Delfeayo Marsalis

It's long been taken for granted that leading figures in the classical music world devote much of their effort to conducting or otherwise interpreting the great work of the music's past. Another sign that jazz has reached similar ends is the new CD by trombonist Delfeayo Marsalis. With the aid of crack musicians, including brothers Branford and Jason, Marsalis records one of Duke Ellington's ambitious, suite-like compositions. Such Sweet Thunder, commissioned in 1957 by Ontario's Stratford Shakespeare Festival in honor of the Bard, receives a new arrangement honoring Ellington's conception while giving the music a fresh instrumental voice. Marsalis isn't updating a classic, but rather reshaping the Duke's orchestral sound within the tradition. Brother Wynton, hunkered down in Jazz at Lincoln Center, is probably proud.