Grammy-winning trumpeter Wynton Marsalis will be performing in St. Louis next week as part of an eight city tour of Abyssinian: A Gospel Celebration, a piece he composed in honor of the 200th anniversary of a Baptist church in Harlem.
Abyssinian models a traditional Baptist church service and features the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and Chorale Le Chateau in addition to Marsalis.
"Ultimately for me, all of my music is kind of about uplift and bringing people together and showing the connections we have," said Marsalis. "And this piece is just another part of that and a chance to investigate all the different types of religious and spiritual music I’ve had the opportunity to play and be a part of."
The St. Louis performance of Abyssinian is presented by Jazz St. Louis. Bringing the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra to St. Louis has been a goal of Jazz St. Louis for awhile now, said executive director Gene Dobbs Bradford. And now they have, with a piece he is enthusiastic to present.
"This is a celebration," said Bradford. "It follows the forms of the mass and the things that you've heard from other great masters like Bach and Mozart. And it’s got the music of the African American church, which really is at the foundation of American music."
Related Events
Jazz St. Louis Presents the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis and the Chorale Le Chateau in Abyssinian: A Gospel Celebration
Friday, October 18, 2013
8:00 p.m.
UMSL's Touhill Performing Arts Center
For more information, call 314-516-4949 or visit the Touhill Performing Arts Center website.
Cityscape is produced by Mary Edwards and Alex Heuer, hosted by Steve Potter and funded in part by the the Arts and Education Council of Greater St. Louis, the Regional Arts Commission and the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency.
