A two-day event in May called “The Music of Jelly Roll Morton” will feature Marcus Roberts performing favorites from the Morton legacy as part of the Jazz at Lincoln Center series in the Rose Theater. A pre-concert discussion will also be held each night, starting at 7 p.m. on May 11-12.
Roberts, blind since his youth, achieved fame as a stride pianist committed to celebrating classic standards and jazz traditions — notably as a member of Wynton Marsalis’ band and then musical director of the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra.
Morton, a New Orleans native whose composition “Jelly Roll Blues” was the first published jazz composition, was perhaps most notable as jazz’s first arranger.
Here’s a look back at our recent thoughts on Marcus Roberts. Click through the titles for complete reviews …
SOMETHING ELSE! INTERVIEW: JAZZ PIANIST MARCUS ROBERTS: Roberts talks about his then-new release New Orleans Meets Harlem, Vol. 1, and coming of age in the Wynton Marsalis band: “We are interested in exploring the history of music, but also in bringing it into the 21st century. We’re using a model that puts the bass and drums almost equal to the piano, and that makes for a richer sound, a bigger sound with more variety of texture,” he said of New Orleans Meets Harlem. As for Marsalis, he added: “Wynton was so organized and clear about what he wanted to do. When I left, I had to build those things myself. It took time. The final thing was finding a band that I could do those things with. We now have a mature trio sound; it’s no longer speculative. At the same time, we’re not tired of exploring.”
LINCOLN CENTER JAZZ ORCHESTRA – FIRE OF THE FUNDAMENTALS (1994): The playlist is an evocative pairing of older, traditional big-band selections by composers like Billy Strayhorn, with more modern tunes from Miles, Monk and Coltrane. In that way, the CD nearly mirrors the band’s own makeup. First, we have a pride of young lions: Marcus Roberts (then newly named musical director) is featured both alone as a member of Wynton Marsalis’ group. More experienced finger-snapping is provided by the late Betty Carter and Jimmy Heath, of the middle aged school. Finally, the release is rounded out by some of the forefathers — Jay McShann (whose group was for a time, considered second only to the Basie band) and Milt Grayson, a really fine singer. An in-depth, kicky look at the center’s wide personnel swath and the orchestra’s varied repertoire.
MARCUS ROBERTS – AS SERENITY APPROACHES (1992): This album expanded upon Roberts’ 1991 release Alone with Three Giants, devoted to Ellington, Monk and Jelly Roll Morton. Here, he explored more blues and then swing — even while undertaking sure-footed forays into balladry and fleet-finger waltzing. Sometimes subsequently criticized for settling into a series of homages, Roberts was (back then) at the forefront of a movement back toward the canon. Some eventually took this oldies thing too far, none perhaps more famously than Roberts’ old boss Wynton. Still, you shouldn’t count all of that against this album. Roberts possesses an uncommon verve and had, even then, a command for the vocabulary of a piano jazz that can’t be denied.
[amazon_enhanced asin=”B0022EY20G” container=”” container_class=”” price=”All” background_color=”FFFFFF” link_color=”000000″ text_color=”0000FF” /] [amazon_enhanced asin=”B0060XL7C6″ container=”” container_class=”” price=”All” background_color=”FFFFFF” link_color=”000000″ text_color=”0000FF” /] [amazon_enhanced asin=”B0000029EC” container=”” container_class=”” price=”All” background_color=”FFFFFF” link_color=”000000″ text_color=”0000FF” /] [amazon_enhanced asin=”B00000057T” container=”” container_class=”” price=”All” background_color=”FFFFFF” link_color=”000000″ text_color=”0000FF” /] [amazon_enhanced asin=”B0000004XX” container=”” container_class=”” price=”All” background_color=”FFFFFF” link_color=”000000″ text_color=”0000FF” /]
- Ernesto Cervini’s Turboprop, “When I Fall” (2024): Video premiere - March 15, 2024
- Disaster Pony,“Dead Neon & The Noon Sun” from ‘Disaster Pony’ (2024): Video premiere - February 27, 2024
- Christopher Hoffman, “Farewell Forever” from ‘Vision Is The Identity’ (2024): Streaming premiere - February 19, 2024
