For example, the band will perform music by such Kansas City bandleaders as Count Basie, Jay McShann, and Bennie Moten with the help of saxophonist Frank Wess, a native of the city and a veteran of the Basie band. Bandleader Gerald Wilson, a fixture on the L.A. scene, will appear at a concert of music from the city by Gerry Mulligan, Charles Mingus, Quincy Jones, and others.

Other highlights of the season include a retrospective of Marsalis's 25-year career, a collaboration with Ballet Hispanico, and a series of small-group concerts featuring members of the LCJO. JALC's ambitious education wing will launch a new jazz academy for urban middle-school students, introduce the NEA Jazz in the Schools Curriculum to schools around the country, and publish a new book.

Guest artists include bassist Ron Carter, drummer Jeff "Tain" Watts, saxophonists Lovano and Greg Osby (both of whom appear with Arturo O'Farrill's Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra), vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater, and organist Joey DeFrancesco. Tap star Savion Glover and his ensemble will dance to the music of Thelonious Monk; the Orion String Quartet will perform with the Wynton Marsalis Quartet in the world premiere of a new work by Marsalis.