By Ben Chaddha News Editor ‘21 

Jazz pianist Ellis Marsalis, died April 1 from Covid-19. Marsalis was a master piano player and a renowned educator in his hometown of New Orleans, Louisiana. Four of Mr. Marsalis’ sons became jazz musicians themselves, marking the Marsalis family as a key “jazz family.” Mr. Marsalis’ son Wynton became world famous as the director of the Jazz at Lincoln Center orchestra. 

Mr. Marsalis spent the majority of his life in New Orleans, the birthplace of jazz. As a teenager and young man, Mr. Marsalis studied with piano player Jelly Roll Morton and trumpet player Louis Armstrong. Both Morton and Armstrong were key in the founding and popularizing of jazz. Mr. Marsalis was a strong advocate for musical integrity and wanted current jazz musicians to connect back to the music’s roots which lies in New Orleans. 

Some of Mr. Marsalis’s students aside from his sons include Harry Connick, Nicholas Payton, and Terrance Blanchard. Although Mr. Marsalis was known as a jazz educator at New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA), he once told NPR that he never thought of himself as a teacher. Instead he thought of himself as a “coach.”

On top of being an educator, Mr. Marsalis was a working musician. Prior to his son’s success, Mr. Marsalis was not well known outside of his hometown. However, once his son Wynton Marsalis started to gain fame worldwide, Mr. Marsalis became better-known as well. He began to play with his sons on various records such as Dear Dolores and The Resolution of Romance. Mr. Tolentino, a long time jazz musician from New York and band leader at NA, said, “I was lucky enough to have several interactions with Mr. Marsalis, and I was even invited to play a couple of tunes with his group each time I visited New Orleans.” Mr. Tolentino was lucky enough to see Ellis play numerous times. He described Ellis as “an unsung hero of jazz piano, but also one of the world’s greatest jazz educators.” Some of Mr. Marsalis’ students mentioned earlier became world famous actors, musicians, and movie composers. 

“I heard him play live this past January at Snug Harbor in New Orleans.” Mr. Tolentino continued, “I was taken back by how much he had aged since I last saw him and how difficult it was for him to just get to the piano. But when he started playing it was as fresh, sophisticated, and exciting as anyone playing today. His legacy and passion for jazz education will live on through his many students and his family.”

“It is impossible to overrate the significance of (Ellis) Marsalis’ return (to New Orleans in 1989 and start of the Jazz Studies program at UNO)” Jay Mazza, a jazz writer from New Orleans, wrote in his book, Up Front and Center: New Orleans Music at the End of the 20th Century. “The influence the program has had on the development of the jazz scene in New Orleans (and the world) today is unparalleled.” Mr. Marsalis is said to have been one of the main musicians to bring New Orleans’ jazz education scene back to the forefront of the music. Since then, New Orleans has brought up scores of new, talented jazz musicians into the global music scene.

Mr. Marsalis will be missed by everyone and his passing leaves a large space  to fill as one of the prime educators in New Orleans and the world. He served as a beacon for what jazz stands for and fully embodied all aspects of the music. Mr. Marsalis dedicated his entire life to jazz and his legacy will live on for years to come.