Everyone has a favorite genre of music. But jazz musician Ellis Marsalis believes “people are listening to jazz and don’t even know it.”
When Marsalis performs in the Union Theater on Saturday at 7:30 p.m., he will showcase a form of music he feels is now being incorporated into other genres.
“Jazz certainly isn’t the most popular form of music,” Marsalis said. “But I believe we are beginning to see it more and more in other forms. People take things that they like and incorporate it into their music all the time.”
Marsalis’ jazz music not only influenced other forms of music, but it also made an impression on well-known musicians like Harry Connick Jr.
His influence earned him and his sons – Wynton, Branford, Delfeayo and Jason – the 2011 NEA Jazz Masters award, one of the most prestigious awards a musician can receive, according to Michael Derr, associate director of the Union Theater.
“We are very excited to be able to host someone as prominent and award-winning as Ellis Marsalis,” Derr said. “Every year we try to book a Louisiana musician as part of our series. Marsalis was a natural fit.”
Marsalis’ appearance in the Union Theater won’t be his only time spent on the campus Saturday. He will take part in a music workshop titled “Ellis and Willis: A Conversation in Jazz” at the LSU School of Music with jazz studies professor Willis Delony.
Although the workshop will take place at the University, students from Southern University, Mckinley High School and Denham High School are also invited, according to Assistant Director for Theater Event Development Terry Serio.
“We would like to continue to host events centered on education,” Serio said. “It allows students to learn from one of the best in the business.”
The jazzy day is partially funded by a Decentralized Arts Funding Grant from the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge. Serio said the Union Theater applied for the grant last summer, hoping it would be able to fund both the concert and workshop. Once the grant had been approved, Serio learned it only contained enough money to pay for the workshop and part of the performance.
Marsalis said education is important in musicians’ lives and it’s important to continue financially supporting the music program at LSU.
“It is important for musicians to have a place to learn their skill and apply that in a specific field of music,” he said. “Everyone needs a strong foundation to build on.”
Marsalis likened the need for musical institutes to writing. “Someone isn’t going to just come out and write a best-selling novel,” Marsalis said. “It takes time for those writers to develop their skills. In terms of music, I certainly believe educational institutes provide musicians with that ability to practice their craft.”
 
____ Contact Joshua Bergeron at [email protected]