Ellis Marsalis Jr.
| Ellis Marsalis Jr. | |
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Ellis Marsalis Jr. performing on June 6, 2004
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Ellis Louis Marsalis Jr. |
| Born | November 14, 1934 |
| Origin | New Orleans, Louisiana, United States |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, teacher |
| Instruments | Piano |
| Years active | 1949–present |
| Labels | Blue Note, Columbia, Sony, Rounder |
| Website | Official website |
Ellis Louis Marsalis Jr. (born November 14, 1934) is an American jazz pianist.
Active since the late 1940s, Marsalis came to greater attention in the 1980s and 1990s as the patriarch of a musical family, with sons Branford Marsalis and Wynton Marsalis rising to international acclaim.
He can usually be seen performing on Fridays at Snug Harbor jazz bistro in New Orleans.
Marsalis was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the son of Florence (née Robertson) and Ellis Marsalis Sr., a businessman and social activist. Marsalis and wife Delores Ferdinand have six sons: Branford Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, Ellis Marsalis III (1964), Delfeayo Marsalis, Mboya Kinyatta Marsalis (1971), and Jason Marsalis. Branford, Wynton, Delfeayo, and Jason are also jazz musicians. Ellis is a poet, photographer, and network engineer based in Baltimore.
Ellis started out as a tenor saxophonist, switching to piano while in high school. From his first professional performance with "The Groovy Boys" over fifty years ago, Ellis Marsalis has been a major influence in jazz. At that time, Marsalis was one of the few New Orleans musicians who did not specialize in Dixieland or rhythm and blues. He played with fellow modernists including Cannonball Adderley, Nat Adderley, and Al Hirt, becoming one of the most respected pianists in jazz. Though he has recorded almost twenty of his own albums, and was featured on many discs with such musicians as David “Fathead” Newman, Eddie Harris, Marcus Roberts, and Courtney Pine, he shunned the spotlight to focus on teaching. Marsalis's didactic approach, combined with an interest in philosophy, encourages his students to make discoveries in music on their own, through experiment and very careful listening.
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