We had good seats, though bringing binoculars was a good call on my dad's part. I loved watching the other players while one soloed. The drummer, Ali Jackson, especially looked like he was just having a blast. Every one of the trombonists and trumpeters were excellent, each in their own way. The sax/clarinet guys were great too, but being a trumpet player, I think I appreciate brass players more.
I enjoyed the concert more than I had expected. It's not that I expected not to enjoy it; I suppose I had forgotten how much I enjoy jazz. It made me miss playing in the Jazz ensemble at Carleton. I did see my band director from high school, though he didn't recognize me. This was hardly surprising as he could hardly remember my name even when I was in his class. Saved me from some awkward small talk in any case. It wasn't a sold out concert, but fairly full and the audience was very appreciative. For good reason, these are probably some of the top jazz musicians of today.
My favorite piece they played (a hard choice- they were all so good!) was part of a Marsalis piece called (if I remember/scribbled on my program in the dark correctly) You Got to Watch the Holy Ghost because all of the instruments had parts where they made really crazy noises. It was written for a church I think, and it would have been cool to sit in a chapel and hear it.
Bottom Line: Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra are stellar.
