anticipate each other’s every move – could achieve.
Their childhood friend, Jazz St. Louis President and CEO Victor Goines instinctively knew exactly when and where to chime in as well.
“Branford and I always love playing in St. Louis, so we thank [Jazz St. Louis CEO Victor Goines] and the Jazz St. Louis team for inviting us,” said Wynton Marsalis. “Ensuring the future of jazz and jazz education has been a mission for me and my brother and we hope our taking part in this event illustrates just how important the art of jazz and music education are to local communities.”
The funds raised will support the future of Jazz St. Louis programs – and allow the nonprofit to continue to offer its education initiatives at no cost to participants.
Goines said the two-night gala surpassed even his own expectations.
“It was an honor to bring a performance of this stature to St. Louis, especially for two nights in a row,” Goines said. “Most importantly, we raised crucial funds to support our educational programs which are at the heart of Jazz St. Louis, so I am immensely proud of what we achieved.”
Jazz St. Louis has been the foremost jazz presenter in the St. Louis region for more than 30 years and runs a robust portfolio of education and community programs.
In addition to the headliners, Swing was a celebration of jazz and its connections to St. Louis.
Actor, comedian, and St. Louis native Joe Torry served as the event’s Master of Ceremonies. On Thursday, Jazz St. Louis presented David Sanborn with the inaugural Steward Center Lifetime Achievement Award in Excellence.
“I’m so glad I am alive to receive this,” Sanborn joked. He quickly turned serious. “I am deeply grateful and amazingly honored to receive this award in my hometown of St. Louis.”
He has six Grammy awards, eight gold albums, one platinum album and countless other musical accolades. And he’s proudly straight out of Kirkwood. He shared with the crowd that as a sickly child, he picked up the saxophone at the age of eleven as a form of physical therapy.
“Little did the doctors know that it would turn into a lifetime path that I have been able to follow,” Sanborn said. “I have been able to find my way spiritually, creatively, emotionally – every way – through music. It opens doors you never imagine existed.”
By fifteen he was catching the bus with friends to Gaslight Square, where he made a name for himself by playing stolen Sonny Stitt riffs. More than 60 years later, he is a legend in his own right.
“Play something, Dave,” an audience member yelled out.
“Music has sustained my life,” Sanborn said. “As a matter of fact, it kept me alive on every level. Music inspired me. I knew that whatever I did in my life, I had to be around music.”
He thanked Jazz St. Louis for “Keeping the dream and the music alive,” and for providing the type of programming he would have loved to have available to him as an aspiring musician.
“We are dedicated to preserving the essence of jazz through nurturing,” Goines said. “By fostering a sense of collective humanity, we aim to create a lasting impact on the world through the power of jazz music.”
Jazz St. Louis’s Swing for Tomorrow’s Stars Gala was presented by the
Steward Family Foundation and World Wide Technology. Lead sponsorship
was provided by Jazz at Lincoln Center, John and Allison Ferring, and
Richard and Josephine Weil.
To learn more about Jazz St. Louis, visit jazzstl.org.
