Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis

ENSEMBLE ARTS PHILLY PRESENTS,
JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER ORCHESTRA
WITH WYNTON MARSALIS
IN A ONE-NIGHT-ONLY PERFORMANCE
SHOWCASING THE RENOWNED GROUP’S
VAST REPERTOIRE,
JUNE 15, 2025

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (May 12, 2025) – Ensemble Arts Philly presents the anticipated return of the arguably best jazz big band in the world and keepers of the living history of jazz, Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, inside Marian Anderson Hall on Sunday, June 15, 2025, at 5:00 p.m.

This one-night-only performance will include the Best of the JLCO with Wynton Marsalis, showcasing the world-class improvisers, arrangers, and composers who alongside Wynton Marsalis have redefined big band music. Music directed by Marsalis, Best of the JLCO showcases works and arrangements from orchestra members Chris Crenshaw, Vincent Gardner, Victor Goines, Carlos Henriquez, Sherman Irby, Ted Nash, Dan Nimmer, and Marcus Printup.

Founded in 1988, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis tours the world performing a vast repertoire of music, from beloved standards to historic and rare compositions to commissioned works. A veritable treasure trove of jazz then, jazz now, and jazz to be, the group’s compositions and arrangements include works by Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Fletcher Henderson, Thelonious Monk, Mary Lou Williams, Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, and Charles Mingus, as well as new music from the groups unrivaled collection of world-renowned composers and arrangers.

“Hosting Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra is a tradition for Ensemble Arts, akin to presenting a vivid symphony of history, innovation, and soul,” said Frances Egler, Vice President of Theatrical Programming and Presentations. “In a city that runs on creativity and a deep artistic spirit, we are preserving and shaping jazz here at home through appearances from the best jazz artists in the world, a commitment to a yearly jazz lineup, and jazz education programs for young artists.”

In 1988 the Orchestra was formed as an outgrowth of its concert series, Classical Jazz, with David Berger conducting. When Wynton Marsalis became artistic director in 1991, he emphasized the history of jazz, particularly Duke Ellington. The first album was Portraits by Ellington (1992), and seven years later the Ellington centennial was honored with the album Live in Swing City: Swingin’ with the Duke (1999).

Under the leadership of Marsalis, the band performs at its home The House of Swing, tours throughout the U.S. and abroad, visits schools, appears on television, and performs with symphony orchestras. The Orchestra backed Wynton Marsalis on his album Blood on the Fields, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1997.

Since 2015, the Orchestra’s albums have been issued on its own label, Blue Engine Records. The first release from Blue Engine Records, Live in Cuba, was recorded on a historic 2010 trip to Havana by the JLCO and released in October 2015. The label issued Big Band Holidays in December 2015, The Abyssinian Mass in March 2016, The Music of John Lewis in March 2017, and the JLCO’s Handful of Keys in September 2017.

Blue Engine’s United We Swing: Best of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Galas features the Wynton Marsalis Septet and an array of special guests, with all proceeds going toward Jazz at Lincoln Center’s education initiatives. Blue Engine’s most recent album releases (2023) include Wynton Marsalis Plays Louis Armstrong’s Hot Fives and Hot Sevens and The Jungle, a recording of Marsalis’ fourth symphony featuring the JLCO and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.

Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis’ performance is a part of Ensemble Arts Philly’s Jazz Series. Other featured upcoming performances include Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass & Other Delights (May 15, 2025, Miller Theater); Nate Smith (October 11, 2025, Perelman Theater); An Evening with Samara Joy (November 11, 2025, Miller Theater); Béla Fleck & the Flecktones: Jingle All the Way (December 12, 2025, Miller Theater); Alfredo Rodriguez & Pedrito Martínez (January 22, 2026, Perelman Theater); Kurt Elling: Wildflowers (February 27, 2026, Perelman Theater); Emmet Cohen: Miles and Coltrane at 100 (March 20, 2026, Miller Theater); Endea Owens & The Cookout (March 28, 2026, Perelman Theater); Christian McBride & Edgar Meyer (April 21, 2026, Miller Theater); Rhiannon Giddens (May 5, 2026, Miller Theater); and Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis (May 26, 2026, Marian Anderson Hall).

Tickets
Tickets can be purchased online at  www.ensembleartsphilly.org or by calling 215-893-1999. In-person ticket sales can be conducted daily from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. at the Academy of Music Box Office, located at 240 S. Broad Street. See  www.ensembleartsphilly.org for more information.

Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis
Marian Anderson Hall
Sunday, June 15, 2025, 5:00 p.m. 

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