Ellis Marsalis Junior, an American pianist, who fathered Wynton and Branford Marsalis, two of US’ celebrated jazz performers, is dead at 86.

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According to the New York Times, Branford said his dad died on Wednesday from complications of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

LaToya Cantrell, mayor of his home town New Orleans, also took to social media to confirm his death.

“Ellis Marsalis was a legend, the prototype of what we mean when we talk about New Orleans jazz,” Cantrell wrote.

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“The love and the prayers of all of our people go out to his family, and to all of those whose lives he touched.

“Ellis Marsalis was an icon — and words aren’t sufficient to describe the art, the joy & the wonder he showed the world.

“May we wrap his family in our love & our gratitude, & may we honor his memory by coming together in spirit— even as the outbreak keeps us apart, for a time.

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Marsalis was an acclaimed pianist who helped bring the bebop style to New Orleans, where swing and big-band jazz had dominated.

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He played alongside Ornette Coleman, featured on a recording alongside Nat and Cannonball Adderley, the hard bop stars, and has 20 solo albums to his name.

Marsalis spent decades as a working musician and teacher before his eldest sons came into the limelight in the early 1980s, embodying after reportedly reviving traditional jazz.



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