*(Via USA Today) –Â Legendary jazz pianist and teacher Ellis Marsalis Jr., the patriarch of New Orleans’ great musical family, died Wednesday at 85 due to complications of coronavirus.
“It is with great sadness that I announce the passing of my father, Ellis Marsalis Jr.,” son Branford Marsalis said in a statement, saying his father was admitted to hospital on Saturday and “died peacefully this evening.”
“My dad was a giant of a musician and teacher, but an even greater father. He poured everything he had into making us the best of what we could be,” Branford Marsalis said.
New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell marked Marsalis’ passing with a statement posted on her Twitter account.
“Ellis Marsalis was a legend. He was the prototype of what we mean when we talk about New Orleans jazz. The love and the prayers of all of our people go out to his family, and to all of those whose lives he touched,” Cantrell wrote.
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