Wynton Marsalis to step down as managing and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center

Wynton Marsalis, the trumpeter and founder of Jazz at Lincoln Center, will step down as the organization’s managing and artistic director in July 2027, the organization announced on Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026, after nearly 40 years with the institution. As part of a phased transition, Marsalis will step down as artistic director in July 2027 and then serve in an advisory role through the end of his contract in June 2028; he will retain a board position in perpetuity.

Marsalis said, “It’s the perfect time to identify the next generation of leadership,” and that he intended to provide “institutional memory and insight, but not oversight.” Marsalis’s prominence as a worldwide ambassador for jazz is central to the institution’s identity: he is praised for raising the profile of jazz nationwide and is noted for being “comfortable schmoozing with celebrities” as well as explaining jazz to schoolchildren.

Gordon J. Davis, the founding chairman, said, “Wynton raised it up to make it what it should be: a true art of American culture.” Clarence Otis, the chairman of the board, said, “Wynton will continue to be an important contributor.” The organization said Marsalis will continue to perform with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra on occasion, though his absence will be palpable.

Jazz at Lincoln Center began in 1987 as a summer series and later opened its permanent “House of Swing” in 2004 at the Time Warner Center, now the Deutsche Bank Center at Columbus Circle. Frederick P.

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