Wynton Marsalis Band Quotations

My older brother and myself always played together in bands, but we never knew we would be professional musicians.

There's the tradition in jazz of having the Battle of the Bands, and you do not want to get your head cut when you're playing.

I got my first trumpet when I was six years old, from Al Hirt. My father was playing in Al Hirt's band at that time.

The majority of the high schools and the public schools in N.Y.C. don't even have band programs. Hip-hop in a lot of ways is an outgrowth of a lack of instruments and a desire to play music, so we can't really fault the kids for that.

Benny Goodman's band was integrated before baseball. Even before it was physically integrated, music was integrated. Everyone listened to Armstrong and Ellington. The 20s was called the Jazz Age. It's part of being American.