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The bow tie is adjusted. The trombone is raised. At the corner of Dauphine and Toulouse streets in the United States, two police officers on motorcycles stop, making way for something more sacred than music.
From afar, the opening notes of "Just a Closer Walk with Thee" rang out from the trumpet, then the saxophone and sousaphone joined in, leading the entire band marching through the streets of New Orleans. Behind them, the crowd followed, the farewell music gradually shifting from sorrow to joy, like the human journey from separation to rebirth.
The "Funeral Second Line"—a funeral ritual performed with music—is a unique cultural feature of New Orleans. Originating from West African and Caribbean beliefs, this ritual transforms grief into celebration, where music helps the living honor the lives of the deceased. Here, a single trombone blast can bring traffic to a halt, and a sousaphone is enough to draw thousands into the streets.
The Kinfolk Brass Band parades near Jackson Square in New Orleans. Photo: Will Lanzoni/CNN
At the heart of each parade is a brass band, musicians dressed in crisp white shirts and black trousers, carrying a responsibility greater than the instruments themselves: bearing the spirit of the community. In New Orleans, people bid farewell with brass instruments, and it is these very sounds that transform the departure into a celebration of life.
The fingerprints of sound and rhythm.
Artist Roger Lewis at City Park in New Orleans. Photo: Will Lanzoni/CNN
"If you grew up here, the African drums, the dances – it's all in our DNA," Roger Lewis (83 years old) said with a smile.
As a founding member of the legendary Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Lewis brought New Orleans music to the world, alongside legends like Dizzy Gillespie and Elvis Costello. The band won a Grammy in 2023, appeared in numerous films, and their song "Feet Can't Fail Me Now" has become an icon of the city.
After every tour, Lewis would return to Bywater, playing his trumpet in a small workshop for a non-profit organization, accepting only quiet donations. In New Orleans, music doesn't need a big stage, because the whole city is a living symphony, where the heart beats in place of the lights.
When music rises from the heart of the city
Jazz legend Ellis Marsalis once said, "In New Orleans, culture doesn't fall from above; it springs from the streets." And indeed, the streets are the true stage, where music resonates from the heart.
From the late 19th century, when soldiers brought their military instruments into civilian life, brass band music emerged with its wild, free-spirited, and distinctive character. By the 1970s and 1980s, with the rise of funk and rock, New Orleans music also transformed, becoming more vibrant, but still retaining its original spirit.
The Eureka Brass Band performs at the Sunday Jazz Parade in the French Quarter, 1960. Photo: Archive Photos/Getty Images.
Roger Lewis proudly stated, “We still play the old tunes, but they’re more powerful and vibrant. I often joke, ‘Wear sneakers, because you could lose up to 18 pounds if you walk with us all night.’” In New Orleans, music isn’t just for listening; it’s for living, for dancing, for feeling the community’s pulse. From small street corners to fiery concerts, every note carries the soul of the city—a sound you can’t find anywhere else.
The sounds of home
In the early 1980s, three young men, Kermit Ruffins, Keith Frazier, and Phillip “Tuba Phil” Frazier, formed the Rebirth Brass Band while still high school students in the Treme district. Not old enough to enter bars, they took their music to the streets and “revived” the spirit of brass instruments by blending jazz, funk, and hip-hop.
The Shotgun Jazz Band performs at The Spotted Cat in New Orleans. Photo: Will Lanzoni/CNN
The Spotted Cat restaurant in New Orleans. Photo: Will Lanzoni/CNN
Rebirth quickly became a new icon of the city, winning Grammys, releasing 17 albums, and still maintaining its tradition of performing every Tuesday night. “With these instruments, you can create anything,” says Keith Frazier. In New Orleans, music is reborn with each generation, with every drum beat, every trumpet note. Each neighborhood has its own unique flavor: Uptown is vibrant, Tremé retains its tradition, while New Orleans East has a hip-hop vibe. Every street holds a melody, each neighborhood a note in the city’s endless symphony.
A breath of fresh air amidst old melodies.
Christie Jourdain of The Original Pinettes in New Orleans. Photo: Will Lanzoni/CNN.
Historically, brass band music has been almost exclusively for men. But in New Orleans, that's changing dramatically yet gently, as women are rewriting the story of music. Christie Jourdain, leader of The Original Pinettes, the city's first all-female brass band, recalls: "Back then, people said all-female bands were just for 'fun.' But when the brass instruments started playing, the whole auditorium erupted, and from that moment, all doors opened."
The Original Pinettes achieved a resounding victory at the 2013 Red Bull Street Kings competition – so much so that the sponsor had to rename the competition Red Bull Street Queens. Now, they perform at most major music festivals such as Jazz Fest and the French Quarter Festival.
The Original Pinettes Brass Band in 2023. Photo: Erika Goldring/Getty Images
From their legacy, a new generation continues the tradition. Maude Caillat, lead singer of Bra's Band Brass Band, an all-female band formed in 2021, shared: “Women are still rare in this field. Not only because we have to carry tubas weighing dozens of kilograms, but also because we have many other roles: mothers, wives.” Female artists now often perform at events for women or community fundraising events. Despite having to take on other jobs to make ends meet, they still keep the flame of music burning in their hearts.
According to Ron Rona, former Artistic Director of Preservation Hall, music in New Orleans is not just a performance art, but a rhythm of daily life, passed down from generation to generation as an underground cultural current of the community.
