My interest in jazz got started in high school where I was in the school's big band under the direction of Sammy D. Harris whose insight pointed a few of us in the direction of jazz. I studied music with trumpet being my principal instrument and piano second at Texas Southern University and after winning a few soloist awards in national big band college jazz festival competitions around the country, Duke Ellington came to Houston.

Arnett Cobb, a jazz legend, call to ask me if I would take him to see Duke and in the process I would get a chance to meet Duke. Arnett introduces me as, "This is Barrie Lee Hall a trumpeter in the Texas Southern University Jazz Ensemble ". And Duke's reply was, " Ah, how come you're not playing in my band?" After waiting and calling around the US, I joined the Duke Ellington Orchestra June 8, 1973. I am at the present still a member of that organization. Mercer Ellington died February 8, 1996. Barrie Lee Hall Junior conducted the Duke Ellington Orchestra for one year after and he is the director of the orchestra sometimes in Paul Mercer Ellington’s stead.

Presently Barrie has been the music director at Liberty Baptist Church for the last five years. He has extensive background in gospel music both contemporary and traditional gospel. Of the contemporary projects that Barrie has performed is Duke Ellington’s Sacred Concert. On March 16, 2001, Barrie performed Duke Ellington's Sacred Concert as bandleader of the Duke Ellington Orchestra with a two hundred-voice choir. I would love to see Ellington's sacred works done more in the church. I have done this piece when Duke was living and it has always been powerful. It ministers to people. I have done this piece in Yugoslavia to an audience of three thousand in a huge cathedral with the music piped to an audience of ten thousand people outside the doors of the church. This was right before the war. This is how I know that Duke's sacred works are a ministry. I have done this piece all over the world, even in Poland in a building where Hitler held rallies. I just know that God is doing things through the music of Ellington.

I love working in the church. It brings out of me my essence. I use the music to gladden the spirit of people. I have always wanted to work in the church and like magic I have ended up there.

For the last six years Barrie has been going to Switzerland every April where he is a guest soloist with a big band that is made up of top musicians from all over the United States. This year he was the conductor of the youth orchestra. We take a professional musician from each instrument family and place them in the orchestra. The young adults benefit tremendously by getting hands on personal tutoring. We then do a concert on the weekend in front of a live audience.