On February 13th at 8:00pm, UBC’s Chan Centre will be host to the world-renowned, Grammy Award winning jazz musician, Branford Marsalis. As a descendent from a famous jazz family, which includes his father Ellis Marsalis and his younger brother Wynton, who performed at the Chan in 2014, Branford carries on the family name with his incredible saxophone skills and composition abilities. Since Branford does not perform in Vancouver often, his performance is not one to be missed. To learn more about who Branford is and why his performance is a must see, HCUBC spoke with Joyce Hinton, the Co-Managing Director at the Chan Centre.
After only speaking with Joyce for a few minutes, I was already incredibly impressed with Branford’s accomplishments and connections. Although Branford’s family was certainly an inspiration for his career in jazz, Branford officially got into jazz after working with Art Blakey, a famous American drummer and bandleader. Through Blakey’s influence and mentorship, Branford learned the skills to be a great jazz musician, composer, and lover of melody. Since working with Art Blakey, Branford has collaborated with numerous talented musicians, such as Miles Davis. On top of his collaborations, Blakey was the musical director for the Late Night Show with Jay Leno and has written for Broadway.
If Branford doesn’t sound impressive to you yet, he is also a philanthropist and educator. Branford has shown much concern for the people of New Orleans and created the Musicians’ Village project in partnership with Harry Connick Jr. and Habitat for Humanity. Through this partnership, Branford has helped build affordable housing for musicians that lost their homes during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Branford has also spent a great deal of time teaching university students in the United States about jazz. Because of Branford’s interest in education, Branford has agreed to give a free talk on the same day as the performance at 11:00am in Robson Square. “It is such a bonus to have Branford speak”, says Joyce, “he’s hugely entertaining. When I heard him speak, he was a very good conversationalist. It will be a great talk for students.”
With both a free talk and a performance in one day, February 13th is bound to be amazing for those who choose to attend. Joyce encourages anyone interested in the free talk to arrive early to get a seat, since the event has been widely publicized. The performance at 8:00pm will feature Branford with his band members, which include Joey Calderazzo on piano, Eric Revis on bass, and Justin Faulkner on drums. The quartet will perform songs from their newly released album, Four MFs Playin’ Tunes, and other well known jazz songs.
If you’re interested in seeing the amazingly talented Branford and his quartet, limited discount tickets for only $15 are available for students and youth under 25. Beginning February 6th at noon, these discount student rush tickets will be on sale at the Chan’s box office, Tuesday to Saturday from noon to 5:00pm, and when shows are going on. To get your discount ticket, make sure to bring your ID and get to the box office as soon as you can. If you can’t get a rush ticket, you can still buy a ticket from the Chan box office or online. Don’t miss out on the chance to see the legendary Branford Marsalis and his quartet!