The old saying “never judge a book by its cover” comes to mind here. Since trumpeter Wynton Marsalis is known as an educator, one might assume that his book with the subtitle How Jazz Can Change Your Life is aimed solely at young people contemplating a musical career. Wrong! Moving to Higher Ground is for all ages and for all listeners of music regardless of sophistication level.

Marsalis weaves the history of jazz through the book, devoting a chapter to the blues, educating us on what to listen for and how to listen better, describing the role of various instruments in jazz groups and the effects of stylistic variation within those roles. He offers theories on why jazz has a small audience and an even smaller portion of black fans. He conveys the sensations of performing the music on stage and the trust and respect necessary to improvise collectively. In the process he reveals much about himself and profiles thirteen master musicians from whom he’s learned life lessons, listing recommended CD’s by each.

Art, in general, enriches our lives, and jazz, in particular, “...engages us with our national identity.” Marsalis sees jazz in a national and global context. “The whole of jazz, black and white, was a refutation of segregation and racism.” Singer Tony Bennett understands the universal significance of the philosophy of life presented in this book and says, “I think it should be in every bookstore, music store, and school in the country.”

Wynton Marsalis is the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, musician, educator, and composer. He has won nine Grammy Awards in both jazz and classical categories, and his 1997 oratorio on slavery and freedom, Blood on the Fields, became the first and, to date, only jazz composition to win the Pulitzer Prize in music.

Geoffrey C. Ward is a historian, screenwriter and editor. His books include The War: An Intimate History, 1941-1945; Jazz: A History of America’s Music; and A First-Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt, which won a National Book Critics Circle Award.