Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis
National Concert Hall, Dublin
15th August 2026
On the announcement of the 2026 BBC Proms run earlier this year, one name that jumped out at me was Wynton Marsalis. OMG, I thought, is he doing a Prom this year?! As it turned out, it was not him, but rather a premiere of one of his new works. Dang Nabbit, I thought. But I wonder if he is doing any local dates? It prompted me to look, and I saw that there were indeed a couple of performances planned - not in London, but in Edinburgh, Limerick, and Dublin. All shows were either a sell out or too difficult for me to reach. That was until a second night in Dublin was announced, and I snapped up a ticket on the spot - so much so, that I managed to obtain a front row seat.
As it happened, I had been promising myself a return to Dublin for some time, so this was the perfect excuse to make it happen. Ryanair flights and budget accommodation duly booked, for an overnight extravaganza.
I first happened upon the music of Wynton Marsalis via the 2011 record he made with Eric Clapton, and I think it is fair to say that Marsalis brought out the very best in the famed guitar player. A terrific live album that I enjoy whenever I put it on.
I stepped back onto O'Connell Street in Dublin - twenty years since the last time - at around 2pm this Saturday. I was immediately greeted with the sound of Irish music across the road. I wandered over to find a brilliant four-piece playing on a summer stage, set up by Dublin City Council. There is no sweeter sound than a celtic ensemble, so I stopped to enjoy their playing for as long as was practicably possible. From there, I checked into my room, then headed straight to The Celt on Talbot Street, which was a favourite haunt of my late grandfather when we used to stay at the (since gone) Townhouse Hotel, just around the corner on Lower Gardiner Street. A pint of the black stuff was most welcome, and this I ordered with a Tayto crisp sandwich with cheese and garlic soup. Bliss.
I returned to my room to rest up for a couple of hours, before taking the 30-40minute walk to the National Concert Hall. The venue reminds me a little of our own Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool, though it is a bit tatty round the edges. I got chatting with a chap a couple of seats away from me - genial; one of those who could talk the hind legs off a donkey. He enlightened me some about Wynton's personal life, including the news that he is married to Nicola Benedetti (what?!).
The music from Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra was everything it promised and more. There were brief moments when I could hear echoes of the Glenn Miller Orchestra, yet others when they turned into a big blues band. They make a cacophony of sounds that are always interweaving perfectly with each other. Each member of the band got chance to take a solo, but never in an overindulgent way. There was even a vocal part sung on one number.
The encore was with a band stripped down in numbers, with Wynton M sitting at the front of the stage. It was a thrill to make brief eye contact with the man, and I gave him a knowing nod along with the clapping. Buddy Bolden's Blues - a song I was introduced to back in the Hugh Laurie days - I believe was the encore.
Meandering back to my hotel on a high, with a pitstop at Madigan's for a pint of Murphy's to toast a night well spent. Great stuff, and a bucket list tick!
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I had a full day to enjoy in Dublin on day two. A chance to absorb the similarities and differences in the city since my last visit. A slow morning was had with a coffee and blueberry muffin at Castle Tea Rooms on Gardiner Row, some shopping at Golden Discs (Ireland's answer to HMV), and a nice Dublin Coddle and pint of Beamish (that's the Holy Trinity reached within 24 hours!) at Sheehan's.
Didn't fancy the Guinness Storehouse (been there, done that), so I chanced upon the childhood home of Oscar Wilde at 1 Merrion Square, and the 'fag on the crag' (not my words) monument across the street.
A stroll through Trinity College campus was most pleasant, though by this time it had been about an hour since the Beamish, and I was gagging to see a contemporary example of Armitage Shanks.
Overall, an impeccably successful 27 hours in Ireland's capital. Hope it won't be so long till the next time.
Slán go fóill !
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