Wynton Marsalis to Step Down as Artistic Director of Jazz at Lincoln Center

Aafter nearly 40 years of leadership, Wynton Marsalis will be transitioning from his current role as the artistic and administrative leader at Jazz at Lincoln Center over the next two and a half years.

As part of a phased transition plan, Mr. Marsalis will continue as Artistic Director during the 2026-27 season. Beginning in July 2027, he will continue to serve on the staff in an advisory capacity as Founder through the end of his contract in June 2028. Subsequently, Mr. Marsalis will continue to serve on JALC’s Board as Founder in perpetuity. This announcement marks the beginning of a transition process that will honor and preserve Mr. Marsalis’ legacy and ensure that JALC’s mission and identity continue to thrive. It also comes at a moment of exceptional strength for Jazz at Lincoln Center.

The organization has made remarkable strides in three areas that are critical to its mission: performance, education, and advocacy. As a primary tenet of its long-range plan, JALC has expanded the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra’s season, while adding talented new musicians and maintaining strong concert sales at home and on the road. Signature education programs have grown substantially, including increasing the numbers of high school bands from all over the world participating in JALC’s annual Essentially Ellington competition; and extending the Let Freedom Swing program to serve more students in New York City, while expanding to other parts of the country. Other important Jazz at Lincoln Center initiatives have become established fixtures in the jazz community, including the annual Jazz Congress conference and Blue Engine Records, which continues to release work drawn from JALC’s fully digitized archive of thousands of performances. These and many other accomplishments make this a natural moment to announce a planned leadership transition.

In preparation for this transition, the Board has appointed two special committees: 1) a committee to collaborate with Mr. Marsalis on identifying the next generation of JALC’s artistic leadership, including future Artistic Director candidates; and 2) a committee to lead the search for JALC’s next Executive Director, replacing Greg Scholl whose resignation takes effect in June 2026. The work of the two committees has already begun with the goal of appointing a new Executive Director by late spring to overlap with Mr. Scholl and identifying a new Artistic Director by fall 2026. In this new leadership structure, an Executive Director and an Artistic Director will serve as equal partners reporting to the Board of Directors.

Mr. Marsalis will continue to be deeply engaged with the music as a composer, performer, educator, and advocate and will continue to work with the archives of the institution. As Founder and member of JALC’s Board, he will continue to play a role in shaping JALC’s artistic direction and operational strategy. While Mr. Marsalis will also relinquish his current duties in the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, he will continue to play with the Orchestra on occasion and at select concerts in the House of Swing and other venues, whether performing his own work or as a guest of other ensembles.

At the height of a successful solo career, Mr. Marsalis refocused his virtuosity, effort, and energy to establish Jazz at Lincoln Center. Through a tireless dedication to quality that has encompassed the entirety of Mr. Marsalis’ professional career, JALC has developed into the world’s premier jazz institution and a hub for advancing the appreciation, understanding, and performance of jazz, recognized as a constituent of Lincoln Center as the equal to all the great performing arts.

From a 1987 summer concert series, in less than two decades, Mr. Marsalis led the organization to owning and operating Frederick P. Rose Hall, the House of Swing, an exceptional arts complex in Midtown Manhattan dedicated to presenting, recording, and teaching jazz. His work has also led to a stable, professionally managed organization offering a wide array of quality programs; a peerless library of recordings, scores, and other music assets; a growing endowment; a deeply engaged Board; and a clear, carefully considered plan for continued development and growth.

At 18 years old, Mr. Marsalis was hailed as the figure who would usher in a jazz renaissance. The true revitalization of the music, Mr. Marsalis believes, began in 1987, with the founding of Jazz at Lincoln Center, whose growth—and the dedication of concerned citizens who came together to help form the organization—had an international impact. Through his work with JALC and beyond, Mr. Marsalis has commanded unparalleled and unwavering public appreciation and support of jazz music and cultivating the next generation of musicians who play it.

Among the many musicians who performed on Jazz at Lincoln Center’s stages or were part of its education programs early in their careers are Jon Batiste, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Emmet Cohen, Nicole Glover, Julian Lee, Sean Mason, Samara Joy, Sam Chess, and Domo Branch. Over the past 39 years, Jazz at Lincoln Center has also commissioned new works by a distinguished group of artists, including Benny Carter, Chico O’Farrill, Jimmy Heath, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Paquito D’Rivera, Geri Allen, Maria Schneider, Roy Hargrove, Carlos Henriquez, and Joe Block.

Across generations and styles, Jazz at Lincoln Center’s stages have welcomed an extraordinary range of artists, among them Benny Carter, Betty Carter, Carmen De Lavallade, Wayne Shorter, Yacub Addy and Odadaa!, Willie Nelson, Chick Corea, Marty Stuart, Renée Fleming, Natalie Merchant, Naseer Shamma, Susan Tedeschi & Derek Trucks, and Rhiannon Giddens, alongside countless others.

Jazz at Lincoln Center’s 2026-27 season will be an international celebration of Mr. Marsalis’ iconic career and indelible influence and contributions. The season lineup will be announced in February 2026.