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Marsalis' Sharp Social Critiques Come with Cool Riffs

Wynton Marsalis plays his Steinway baby grand piano at his home in New York. His latest CD is <em>From the Plantation to the Penitentiary</em>.
Alison MacAdam, NPR
Wynton Marsalis plays his Steinway baby grand piano at his home in New York. His latest CD is From the Plantation to the Penitentiary.

Every decade or so, says jazz trumpeter Wynton Marsalis, he likes to set his social views to music.

The last time around, it was Blood on the Fields, which won the 1997 Pulitzer Prize in music, a first for a jazz composition.

Marsalis is playing the role of provocateur again with his latest CD, From the Plantation to the Penitentiary. The songs criticize hip-hop culture, what he sees as a lack of strong black leadership, and an abundance of "gimme-that" materialism.

In New York, Marsalis directs the Jazz at Lincoln Center program. From his apartment just up the street, he talks to Michele Norris about his newest release, why lyrics rather than the trumpet take center stage, and what his teenage son thinks about some of the songs.

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.