Jon Batiste, Transcendent
Words by Rahsaan “Wordslave” Eldridge
Photos by Steve Satzberg
Excitement simmered under the surface of a sold-out crowd. I saw bright eyes and wide smiles as I maneuvered through the traffic to my seat. A coolness in the air foreshadowed something special, unlike any other time I’ve been to Wolf Trap. Jon Batiste and the National Symphony Orchestra’s performance wasn’t just a show. It was a spiritual experience.
The NSO packed the stage, dressed in black and surrounding a lustrous black Steinway & Sons grand piano at center stage. At 8:10pm on August 21, the lights dimmed. The backing band — bass, drums and background vocals — and conductor Jonathan Taylor Rush strolled out to roaring applause. Batiste entered stage right in an all-white tuxedo, with a smile to match. He made a beautiful contrast with the orchestra as he paused to wave and drink in his standing ovation.
During the opener, “Nocturne in D Minor,” we heard his full-chested laugh, a recurring signal of elation throughout the night. We heard his New Orleans twang for the first time on Ray Charles’ “Georgia on My Mind.” His fingers danced voraciously across the keys during the piano solo. We chuckled in unison during the reprise when he shouted, “Wolf Trap! Just an old sweet song keeps Wolf Trap on my mind!”
Batiste galloped through “Big Money,” turning the piano stool into a saddle as he howled and rode the blues beat.
Watch the official music video for “Big Money” by Jon Batiste on YouTube:
We sang along like a church choir to “When the Saints Go Marching In” as he moved from EWI (electronic wind instrument) to piano to voice, showcasing his range by singing from the basement of the melody.
The orchestra took us on a tour through “What a Wonderful World.” It felt like staring out the window during a cross-country train ride. I could see the rainbow, green trees, white clouds and blue skies. The cinematic feeling was enhanced by a hypnotic left-hand piano ostinato and Batiste’s delicate vocals.
The ride continued to the jazz clubs of 1940s Harlem with a bass, drums and keys rendition of Thelonious Monk’s “Blue Monk.” From there, we stopped in New Orleans’ French Quarter by way of Vienna with “5th Symphony in Congo Square,” as Batiste infused the early 19th-century classic with rhythms from the African diaspora.
Another Monk cover, “In Walked Bud,” featured a drum solo with blazing 32nd notes on the hi-hat that kept the proverbial train moving full speed down the track.
The first set closed with two originals from Batiste’s Grammy Award-winning album We Are. His seamless transitions from full voice to mixed voice to falsetto were masterful on “Cry.” His top notes landed softly in our laps, while the saxophone added warm spice from upstage.
Where Batiste was gentle, his background singer, Desz, was strong. She floated operatic melismas and belted soulful runs with equal ease. As she wailed, Batiste interjected the impetus for our tears: “For all the indifference. For all the wrongful imprisonment. For all the immigrants.”
Desz and Batiste blended soul and classical music in harmony over an interpolation of “Für Elise” to end the tune.
“Wolf Trap, I need ya!” Batiste shouted before settling into the lower register on his hit “I Need You.” Desz carried the familiar melody as we clapped along — some of us on beats two and four, others on one and three, but miraculously still together. We punctuated the first set on a high note.
Watch the official music video for “I Need You” by Jon Batiste on YouTube:
Batiste introduced the second set with “Freedom” on solo blues guitar. He pumped his fist high in the air and thunderously called, “Everybody on your feet!” cueing the band and orchestra to kick in. He strutted back and forth as Desz did the Wop and swayed her hips from side to side, bellowing harmonies with Batiste over the orchestra’s robust foundation.
The entire night was a beautiful sonic montage. Batiste and the NSO sewed blues, R&B, soul, African and Latin rhythms, jazz and classical music into a sensory quilt we nestled into for hours.
The overture to his American Symphony was transcendent. Tribal. Sacred.
We took an ominous transatlantic ride, heard the rhythm of shackles and the moans of mothers separated from their children. The trombone told a dark origin story in a single growl. The trumpet echoed the pain of Desz’s haunting melody an octave higher. Banjo picking from upstage connected West Africa to Dixieland before glissandos from soprano saxophone churned sorrow into hope.
Batiste grabbed his alto saxophone, blowing as if the air from his lungs could solve the complexities of our country. An interpolation of “America the Beautiful” and Batiste’s chant — “Dawn, day, ’til dusk, the night has come for us. But we shall overcome” — reinforced a sense of optimism and triumph despite America’s 250-year conundrum. With every violin bow, timpani rumble and cymbal splash, we felt the cadence of a nation.
Batiste gracefully wove between genres all night, from Mozart and Beethoven to Louis Armstrong, Thelonious Monk, Ray Charles and The Impressions. He endeared himself to us with the children’s standard “You Are My Sunshine” and a medley from the animated film Soul. He dazzled us with original compositions of blues and funk rooted in African tradition and New Orleans culture.
“Don’t Stop,” a love song from his 2018 album Hollywood Africans, offered a message extending beyond the romance of two lovers:
> Don’t stop dreaming, don’t stop believing
> ’Cause you know that our time is coming up
> Let’s soak up the day
> And dance the night away
> So with all you’ve got, don’t stop
> So with all you’ve got, don’t stop
It was encouragement and inspiration — a battery for everyone navigating the craziness of this world.
Watch the official music video for “Don’t Stop” by Jon Batiste on YouTube:
“Put your lights in the air,” Batiste said. “This symbolizes the light in you. No matter how dark it gets. We can win, we can win, we can win.”
We sang the chorus of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” in unison. My lip trembled. My voice cracked.
The audience and the orchestra fixed their eyes on Batiste as he transitioned into the closer, “Butterfly.” After playing the final piano note, he directed an a cappella vamp of “whoa” before joining us on melodica.
I looked behind me into a sea of white light and teary eyes that mirrored my own.
Here are some photos of Jon Batiste performing live at Wolf Trap on August 21, 2026. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Steve Satzberg.
