POP BEAT / ZAN STEWART : Role Model Marsalis at Coach House : Acclaimed Trumpeter Wants to Lead More Young Musicians Into Field of Jazz

Wynton Marsalis, who kicks off a three concert swing through Southern California tonight with a show at the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, is impatient with fans and critics who feel that too many young jazz players are being heralded prematurely.

“A lot of people told me when I was growing up that my style was not fully developed,” said trumpeter Marsalis, who at 29 has been hailed as one of jazz’s brightest lights for almost a decade. “So what? It’s OK to watch something develop.

“In other forms of music, there are so many young players. Playing is the only way for them to learn. My whole thing is to support them, not cut them down in any way. I’d just like to hope that their focus is on making music, not record sales or publicity.”

Marsalis, who follows his Coach House show with stops at Claremont College Friday and UCLA’s Royce Hall Saturday, said that while many people see his success as influencing many youthful players to embark on jazz careers, there’s a long tradition of bandleaders--from Dizzy Gillespie to the late Art Blakey--hiring younger players.

“Blakey was a key catalyst. He always gave young musicians a chance to play. Young musicians like myself, (trumpeters) Terence Blanchard, Wallace Roney, (saxophonists) Branford (Marsalis), Jean Toussaint, all flocked around (Art).”

On his current tour, Marsalis is joined by the same septet that accompanied him on his 1989 visits here--Todd Williams, tenor sax; Wes Anderson, alto sax; Wycliffe Gordon, trombone, Eric Reed, piano; Reginald Veal, bass, and Herlin Riley, drums.

In the three concerts, the group will perform material from Marsalis’ early albums as well as his just-released “Standards Time, Volume Two.”

* Wynton Marsalis plays tonight at 8 and 10:30 at the Coach House, 33157 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano. Tickets: $26.50. Information: (714) 496-8930.