Wynton Marsalis - 'Louis': Screen & Score

Askonas Holt are delighted to present a screen and score version of “Louis” – a film about the early life of jazz legend and trumpeter Louis Armstrong. Featuring world-renowned trumpeter, bandleader and composer, Wynton Marsalis, this unique project will be touring Europe in May 2025.

Released in 2010 and directed by Dan Pritzker, this Charlie Chaplin-esque film takes the viewer through the trials and tribulations of Louis Armstrong’s rise to fame from boyhood. The score is accompanied by a live band of 14 virtuoso musicians – led by Wynton, together with pianist Cecil Licad.

Based on Armstrong’s original compositions, the score also includes Wynton’s own contemporary arrangements of classic tunes like Jelly Roll Morton’s Black Bottom Stomp, Duke Ellington’s Happy Go Lucky Local and Charles Mingus’ Boogie Stop Shuffle. It also features pieces by the 19th-century Creole composer Louis Moreau Gottschalk, played by Cecile Licad. The 25-minute prelude to the film really gets the audience into the mood, ready to embark on the incredible journey of “Louis”.