Review: THE EMMET COHEN TRIO Bring Birdland Back To Life

July 1st came and New York saw a miracle: the re-opening of Birdland. The decades-old jazz club has been a home to jazz artists and lovers of jazz music (and other genres in recent years) for so long that this time spent without Birdland has been almost unimaginable, especially when there was a genuine threat that the club might not survive the pandemic. That first night back, the sold-out crowd practically issued a collective sigh of relief - or so I was told, as I was unable to attend on the first, a shame because all reports back to me overflowed with what will become fabled tell of an evening filled with emotion, adventure, and gratitude.

All of that still hung in the air on July 2nd, when I arrived at Birdland.

Walking into the completely full establishment, seeing all of the Birdland team back home, feeling the excitement from the audience, all of it was enough to make a person cry a little... but when Gianni Valenti delivered a heartfelt welcome home speech, there was no other option but to cry. The entire Birdland family has been reunited, and that's fantastic. And what better way to welcome everyone home than to present something truly special in honor of the occasion?

When Mr. Valenti chose The Emmet Cohen Trio as the music act to re-open Birdland, he wasn't fooling around. For a special occasion, you need a special event, and that is exactly what happened when these three world-class musicians performed the set I saw on Friday night. Though I have spent my entire life listening to jazz music, I have to admit that sometimes I suffer from Imposter Syndrome because I'm not a musician or a student of music, like our correspondent Ricky Pope; as the saying goes, I know what I like but I'm no expert. And while I enjoy listening to jazz in my home and on my device, when it comes to live performances, I tend toward vocalists, finding a stronger connection to the emotion that comes with actors and words and stories. At least, that is the way I used to think: The Emmet Cohen Trio has completely changed my point of view and, moving forward, I will be covering many more instrumentalists. This was the single most exciting display of musicianship I believe I have ever seen in my life. Like Olympic athletes, Emmet Cohen, drummer Kyle Poole, and bassist Russell Hall performed description-defying (if not death-defying), Herculean feats of daring-do with only their instruments and their brotherhood, for this truly is a brotherhood of musicians.

Aesthetically, the best part of being at an Emmet Cohen Trio show is the music, which is most reminiscent of listening to the soundtrack of your life - it's like every emotion you could experience in a twenty-four hour time period, crammed into an hour-long music set. Personally, the most enjoyable thing about being at an Emmet Cohen Trio show is watching the three men work together - that's a lot of emotion, too, but all of it joyful and excitable. Each musician exists in a time and space all his own, yet all three are together and in a constant state of communication, not just with one another but with the music. There are conversations with each other, constructed with glances, nods, waves, shrugs, laughs, and smiles. There are consultations with individual instruments that lead to the cessation of music from the other musicians, so that they might take in the wonder of their colleague, and even with all the individuality on the stage, there is still this organism of artistry that is Emmet, Russell, and Kyle, creating a ballet danced by hands that create the symphony, rather than dance to it.

And what a symphony they create.

Whether playing "My Heart Stood Still" or "Future Stride" from their new album or works by Ahmad Jamal or John Coltrane, each entry in their program is exquisite, and exquisitely arranged in an order that mounts the emotional experience into a series of peaks and valleys until, finally, Willie "The Lion" Smith's Finger Buster leaves a person sated, elated, and exasperated that the evening is drawing to a close. Only, such a sweet closing should come with every act, in every club, in every genre. From the excitement of "After the Rain" to the exaltation of "Don't Blame Me" Misters Cohen, Poole and Hall provide a musical exploration that is guaranteed to drop jaws, draw gasps and develop smiles, particularly since the Birdland piano has been perfectly positioned for almost every member of the audience to stare through shocked eyes at the firestorm forged by Emmet's fingers. This cannot be captured digitally, not on a disc, not on pixels: this is an experience to be taken only in life and only in person. To see Emmet and co. live is akin to seeing a great sporting event, ballet, oration or play. The next time they are in town (or in your town) buy a ticket and let them change your life, too.

Find lots of jazz shows at the Birdland website HERE.

Visit the Emmet Cohen website HERE

Visit the Russell Hall website HERE

Visit the Kyle Poole website HERE

Photos by Stephen Mosher