Arts and Culture

Wynton Marsalis Takes Concertgoers Through a Symphony of Blues

Published

11 years ago

February 10, 2015

By Breanna Edwards, The Root

Taking their seats, the symphony orchestra begins with a wave of the conductor’s baton, led by the cheerful sound of the piccolo and the rhythm of the drums—which the program notes is supposed to signify the American Revolution and the birth of the possibility of the blues.

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On Wednesday night, the Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda, Md., played host to Wynton Marsalis’ Blues Symphony for hundreds who turned out—filling the expansive hall all the way to the balconies—to witness the premiere of the award-winning musician’s ambitious journey to chart the history of the blues throughout America.

No ordinary piece of work from the renowned trumpeter, the six-movement piece, a fusion of different types of music, bestows the feel of the blues, all through the use of orchestral instruments.

Of course, Marsalis isn’t the first to fuse different genres of music together, but what makes his piece unique, he says, is his insider knowledge of both classical and jazz.

“I think I may be the first one who really is in the inside of jazz and the inside of classical music the way I’ve been since I was a kid,” Marsalis told The Root Tuesday during a dress rehearsal before the performance. “People have tried to put the two forms together, but I’m trying to be inside of the actual reality of it from a jazz musician’s perspective.”

Wynton Marsalis playing with his quintet. CHRIS BURCH

The piece was years in the making, Marsalis having partially unveiled it in 2010 with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. However, the commitment required significant rehearsal time to pull off with an entire 100-piece symphony orchestra, often a luxury for a top-tier professional group, thus delaying the work’s premiere.

With Marsalis partnering with the Shenandoah Conservatory, its symphony orchestra and Washington Performing Arts, the debut was finally made possible. The piece was made part of the orchestra’s curriculum, allowing for the grueling practice needed to see the symphony’s full potential. Even as the musicians practiced, the piece was edited here and there and fine-tuned. Marsalis is under no impressions of grandeur. Music to him is living and ever ongoing.

“Every piece is ongoing,” Marsalis said. “I work on the pieces, and they come and we continue to work on them and they improve over time.”

Even with this symphony, which he worked on for years, he wrote it in such a way as to allow some other musician down the line to be able to learn and take from him.

“I put enough of the ideas down to give them just a blueprint. It covers a wide range of music, from church music to Brazilian choro to Cuban danzón to ragtime to different types of jazz … spiritual … New Orleans counterpoint,” the nine-time Grammy Award-winning artist said. “[There are] many different questions in it.”

Many different questions, and many different answers, and as the audience sat there Wednesday in the vast hall listening to the students play for a little over an hour without a pause between movements, they were transported to the streets of New Orleans, Cuba and Brazil, even to the streets of New York, for which the sounds of bustling traffic came through via the orchestra.

Jan Wagner conducting the Shenandoah Conservatory Symphony Orchestra’s performance of Blues Symphony. CHRIS BURCH

It begs a mention that before the orchestra wowed the audience, Marsalis brought out his quintet, consisting of Walter Blanding (tenor saxophone), Dan Nimmer (piano), Carlos Henriquez (bass) and Ali Jackson Jr. (drums), to start the show with a bang. They blew through piece after piece in a full set lasting about an hour, with Marsalis engaging the audience, at one point even leaving the stage to play among the attendees.

When the show was over, some 1,800 people rose to their feet, whistling and cheering. The students in the orchestra had done Marsalis proud; but of course, he had expected no less with the work they put in.

“For me it’s a learning experience, I want [the students] to enjoy themselves,” Marsalis said. “I want them to feel great about all the experiences they have in music ….They practiced a lot [and] I’m pleased with the effort.”

“The type of respect they’ve shown me and that they’ve shown to the music, and the seriousness they’ve brought to it? Yeah, I’m proud!” he added.

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Activism

Essay: Intentional Self Care and Community Connections Can Improve Our Wellbeing

At the deepest and also most expansive level of reality, we are all part of the same being, our bodies made from the minerals of the earth, our spirits infused by the spiritual breath that animates the universe. Willingness to move more deeply into fear and pain is the first step toward moving into a larger consciousness. Willingness to move beyond the delusion of our separateness can show us new ways of working and living together.

Published

1 month ago

October 27, 2025

Oakland Post

Lorraine Bonner is a retired physician. She is also a sculptor who works in clay, exploring issues of trust, trustworthiness and exploitation, as well as visions of a better world.

By Dr. Lorraine Bonner, Special to California Black Media Partners

I went to a medical school that was steeped in the principles of classical Western medicine. However, I also learned mindfulness meditation during that time, which opened me to the multifaceted relationship between illnesses and the interconnecting environmental, mental and emotional realities that can impact an individual’s health.

Therefore, when I began to practice medicine, I also pursued training in hypnosis, relaxation techniques, meditation, and guided imagery, to bring a mind-body focus to my work in medical care and prevention.

The people I saw in my practice had a mix of problems, including high blood pressure, diabetes, and a variety of pain issues. I taught almost everyone relaxation breathing and made some general relaxation tapes. To anyone willing, I offered guided imagery.

“My work embraced an approach to wellness I call “Liberatory Health” — one that not only addresses the treatment and management of disease symptoms but also seeks to dismantle the conditions that make people sick in the first place.”

From my perspective, illness is only the outermost manifestation of our efforts to cope, often fueled by addictions such as sugar, tobacco, or alcohol, shackled by an individualistic cult belief that we have only ourselves to blame for our suffering.

To put these ideas into practical form, I would quote the immortal Mr. Rogers: “Find the helpers.” There are already people in every community working for liberation. Some of them are running for office, others are giving food to those who need it. Some are volunteering in schools, libraries or hospitals. Some are studying liberation movements, or are working in urban or community gardens, or learning to practice restorative and transformative justice, or creating liberation art, music, dance, theater or writing. Some are mentoring high schoolers or apprenticing young people in a trade. There are many places where compassionate humans are finding other humans and working together for a better world.

A more compassionate world is possible, one in which we will all enjoy better health. Creating it will make us healthier, too.

In community, we are strong. Recognizing denial and overcoming the fragmenting effects of spiritual disorder offer us a path to liberation and true health.

Good health and well-being are the collective rights of all people!

About the Author

Dr. Lorraine Bonner is a retired physician. She is also a sculptor who works in clay, exploring issues of trust, trustworthiness and exploitation, as well as visions of a better world.

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Activism

A Call to Save Liberty Hall: Oakland’s Beacon of Black Heritage Faces an Uncertain Future

For generations, Liberty Hall has been more than bricks and wood — it has been a spiritual and cultural sanctuary for Black Oakland. The building once served as a hub for Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), where Garvey’s call for economic independence and Pan-African unity resonated through the hearts of a people newly migrating to the West in search of freedom and dignity.

Published

1 month ago

October 27, 2025

Oakland Post

Liberty Hall at 1483-1485 8th St., in Oakland was built in 1877 as a store and residence. Wikimedia photo.

Special to The Post

On a quiet corner near the West Oakland BART Station stands a weathered but proud monument to African American history — the Universal Negro Improvement Association’s Liberty Hall, also known as the Marcus Garvey Building. Built in 1877, this two-story Italianate landmark has witnessed more than a century of struggle, self-determination, and community empowerment. Now, its survival hangs in the balance.

Local 188 of UNIA was the largest chapter in Northern California when the organization bought the building in 1925, but a fire burned the roof in 1931, and the chapter sold the building in 1933. The International Peace Movement, founded by Father Divine, used the building through the 1950s.

Since then, the building has been a meeting ground for civil rights organizers, artists, and educators like Overcomers With Hope who have carried that same flame of liberation through Oakland’s turbulent decades.

Today, local cultural organizer and artist Douglas “Pharoah” Stewart has stepped forward to lead the charge to save Liberty Hall. Stewart is already facing “Cultural Eviction” at the Oakland Cannery, and through his organization, Indigenous House, Stewart has rallied a coalition of artists, educators, historians, and community leaders to preserve and restore the site as a community-owned cooperative center — a place where arts, wellness, and economic empowerment can thrive for future generations.

“Liberty Hall is not just a building — it’s a living ancestor,” Stewart says. “This space gave birth to movements that shaped who we are as a people. If we lose this, we lose a piece of our soul.”

Stewart envisions transforming the historic landmark into a multi-purpose cooperative hub — complete with a cultural museum, community performance space, youth tech labs, and creative studios for local entrepreneurs. His vision echoes Garvey’s own: “A place where we can rise together, economically, spiritually, and culturally.”

But the fight is urgent. The aging building faces structural challenges, and time is running short to secure preservation funding. Stewart and his team are now calling on city officials, foundations, athletes, and celebrities to join forces with the community to raise the necessary capital for acquisition and restoration.

“We’re inviting everyone — from the Oakland A’s to local artists, from Golden State Warriors players to Black-owned businesses — to stand with us,” Stewart urges. “Let’s make Liberty Hall a model for what preservation can look like when the people lead.”

The Liberty Hall Project aligns with Oakland’s growing movement to protect historic Black cultural sites — places like Esther’s Orbit Room, Marcus Bookstore, and the California Hotel. For Stewart, Liberty Hall represents a chance to bridge the city’s past with its future, transforming preservation into a living, breathing act of justice.

“This is not nostalgia,” Stewart says. “This is nation-building. It’s about creating sustainable, community-owned spaces that honor our ancestors and empower our youth.”

As development pressures mount across West Oakland, Liberty Hall stands as a powerful reminder of resilience, resistance, and rebirth. The question now is whether the community — and those with the power to help — will answer the call.

For donations, partnerships, or information about the Liberty Hall Cooperative Development Project, contact Indigenous House at www.indigenoushouse.org Douglas Stewart dstewart.wealth@gmail.com

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Activism

MLK Way at 57th Street in Oakland Renamed Bobby Seale Way for Black Panther Co-Founder

In 1962, Bobby Seale and Virtual Murrell cofounded the first known Black student organization called the Soul Students Advisory Council at Oakland City College located at 57th and Grove streets, now MLK. Jr. Way.

Published

1 month ago

October 27, 2025

Oakland Post

Promotional flyer for the renaming event. Courtesy photo.

By Zac Unger

We are so proud to honor the legacy of the great Bobby Seale by commemoratively renaming 57^th Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Way to Bobby Seale Way in North Oakland. Seale, 88, has dedicated his life to advancing social justice, racial equality, and community self-determination. He played an essential part in the history of our country by co-founding the Black Panther Party for Self Defense in Oakland in 1966 with the late Huey Newton.

Our City has a tremendous history of activism, and it is a legacy we are proud of and strive to continue as our community and country face so many incredible challenges right now.

In 1962, Bobby Seale and Virtual Murrell cofounded the first known Black student organization called the Soul Students Advisory Council at Oakland City College, located at 57th and Grove streets, now MLK. Jr. Way.

Later, they cofounded the first Negro history class, which led to the establishment of the first Black Studies program in college curricula in the country. Murrell is scheduled to introduce Seale at the street dedication.

The author of “Seize the Time,” Seale ran for mayor of Oakland in 1973, coming in second in a field of nine. We are proud to memorialize his legacy by renaming this street so that we do not forget the legacy and change he has made.