Live at the Gantries Concert Series Begins 7/10

Summer 2012 heats up with six Tuesday night free outdoor concerts at Gantry Plaza State Park. Stay cool on the waterfront at Live at the Gantries featuring Queens-based musicians and performers. 

This year Live at the Gantries which celebrates its 4th year of free performances features Latin Jazz, big band sounds, a bluegrass string band, an Asian Jazz trio, Andean music ensemble, and Irish flutes and whistles. Enjoy the Manhattan skyline and the sounds of world music at these Tuesday night concerts. The concerts begin at 7:00 pm and end with a spectacular sunset.

“I am proud to fund and sponsor ‘Live at the Gantries’ for the third consecutive year,” said Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer, Chair of the Cultural Affairs Committee. “This summer concert series on the waterfront brings the community of Hunters Point and Long Island City together as some of our most talented musicians bring a world of music into one of New York City’s most scenic settings.”

"We are pleased that this public-private partnership is keeping 'Live at the Gantries' as a centerpiece of programming at Gantry State Park. These fabulous and diverse Queens musical groups bring this premier public space alive!" said Karen Phillips, Director of NYC Region, Office of New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

Live at the Gantries 2012 Performers

Latin –Jazz Coalition
Tuesday, July 10 @ 7:00 pm
The Latin-Jazz Coalition inspired by the rhythms and music traditions of the rumba, the cha cha, samba, bossa nova, swing, blues and be-bop jazz. Enjoy a blend of authentic Afro-Cuban, Brazilian and traditional American Jazz music.

Ebony Hillbillies
Tuesday, July 17 @ 7:00 pm
As one of the last black string bands in the United States, the Ebony Hillbillies draw upon the traditions of the blues, jazz, bluegrass, country, rock and its offshoot, rockabilly. Rock out to original compositions, unique versions of the classics of bluegrass and even mix in some contemporary R & B. The Ebony Hillbillies play an irresistible brand of music that evokes the vibrant sounds of Americana.

Tahuantinsuyo
Tuesday, July 24 @ 7:00 pm
Tahuantinsuyo, a pioneer folk music group from the Andes, blends regional instruments and costumes keeping the traditional Andean music alive. Connect with this vibrant culture through music. Tahuantinsuyo performs of the music of the countries that once formed the empire of the Incas: Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina and Columbia.

Blue Pipa Trio
July 31 @ 7:00 pm
Blue Pipa Trio performances combine Chinese folk music, regional opera and Taoist music with American jazz standards and bluegrass. “Cross Cultural Delight” – Elliott Simon, All About Jazz

York College Big Band
Tuesday, August 7 @ 7:00 pm
The York College Big Band is a jazz ensemble composed of talented students and members of the York College Music Department teaching staff who perform traditional big band jazz arrangements and everything else from the blues, swing, and fusion. The York College Big Band performs regularly at York College and has also performed at the CUNY Jazz Festival, the Forest Hills Jazz Festival, Make Music New York and the Louis Armstrong House Museum.

Christel Rice
Tuesday, August 14 @ 7:00 pm
Christel Rice brings a traditional and unique style to Irish flute music. She has performed at prestigious music festivals around the world and also teaches flute music at the New York City Irish Center. She plays with “soulfulness and verve that reminds the listener of an ecstatic nightingale”. - Rob Wasserman, Colorado Daily

Live at the Gantries is a program of the Kupferberg Center for the Arts, New York State Department of Parks, Recreation & Historical Preservation and Queens Theatre. Major sponsors are Con Edison, Pepsi Co., TF Cornerstone and NYC Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer. Additional Support provided by Green Mountain Energy, Queens West Development and RCN.

Gantry Plaza State Park is a 12-acre riverside oasis that boasts spectacular views of the midtown Manhattan skyline, including the Empire State Building and the United Nations. It has earned its name from the rugged beauty of the park's centerpieces - restored gantries. These industrial monuments were once used to load and unload rail car floats and barges. Today they are striking reminders of the waterfront's past.  Recreational facilities include basketball courts, playgrounds, handball courts, and a fishing pier with its own cleaning table.

Directions to Gantry Plaza State Park:
Via New York Water Taxi: 
Take the New York Water Taxi from either the West 44th Street, Chelsea Piers, Greenwich Village, World Financial Center, Battery Park, South Street Seaport, Fulton Ferry Landing or East 34th Street piers to Hunter’s Point. Exit the Water Taxi Beach parking lot to 2nd Street. Make a left on 2nd Street. Make a left on 50th Avenue towards the city until you reach the river.

By subway, take the No. 7 train to the Vernon Blvd.-Jackson Ave. Station. Walk on 50th Avenue to the East River.

By car from the Queensboro Bridge or Queens Boulevard, turn south on 21st Street. Turn right on Jackson Avenue. Make another right on 48th Avenue.