Branford Marsalis was only in Alexandria for just a few days, but the memories of his visit will last a lifetime. He thrilled the audience with his performance with the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra (ASO) on Saturday evening, delighted the guests who attended the brunch at Suzanne Brock's home and inspired the students and audience who participated in his Master Class held at The Lyceum.
Perhaps, however, what will be most remembered is his humility. Despite his talent and fame, Marsalis was down to earth and very accessible. Even when somebody asked him about his brother who used to be the band leader on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, he didn't ostracize. He merely informed them that it was himself, not his brother, who was the band leader, and that he left the show in 1995.
When asked why he decided to perform with the symphony, he said, "They put it on my calendar and I came."
For him, there was no question about whether or not he would come. He said that the ASO concert was great and he was excited about the Master Class as well. Marsalis said that he would be happy to participate in more educational opportunities; unfortunately many directors are not secure enough in their teaching philosophy to let someone as well known as Marsalis come in and teach, especially when it [may be] a different philosophy.
Suzanne Best, ASO board member, said that when she found out that Marsalis was from the town where her mother lives, [Durham, N.C.] she asked if he would talk to her mother on the phone.
"He probably talked to her for about 20 minutes, they talked about last year's concert where he performed in Durham," said Best. "The classiest thing was when he went and sat with the orchestra and performed. He is a first-rate guy."
Best's guest, Dave Millard, said, "What a thrill for the musicians who joined him for the encore. This was my first symphony event and I had a wonderful time."
THE MOMENTS MENTIONED were two of the highlights of Saturday evening's performance at the Rachel Schlesinger Center in Alexandria. After performing as the soloist for the first two pieces of the concert, Marsalis came back for the third piece and took a seat in the woodwind section with the other orchestra players. After the fourth selection where he again performed as soloist, he played an encore, a selection from his new CD, "Romare Bearden Revealed."
Lisa Brock said that the encore was her favorite.
"The whole concert was special, but that encore with the jazz quartet brought tears to my eyes. My father would have loved it," she said.
How fitting that the concert was underwritten in memory of Harry L. Brock, Jr., Lisa Brock's father. The founder of Metrocall, he died on Sept. 18, 2000. His wife, Suzanne, was invited to join the symphony board by her good friends, Gail and Stan Krejci, a few years ago. She underwrote one of the concerts last year as well as this one.
Suzanne Brock enjoyed the concert and said, "Harry would have liked this, it would have been our wedding anniversary."
Maestro Kim Allen Kluge said that he and the ASO board had initially looked at a large list of performers, but he suggested that they select Marsalis for three reasons.
"He surprises people and changes their perception about what music is; he's a rare musician who can do classical and jazz equally well; and he is inspired by cross-arts projects," said Kluge.
The thing that people commented on numerous times was the rapport between Kluge and Marsalis. Kluge himself admits, "We were obviously having a good time on stage. We were interacting like jazzers."
Marsalis had mutual admiration for Kluge, "He's great˜he loves music and hasn't lost that fire," said Marsalis.
Marsalis said that he was not involved in selecting the pieces for the concert, but that he was given them before the show.
"Music is a stretch, and all pieces are hard for different reasons. I try to be the best musician I can be," he said.
AT THE MASTER CLASS, Marsalis was equally at ease, working with the three finalists of the Mary Graham Lasley Scholarship Competition Finals. Working with saxophonist Doug O‚Connor from the University of Maryland, Marsalis told him, "There's a tremendous amount of tension you can create with the music."
Marsalis lamented that saxophonists have "third world status" because there's not as much material written for the instrument and because 80 percent of the audience doesn't appreciate the technical aspect of the playing.
"It doesn't have to be that way; it [the saxophone] is one of the more creative instruments. People tell me all the time, 'I didn't know a saxophone could sound like that.'"