Author Description

Companion book to the popular PBS-TV series Marsalis on Music, introducing families, children, and music-hungry readers of all ages to the joy of good music, both classical and jazz. With an unrivaled freshness, charm, and sense of fun, Wynton Marsalis steps forward not only as a world-renowned jazz and classical performer, but as a great teacher in the tradition of Leonard Bernstein's Young People's Concerts. Using wonderfully appealing examples and analogies—likening the rhythmic structures of music to playing basketball or football, teaching sonata form through a story about chasing a pet hamster through a shopping mall, drawing unprecedented and revealing connections between classical music and jazz—Wynton Marsalis makes so-called "difficult" music vivid, immediately graspable, and most of all fun. The result is the perfect book for families and schools eager to give children a strong cultural foundation without boring them—no risk of that here!—or for anyone who has ever felt interested in "serious" music only to be intimidated by its intricacies. The most popular and acclaimed jazz musician and composer of his generation, Wynton Marsalis is also one of the world's leading classical trumpet virtuosos. Throughout his career he has made room for extensive work with children and students. He is co-founder and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center.