Wynton Marsalis
Democracy, by all accounts, is the heartbeat of America. If there is a soundtrack for democracy—and, for that matter, America—it’s jazz. Wynton Marsalis knows this to be true.
“Jazz music is the perfect metaphor for democracy,” the Grammy Award-winning trumpeter explains in a video on his website. “We improvise, which is our individual right and freedom. We swing, which means we are responsible to nurture the common good and find balance. And we play the blues, which means no matter how bad things get, we remain optimistic while still mindful of problems.”
In honor of that alignment, and in anticipation of the upcoming presidential election, Marsalis has composed The Democracy Suite, a composition that musically explores the purpose and challenge of what for some remains an elusive social concept. The suite will be presented starting October 30 in “The Sounds of Democracy,” a virtual concert sponsored by the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts.
A performance of the eight-movement suite written by Marsalis earlier this year was filmed September 27 by the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra Septet at the Frederick P. Rose Hall in New York City. In addition to trumpeter Marsalis, who serves as JLCO’s managing and artistic director, the seven-member group includes Elliot Mason on trombone, Ted Nash on alto saxophone and flute, Walter Blanding on tenor and soprano saxophone, Carlos Henriquez on bass, Obed Calvaire on drums, and Milwaukee native Dan Nimmer on piano.
In addition to urging people to vote on or before November 3, the composition musically explores various aspects of democracy, from “Ballot Box Bounce” to “Deeper than Dreams” to “That’s When All Will See,” all subtitles of individual movements. The trumpeter believes that while the music and social concepts align, so do the founding statesmen and players for both democracy and jazz.
“I like to think about the (nation’s) founders and all the geniuses and men of accomplishment in terms of the first beboppers like Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Thelonious Monk,” Marsalis says. “They were working out the fundamentals of an idea, or a way to play that featured very, very quick thinking and adjustment, within a light framework and filled it with things of genius that also can be amended in the same way that we work under the (U.S.) Constitution.”
In articulating that “light framework,” Marsalis notes that for all it contains the U.S. Constitution is far shorter than many if not most state constitutions. Much like jazz, the U.S. Constitution’s open concepts allow for amendments and interpretation, a good thing provided all who approach it do so seriously, conscientiously and cooperatively. “One thing you learn as a jazz musician is how to listen,” Marsalis says. “We do not know what other people will play, so it’s very important for us to follow them very, very closely. We have a saying: If you want to find something new to play, listen to the person next to you.
“The question that confronts us now as a nation is do we want to find a better way?” he adds. “If we answer affirmatively, we’ll make it through these issues. But if we decide, no, we want to be our worst selves, then we’re going to struggle.”
Tickets for “The Sounds of Democracy” are available for $10 per household and can be purchased by visiting the Marcus Center's website. Subscribers will receive a link to the broadcast starting at 6 p.m. on Oct. 30, and the performance will be available through midnight Nov. 3.
