“It’s not hard to pinpoint why Delfeayo Marsalis’ New Orleans-based Uptown Jazz Orchestra’s recent release, “Jazz Party”, and its 2016 predecessor, “Make American Great Again”, both on Troubadour Jass, and both consisting primarily of his compositions and arrangements — rank among the strongest big band discs of the past 10 years…One attribute is a percolating rhythmic palette — relentless funk and gospel grooves, ebullient second-line syncopations, Afro-Caribbean-flavored street beats, undulating old-school press rolls, the distinctive flow of nouveau swing. Then there’s the breathe-as-one synchronicity of the woodwind and brass sections honed during more than a decade of Wednesday gigs at the eminent New Orleans nightclub Snug Harbor,” states DOWNBEAT MAGAZINE.
NEA Jazz Master & GRAMMY® Award-Winning Jazz Producer, Composer & Trombonist DELFEAYO MARSALIS & THE UPTOWN JAZZ ORCHESTRA are one of the best Big Band Jazz Ensembles in the world today. Delfeayo Marsalis is one of the top Trombonists, Composers & Producers in Jazz. Along with the Marsalis family of musicians including his father Ellis, he was destined to a life in music. Delfeayo is brother to Wynton Marsalis (Trumpeter), Brandford Marsalis (Saxophonist), and Jason Marsalis (Drummer). Marsalis has toured internationally with jazz legends such as Ray Charles, Art Blakey, Max Roach, Elvin Jones and Slide Hampton, as well as leading his own groups. In 2008, Delfeayo formed the Uptown Jazz Orchestra, a highly entertaining ensemble that focuses on maintaining important jazz traditions such as New Orleans polyphony & spontaneous arrangements. "Hearing Delfeayo deliver wonderfully woozy lyrical lines, full-bore solos, and the occasional artful gliss is pure joy," raves ALL ABOUT JAZZ.