The Ellis Marsalis Center for Music officially opens in the Musicians' Village of New Orleans

On the sixth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, one of the most positive responses to the catastrophe that devastated New Orleans was unveiled – The Ellis Marsalis Center for Music. Located at 1901 Bartholomew Street in the heart of the Musicians’ Village in the Upper Ninth Ward, and named for one of the city’s most influential pianists, educators and living legends, the Center will serve as a state of the art facility for the preservation and ongoing development of New Orleans music and culture.

Branford Marsalis & Joey Calderazzo release their first duo album, Songs of Mirth and Melancholy, after working together in the band setting for over ten years. The duo took the stage at Koerner Hall in Toronto, Ontario to present the world premiere of this project at the 2011 TD Toronto Jazz Festival on June 29, 2011.

Branford joins the Basque National Orchestra in San Sebastián and Bilbao, Spain for a series of performances. Conducted by Andrey Boreyko, Marsalis and the Orchestra performed Glazunov’s “Concert for Saxophone and Orchestra” and Schulhoff’s “Jazz Concerto for Saxophone and Orchestra.”

The official release date for Sting's new CD and DVD Live In Berlin. Branford Marsalis performs on several of the songs including "Englishman In New York," "Desert Rose," and "Mad About You."

Branford Marsalis begins select US performances with trumpeter Terence Blanchard on October 1st and 2nd at Jazz At Lincoln Center’s Rose Theater in New York, NY and continues with performances through the spring of 2012.

Recorded at a live concert in Washington, DC honoring the family’s patriarch and the Duke Ellington Jazz Festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Ellis Marsalis, The Marsalis Family, releases Music Redeems. All proceeds from the sale of the album will go to educational programming at the Ellis Marsalis Center for Music in the Musicians’ Village of New Orleans.

Branford Marsalis makes his debut with the New York Philharmonic

Making his debut with the New York Philharmonic, Branford Marsalis performed on the Great Lawn of Central Park alongside conductor Andrey Boreyko. Performing Glazunov’s “Concerto for Alto Saxophone” and Schulhoff’s “Hot-Sonate for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra,” Marsalis performed the same program again with the New York Philharmonic in Vail, CO later during the summer and then at Lincoln Center in New York, NY the following February.