Biography
Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, and music instructor, who is currently the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has been active in promoting classical and jazz music, often to young audiences. Marsalis has won nine Grammy Awards, and his oratorio Blood on the Fields was the first jazz composition to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music. Marsalis is the only musician to have won a Grammy Award in both jazz and classical categories in the same year. Marsalis was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on October 18, 1961, and grew up in the suburb of Kenner. He is the second of six sons born to Dolores Ferdinand Marsalis and Ellis Marsalis Jr., a pianist and music teacher. He was named after jazz pianist Wynton Kelly. Branford Marsalis is his older brother and Jason Marsalis and Delfeayo Marsalis are younger. All three are jazz musicians. While sitting at a table with trumpeters Al Hirt, Miles Davis, and Clark Terry, his father jokingly suggested that he might as well get Wynton a trumpet, too. Hirt volunteered to give him one, so at the age of six Marsalis received his first trumpet. Although he owned a trumpet when he was six, he…
Movies & TV Shows
-
The Daily Show (1996) — Self
-
Saturday Night Live (1975) — Self - Musical Guest
-
Scooby-Doo! in Where's My Mummy? (2005) — Campbell (voice)
-
Real Time with Bill Maher (2003) — Self
-
Late Show with David Letterman (1993) — Self - Musical Guest
-
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992) — Self
-
Chasing Trane (2017) — Self - Musician
-
When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts (2006) — Self
-
Tune in Tomorrow... (1990) — Self - The Wynton Marsalis Band
-
Jazz (2001) — Self
-
Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues (2022) — Self
-
Great Performances (1971) — Self
-
Soul Food (2000) — Self
-
The Chris Rock Show (1997) — Self
-
In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon (2024) — Self
-
Song of Lahore (2015) — Self
-
The N Word (2006) — Self
-
Wynton Marsalis and Eric Clapton Play the Blues - Live from Jazz at Lincoln Center (2011) — Self
-
Sesame Street: Put Down the Duckie (1988) — Self
-
A World Without Beethoven? (2020) — Self
-
Sesame Street: Sing Yourself Silly! (1990) — Self (archive footage)
-
Tony Bennett Celebrates 90 (2016) — Self
-
It's Black Entertainment (2002) — Self
-
On the Shoulders of Giants (2011)
-
Le Grand Échiquier (1972) — Self
- Sessions at West 54th Vol.1 (1997) — Self (archive footage)
-
Wynton Marsallis and JALC Orchestra - Congo Square (2008) — Self
-
Up From the Streets - New Orleans: The City of Music (2021) — Self - musician
-
Charles Mingus: Triumph of the Underdog (1997) — Self
-
Iconoclasts (2005) — Self
-
The Great American Read (2018) — Self
-
Willie Nelson and Wynton Marsalis Play the Music of Ray Charles (2009) — Self - Trumpet and Vocals
-
Hargrove (2022) — Self
-
Shelter from the Storm: A Concert for the Gulf Coast (2005) — Self
-
Brownie Speaks (2014) — Self
-
VA - Jazz Intermezzo Vol.1 (2013) — Self (archive footage)
-
The Marsalis Family: A Jazz Celebration (2003) — Self - trumpet
-
Find Your Groove (2020) — Self
-
Tootie's Last Suit (2009) — Self
-
Satchmo: The Life of Louis Armstrong (1992) — Self