Wynton Marsalis: The Shanghai Suite

Wynton Marsalis chastised Miles Davis for taking jazz beyond its tradition. In The Shanghai Suite, Marsalis and his Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra take jazz to China. No crime in that. The results are quite fascinating. In “Hot Pot!,” Marsalis plays his unmistakable intro solo before the big band joins in swimming. “Li Bai’s Blues” fuses western and eastern instruments together to create a mournful emotion. From the western blues to the easter winds, I enjoyed the entire suite.