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What's Coming Up at Birdland: Jazz Programming April 15th - April 28th April 15 (Monday) 5:30 & 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks Catch Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks every Monday evening in January at Birdland Theater! Giordano, the recipient of a GRAMMY Award for his work scoring the HBO show Boardwalk Empire, is a master composer and arranger whose 11-piece band, The Nighthawks, recreate the jubilant 1920s jazz sound with amazing definition, using violins, tubas, banjos, and collector’s item drum sets. The band has provided soundtracks for film and television productions including The Cotton Club, The Aviator, Finding Forrester, Revolutionary Road, Cafe Society, Boardwalk Empire, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and many more. Not to be missed! $40 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 15 (Monday) 7:00 PM – Birdland Jazz Club / Livestream Event Stella Cole 26-year-old Stella Cole is in rare possession of an old voice: a breathtaking visitation from the past. A veritable sensation, Cole has amassed a huge following of young fans: with nearly 900k followers on TikTok and over 600k on Instagram, she brings youth to the vintage sound of the Great American Songbook and brings the timeless wisdom of the songbook to audiences of all ages. Recent performances at the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage, Town Hall, 54 Below, and Cafe Carlyle, as well as praise from legends Michael Buble, James Taylor, and Meghan Trainor, have all confirmed what aura of grandeur Cole naturally radiates: a dream-like quality, evoking Judy Garland, Barbra Streisand, and Ella Fitzgerald for modern fans. She performs two consecutive Mondays at Birdland Jazz Club in April. $40 + $30 food/drink minimum April 16 (Tuesday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Theater Daryl Sherman’s “Born to Swing” Celebrating Mildred Bailey One of the rare singer-pianists equally talented in both roles, Rhode Island-born Daryl Sherman has been a part of New York City’s jazz scene since the mid-70s. Indeed, legendary clarinetist Artie Shaw called her “a first-rate singer-musician” and chose her for his group after returning from retirement. A frequent guest on Marian McPartland’s iconic radio show, “Piano Jazz, ” Sherman’s recordings are in regular rotation on Cable TV’s Music Choice, Sirius/XM Radio, BBC, and JazzRadio Berlin. For this engagement, she celebrates the life of her teacher, the renowned vocalist Mildred Bailey, frontwoman for the Paul Whiteman orchestra who influenced Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, and Rosemary Clooney. Her group features Loren Schoenberg (piano, tenor sax), James Chirillo (guitar), and Boots Maleson (bass). $30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 16 (Tuesday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club Release Celebration: “Unheard Bird, ” Ken Peplowski’s Charlie Parker With Strings Cleveland native tenor saxophonist and clarinetist Ken Peplowski, “…arguably the greatest living jazz clarinetist, ” (BBC) celebrates the release of a new landmark recording, “Unheard Bird.” The legendary Charlie Parker’s best-loved album, “Charlie Parker with Strings, ” was originally released in 1950, but a number of his arrangements were never recorded. They ended up in the hands of Peplowski, who went into the studio with a masterful band featuring Terrell Stafford (trumpet), Glenn Zaleski (piano), Peter Washington (bass), and Willie Jones III (drums), plus a 7-piece orchestra (3 violins, viola, cello, harp, and oboe) directed by Loren Schoenberg. On this very special engagement at Birdland, the full ensemble will perform a selection of the recorded arrangements. Do not miss this important event in jazz history at Bird’s namesake venue! $40 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 16 (Tuesday) 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater Andy Ezrin Trio with Randy Brecker Pianist Andy Ezrin has performed internationally with Grammy-winning New York Voices, Chris Botti, the Count Basie Orchestra, Rickie Lee Jones, Joe Jackson, and the Boston Pops. Performances at Montreux Jazz Fest, North Sea Jazz Fest, Montreal Jazz Fest, Live Under the Sky in Japan, Carnegie Hall, Boston Symphony Hall, and the United Nations have marked his star-studded career—and as a composer, his work spans 12 original trio recordings, as well as prominent features on iconic TV programs including “Sesame Street, ” “The Oprah Winfrey Show, ” and Cartoon Network’s “Courage the Cowardly Dog.” Ezrin’s latest project, recorded in 2023, brings together a dream band of John Pattitucci (bass), Marcus Gilmore (drums), Randy Brecker (trumpet), Donny McCaslin (sax), and Ari Hoenig (drums). A veteran of the music industry and a moving soloist, his group is sure to excite audiences on this single-night engagement at the Theater. $30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 17 (Wednesday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Theater David Ostwald’s Louis Armstrong Eternity Band Inspired by the noble jazz pioneers Louis Armstrong, Bix Beiderbecke, Duke Ellington, Jelly Roll Morton, and their colleagues, David Ostwald’s Louis Armstrong Eternity Band breathes life and passion into America’s own great art form. Now in its 18th year of residency at Birdland, the weekly post-workday engagement is the city’s best musical bargain! Tuba player David Ostwald leads a rotating lineup that features talents such as clarinetist Anat Cohen, trombonist/vocalist Wycliffe Gordon, pianist Ehud Asherie, drummer Marion Felder, and more! $30 tables; $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 17-20 (Wednesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (4/17-18); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (4/19-20) –Birdland Jazz Club Kurt Elling Celebrates Weather Report featuring Joey Calderazzo Kurt Elling returns to Birdland! Elling, the winner of 3 Prix du Jazz Vocal (France), 2 German Echo Awards, 2 Dutch Edison Awards, and 2 GRAMMY wins (with 15 GRAMMY nominations), is one of contemporary jazz’s most prolific, celebrated voices. The Guardian has called him “a kind of Sinatra with superpowers” and “one of jazz’s all-time great vocalists.” Elling’s originality is intertwined with his devotion to the masters that came before him, and he regularly writes lyrics to classic melodies and improvisations by iconic artists, such as John Coltrane, Keith Jarrett, Pat Metheny, Wayne Shorter, and Jaco Pastorius. Join the singer and his quintet for an inspiring four-night run. With Kurt Elling (vocals), Joey Calderazzo (piano/keyboards), Essiet Okon Essiet (bass), Mike Moreno (guitar), Marcus Finnie (drums). $50 tables / $40 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 17 (Wednesday) 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater Frank Vignola’s Guitar Night with special guest Olli Soikkeli It’s the best jazz guitar lover’s show in the world. Frank Vignola’s virtuosity has made him the guitarist of choice for many of the world’s top musicians, including Ringo Starr, Madonna, Donald Fagen, Les Paul, the Boston and New York Pops, and more. Every Wednesday at 8:30 pm in the Birdland Theater, Frank leads “Frank Vignola’s Guitar Night at Birdland.” Inspired by journeyman jazz guitarist John Pisano’s now-famous Los Angeles Guitar Night, the Frank Vignola Quartet, featuring pianist Ted Rosenthal, bassist Gary Mazzaroppi, and drummers Vince Cherico or Alex Raderman, will perform tunes from the standard repertoire, bringing in special guests weekly. This week it's guitarist Olli Soikkeli. *Guitar night streams live every week at YouTube.com/RadioFreeBirdland $30 tables; $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 18 (Thursday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Theater The High Society New Orleans Jazz Band Led by veteran trumpeter Simon Wettenhall and Grammy-winning pianist Conal Fowkes, The High Society New Orleans Jazz Band is a New Orleans-style Jazz band that for decades has been Woody Allen’s band of choice for his movies, concert tours, and weekly performances. The band has appeared on all the premiere concert stages of Europe and the United States. Band members have appeared in and provided music for Woody Allen movies including Wild Man Blues, Sweet and Lowdown, Midnight in Paris, Blue Jasmine, Cafe Society, Magic In The Moonlight, and A Rainy Day In New York. With Conal Fowkes (piano/vocals co-leader), Simon Wettenhall (trumpet/vocals co-leader), Tom Abbott (clarinet), Harvey Tibbs (trombone), Josh Dunn (banjo), Brian Nalepka (bass/vocals), Kevin Dorn (drums). $30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 19 (Friday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club The Birdland Big Band Every Friday, and for two headlining weeks a year, the “BBB” roars into action playing a thrilling and original mix of jazz, funk, Brazilian, Latin, and world music for sold-out audiences. Featured weekly guest artists drop-in from television bands (David Letterman, Saturday Night Live) and pop music touring bands (Rob Thomas, Rod Stewart). Come see for yourself why Time Out New York called the BBB “A completely unique experience… there isn’t another band like this anywhere, ” and why yelp.com proclaims, “If you hear one band in NYC make sure this is it… and prepare to be blown away!” $35 + $25 food/drink minimum April 19-21 (Friday-Sunday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM – Birdland Theater Alexa Tarantino Quartet An ultra-talented woodwind artist with a serious output of music, Alexa Tarantino has been praised by Wynton Marsalis as “an indomitable force for expression…and absolute excellence.” Tarantino has been a frequent hire for Marsalis’s Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra; given her command of her multiple instruments (saxophones, flute, and clarinet) and her sense of poise as a soloist within a band, it’s no surprise. Over three years she has released three full-length recordings: Firefly (2021), Clarity (2020), and Winds of Change (2019), all on Posi-Tone Records. A Rising Star for Alto Saxophone in DownBeat Magazine’s 2020, 2021, and 2022 Critics Polls—and named one of the Top 5 Alto Saxophonists of 2019 by the JazzTimes Critics’ Poll—Tarantino’s joyful playing has led her to such prestigious venues as Umbria Jazz Festival, Jazz in Marciac Festival, the Kennedy Center, and the Hollywood Bowl. $35 tables / $25 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 20 (Saturday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club Anaïs Reno Catch the young phenom Anaïs Reno! Already bearing the marks of great success, she is the winner of the Forté International Competition, Michael Feinstein Competition, Mabel Mercer Competition, the Julie Wilson Award, and a Finalist in NFAA’s YoungArts competition, Reno’s awards are matched by her performance credits: at Birdland, Carnegie Hall, David Geffen Hall, The Django, Chris’ Jazz Café in Philadelphia, and many others. Her last album, “Lovesome Thing: Anaïs Reno Sings Ellington & Strayhorn, ” which she recorded with the Emmet Cohen Trio (when Anaïs was 16), received critical acclaim and rose to number 6 on the jazz charts. In 2021, Reno was featured in the acclaimed video, “New York State of Mind, ” featuring Idina Menzel and Stephen Colbert; and, in 2022, she was featured on national television singing “America the Beautiful” for the Mets/Yankees 9/11 game. Clearly a singer to watch, Reno performs two Saturdays in a row on the upstairs stage. $30 + $20 food/drink minimum April 21 (Sunday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club April Varner Winner of the 2023 Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Vocal Competition, April Varner’s new recording, “Dear April, ” is set for June 28th release. Produced by Grammy-Award-winning drummer Ulysses Owens Jr., it features artists Benny Benack III, Russell Malone, Dayna Stephens, Theo Bleckmann, Reuben Rogers, Miguel Russell, and Caelan Cardello. Varner’s performances at Ornithology Jazz Club, 55 Bar, The Django, Birdland Theater, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, and Blues Alley have garnered the young singer exciting momentum. Possessed of a warm, full tone and an old soul’s swinging intuition, Varner is sure to deliver in her Sunday evening debut at the Jazz Club! $30 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 21 (Sunday) 8:30 & 10:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club The Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra The Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra (ALJO) brings together the drama of big band jazz, the culture of Latin music, and the virtuosity of eighteen of the world’s most accomplished solo musicians. Thirteen years of critically acclaimed performances internationally have firmly established the ALJO as the standard-bearer for creative interpretation of Latin jazz greats such as Tito Puente, Frank “Machito” Grillo, and Chico O’Farrill, as well as the driving force behind new commissions from Latin music’s most talented composers and arrangers. $40 + $30 food/drink minimum April 22 (Monday) 5:30 & 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks Catch Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks every Monday evening in January at Birdland Theater! Giordano, the recipient of a GRAMMY Award for his work scoring the HBO show Boardwalk Empire, is a master composer and arranger whose 11-piece band, The Nighthawks, recreate the jubilant 1920s jazz sound with amazing definition, using violins, tubas, banjos, and collector’s item drum sets. The band has provided soundtracks for film and television productions including The Cotton Club, The Aviator, Finding Forrester, Revolutionary Road, Cafe Society, Boardwalk Empire, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and many more. Not to be missed! $40 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 23 (Tuesday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Theater Naama Gheber Quartet: “Songs of Spring” Vocalist Naama Gheber is a self-assured, easygoing talent whose deft melodic sense and pleasing swing feel have brought her to the front lines of the New York jazz scene. Gheber’s debut album, 2020’s Dearly Beloved, and her 2nd recording, 2022’s If I Knew Then, earned her acknowledgment in All About Jazz and Downbeat Magazine, and her 2023, Where Flamingos Fly, featuring vibraphone legend Steve Nelson, received further critical acclaim. Gheber’s love for joyously bouncing rhythms and the power of song has led to frequent performances at leading New York jazz institutions Smalls, Mezzrow, the Django at the Roxy Hotel, and Birdland. For this one-set-only engagement, she brings a quartet featuring Dave Baron (bass) and Jeb Patton (piano) singing audiences into spring with a careful selection of Great American Songbook standards. $30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 23-27 (Tuesday-Sunday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (4/23-25); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (4/26-27) – Birdland Jazz Club Cyrille Aimée Grammy-nominated Cyrille Aimee spent over 10 years in NYC wowing audiences with her joyful improvisations, effortless swing, and wild spirit. Having relocated to New Orleans to enter the vibrant musical community of that storied city, Aimee loves to return to Birdland—where she spent years with a weekly residency. From her native France to the USA, from jazz festivals to Broadway, from a longtime working band to new adventures in new sonic landscapes, Cyrille Aimee is never content to stay in one place too long. Recent releases include 2018’s Cyrille Aimee Live (Mack Avenue); 2019’s Move On: A Sondheim Adventure (especially relevant now that the legend has just passed); 2021’s I’ll Be Seeing You; and 2021’s Petite Fleur, as a featured guest of drummer Adonis Rose and the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra. Hailed as “one of the most promising jazz singers of her generation” by The Wall Street Journal, Aimee will certainly bring something new to her old city. $45 tables / $35 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 24 (Wednesday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Theater David Ostwald’s Louis Armstrong Eternity Band Inspired by the noble jazz pioneers Louis Armstrong, Bix Beiderbecke, Duke Ellington, Jelly Roll Morton, and their colleagues, David Ostwald’s Louis Armstrong Eternity Band breathes life and passion into America’s own great art form. Now in its 18th year of residency at Birdland, the weekly post-workday engagement is the city’s best musical bargain! Tuba player David Ostwald leads a rotating lineup that features talents such as clarinetist Anat Cohen, trombonist/vocalist Wycliffe Gordon, pianist Ehud Asherie, drummer Marion Felder, and more! $30 tables; $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 24 (Wednesday) 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater Frank Vignola’s Guitar Night with special guest Sara Caswell It’s the best jazz guitar lover’s show in the world. Frank Vignola’s virtuosity has made him the guitarist of choice for many of the world’s top musicians, including Ringo Starr, Madonna, Donald Fagen, Les Paul, the Boston and New York Pops, and more. Every Wednesday at 8:30 pm in the Birdland Theater, Frank leads “Frank Vignola’s Guitar Night at Birdland.” Inspired by journeyman jazz guitarist John Pisano’s now-famous Los Angeles Guitar Night, the Frank Vignola Quartet, featuring pianist Ted Rosenthal, bassist Gary Mazzaroppi, and drummers Vince Cherico or Alex Raderman, will perform tunes from the standard repertoire, bringing in special guests weekly. This week it's violinist Sara Caswell. *Guitar night streams live every week at YouTube.com/RadioFreeBirdland $30 tables; $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 25 (Thursday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Theater The High Society New Orleans Jazz Band Led by veteran trumpeter Simon Wettenhall and Grammy-winning pianist Conal Fowkes, The High Society New Orleans Jazz Band is a New Orleans-style Jazz band that for decades has been Woody Allen’s band of choice for his movies, concert tours, and weekly performances. The band has appeared on all the premiere concert stages of Europe and the United States. Band members have appeared in and provided music for Woody Allen movies including Wild Man Blues, Sweet and Lowdown, Midnight in Paris, Blue Jasmine, Cafe Society, Magic In The Moonlight, and A Rainy Day In New York. With Conal Fowkes (piano/vocals co-leader), Simon Wettenhall (trumpet/vocals co-leader), Tom Abbott (clarinet), Harvey Tibbs (trombone), Josh Dunn (banjo), Brian Nalepka (bass/vocals), Kevin Dorn (drums). $30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 25 (Thursday) 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater Connie Han Trio 28-year-old pianist/composer Connie Han has been described by Variety magazine as “one of contemporary jazz’s most talented and inventive musicians” and “a decisively brazen talent with an exhilarating control of her skills and vision” by All About Jazz. On her three Mack Avenue releases, “Iron Starlet, ” “Crime Zone, ” and “Secrets of Inanna, ” Han manifests “an intimate clairvoyance into all that has come before her, ” with “uncompromising vitality” on the piano. Her powerful vision, decidedly contemporary, takes in the full evolution of her forebears, from iconic innovators like McCoy Tyner and Hank Jones through the Young Lions revolution spearheaded by the Marsalis Brothers, Kenny Kirkland, and Jeff “Tain” Watts, and delivers a thrilling modern statement nestled in today’s most forward-thinking composing and improvising styles. The Steinway Artist is thrilled to bring her electrifying trio to Birdland! $30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 26 (Friday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club The Birdland Big Band Every Friday, and for two headlining weeks a year, the “BBB” roars into action playing a thrilling and original mix of jazz, funk, Brazilian, Latin, and world music for sold-out audiences. Featured weekly guest artists drop-in from television bands (David Letterman, Saturday Night Live) and pop music touring bands (Rob Thomas, Rod Stewart). Come see for yourself why Time Out New York called the BBB “A completely unique experience… there isn’t another band like this anywhere, ” and why yelp.com proclaims, “If you hear one band in NYC make sure this is it… and prepare to be blown away!” $35 + $25 food/drink minimum April 26-27 (Friday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM – Birdland Theater Matt Munisteri Quartet What do New Orleans legend Henry Butler, jazz vocal extraordinaire Catherine Russell and “Little” Jimmy Scott, trombonist Wycliffe Gordon, and singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright have in common? They’ve all called upon the talents of Matt Munisteri, a genre-defying master guitarist whose work has been featured on over 70 recordings. Munisteri, who was asked to be a part of the legendary Bill Frisell’s Guitar Invitational alongside other world-class six-stringers, is adept in a surprising variety of sonic worlds, from noise music to New Orleans jazz, and this has led him to develop a musical personality that is at once gentle—in its lighthearted embrace of so much music—and profound, offering heartfelt melodies and accompaniment in each passing moment. He performs for three nights this April at the Theater with his Quartet. With Matt Munisteri (guitar), Joe Barbato (accordion), Danton Boller (bass), Ben Perowsky (drums). $35 tables / $25 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 27 (Saturday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club Anaïs Reno Trio Catch the young phenom Anaïs Reno! Already bearing the marks of great success, she is the winner of the Forté International Competition, Michael Feinstein Competition, Mabel Mercer Competition, the Julie Wilson Award, and a Finalist in NFAA’s YoungArts competition, Reno’s awards are matched by her performance credits: at Birdland, Carnegie Hall, David Geffen Hall, The Django, Chris’ Jazz Café in Philadelphia, and many others. Her last album, “Lovesome Thing: Anaïs Reno Sings Ellington & Strayhorn, ” which she recorded with the Emmet Cohen Trio (when Anaïs was 16), received critical acclaim and rose to number 6 on the jazz charts. In 2021, Reno was featured in the acclaimed video, “New York State of Mind, ” featuring Idina Menzel and Stephen Colbert; and, in 2022, she was featured on national television singing “America the Beautiful” for the Mets/Yankees 9/11 game. Clearly a singer to watch, Reno performs two Saturdays in a row on the upstairs stage. $30 + $20 food/drink minimum April 28 (Sunday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club Greg Ruvolo Big Band The brilliant trumpeter and arranger Greg Ruvolo leads his sterling large ensemble to ring in the new year. Ruvolo’s work with legendary acts such as Gil Evans, Airto Moreira, Louis Bellson, New York Voices, and the WDR Big Band inform both his writing, playing, and bandleading. In this warm-hearted ensemble, Ruvolo throws both jazz veterans and young stars into the mix, arranging Songbook classics, jazz standards, and original work for the exciting ensemble. The band’s members have worked with Frank Sinatra, Steely Dan, Ray Charles, Buddy Rich, Gerry Mulligan, Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra, and Count Basie. They perform swinging, dramatic music with brilliant improvisational flourishes and hard-driving interaction. $30 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 28 (Sunday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM – Birdland Theater Ricky Alexander Septet: “Just Found Joy” Release Celebration New York City’s own Ricky Alexander is a sought-after sideman who can be heard playing in the city’s top jazz clubs and music venues every night of the week. A favorite for Jazz Age performers such as Grammy-Award-winning Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks, Gordon Webster, Sweet Megg, Tatiana Eva Marie, Dandy Wellington, and The Revisionists Jazz Band— all of whom savor Alexander’s warm sound, his bouncing rhythm lines, and his brilliantly-phrased solo flights—the tenor sax player has been featured across over 30 recordings, including two as a leader: “Strike Up The Band” (featuring Harry Allen, Martina DaSilva, and James Chirillo) and “I’m In Love Again.” Don’t miss his two Sunday evening sets at the Theater! $35 tables / $25 bar + $20 food/drink minimum April 28 (Sunday) 8:30 & 10:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club The Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra The Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra (ALJO) brings together the drama of big band jazz, the culture of Latin music, and the virtuosity of eighteen of the world’s most accomplished solo musicians. Thirteen years of critically acclaimed performances internationally have firmly established the ALJO as the standard-bearer for creative interpretation of Latin jazz greats such as Tito Puente, Frank “Machito” Grillo, and Chico O’Farrill, as well as the driving force behind new commissions from Latin music’s most talented composers and arrangers. $40 + $30 food/drink minimum |
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