John Pizzarelli, All-City Latin Ensemble and The Fat Cats, and More to Play Birdland

Birdland Jazz Club and Birdland Theater have released details on all jazz programming running April 25 through May 7.

Performers appearing at Birdland Jazz Club include John Pizzarelli, All-City Latin Ensemble and The Fat Cats, Emmet Cohen Trio Plus Special Guests and Birdland Big Band with Darmon Meader.

Downstairs at Birdland Theater, catch John Minnock and Dave Liebman, Steven Bernstein Millennial Territory Orchestra, The Anderson Brothers Play Ellington, Sean Mason Quartet and Joe Alterman Trio.

Repeat engagements include Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks, David Ostwald's Louis Armstrong Eternity Band, Frank Vignola's Guitar Night, Birdland Big Band and Arturo O'Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra.

Jazz Programming at Birdland Jazz Club and Birdland Theater April 25 through May 7

April 25-29 (Tuesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (4/25-27); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (4/28-29) - Birdland Jazz Club
John Pizzarelli Album Release: Stage and Screen
Internationally-acclaimed John Pizzarelli charms audiences with his warmth, sense of humor, and musical chops. Through his multifaceted career as a jazz guitarist, vocalist and bandleader, the son of the legendary New Jersey native guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli has become one of the most recognizable faces and voices in contemporary jazz for his interpretations of classic standards, romantic ballads and the cool jazz flavor he brings to his performances and recordings. While maintaining a busy touring schedule, John also founded "Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli," a nationally syndicated radio program co-hosted with his wife, Broadway star Jessica Molaskey. Long-time a Birdland favorite, Pizzarelli puts on a show you won't want to miss.
$40 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

April 25 (Tuesday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks
Catch Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks for their final performance in a highly successful 7-week Tuesday night residency at the 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!
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

April 26 (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 26 (Wednesday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Frank Vignola's Guitar Night with Dave Stryker
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 8:30pm 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 Trio, featuring bassist Gary Mazzaroppi and drummer Vince Cherico, will perform tunes from the standard repertoire, inviting up a rotation of special guests. This week it's Dave Stryker.
$30 tables; $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

April 27 (Thursday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
John Minnock and Dave Liebman
A special vocalist who contributes freshness and contemporaneity to the tradition, John Minnock possesses the street-smart sound of jazz vocalists past and maintains the forward-thinking attitude that has always uplifted the music. The recipient of the 2019 Hot House/Jazzmobile Best Male Vocalist Award, Minnock has become a fixture on both the jazz and cabaret circuits in New York City, playing the city's finest clubs, and receiving the 2016 Hot House Jazz Fans Decision Metropolitan Room Award. Minnock is joined by saxophone icon Dave Liebman. Liebman, a legend of jazz music, appears on over 500 recordings, including 200 as a leader. His membership in the bands of trumpeter Miles Davis and drummer Elvin Jones in the 1970s continues to guide him toward artistic heights which inspire countless young musicians the world over. Together, Minnock and Liebman form a savvy, edgy unit, sure to excite listeners. John previews new music from his forthcoming album, while revisiting classics from his critically acclaimed Dot Time Records' releases 'Herring Cove' and 'Simplicity'.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

April 28 (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!"
$30 + $20 food/drink minimum

April 28-30 (Friday-Sunday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Steven Bernstein Millennial Territory Orchestra
One of the most peculiar, eye-popping, truly virtuosic, uncompromisingly glorious, absolutely renegade figures in contemporary jazz, Steven Bernstein is a musician among musicians. The chosen arranger for Robert Altman and Woody Allen films, or for collaborations between U2 and Sun Ra's Arkestra; the trumpeter for saxophone legend Sam Rivers, rocker Courtney Love, superstar Lou Reed, and the queen herself, Aretha Franklin; and the leader of the infamous Sex Mob, which performs pan-stylistic work with the swagger of Louis Armstrong and Count Basie; whichever one he's being at the moment, Bernstein is always proving that he is one of music's truest heirs to the showman tradition of Cab Calloway, Jimmy Lunceford, Duke Ellington, Lester Bowie, and Sun Ra. His Millennial Territory Orchestra takes on the great works of Prince, Stevie Wonder, and the Beatles, as well as those of early jazz by the likes of Don Redman and Bennie Moten. Comprised of a stellar cast, this is a band unlike anything you've ever heard. Get ready: Steven Bernstein is coming to party.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

April 30 (Sunday) 5:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
All-City Latin Ensemble and The Fat Cats
Many know all about Birdland's many-years-long Sunday night residency of Arturo O'Farill's Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra (ALJO). Lesser known, however, are the Fat Afro Latin Jazz Cats, or Fat Cats for short, a group founded by O'Farill in 2010 to bring together the most talented Latin-jazz-playing youth in NYC. Directed by O'Farill's son Zach, ALJO trumpeter Jim Seeley, and ALJO bassist Bam Bam Rodríguez, the high-school-aged Latin jazz orchestra performs standards of both Latin jazz and swinging jazz. Its members regularly end up in top conservatories across the country, including New York City's own Manhattan School of Music, upstate's SUNY Purchase, Oberlin Conservatory, and New England Conservatory. See for yourself: a lively group of young devotees, the Fat Cats' excellence goes far beyond their years.
$30 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

April 30 (Sunday) 8:30 & 10:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
Arturo O'Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra
Pianist, composer and educator Arturo O'Farrill-leader of the "first family of Afro-Cuban Jazz" (The New York Times)-leads the GRAMMY award winning Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra (ALJO), who bring 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. Twelve 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.
$30 + $20 food/drink minimum

May 2 (Tuesday) 5:30 PM - Birdland Theater
The Anderson Brothers Play Ellington
Juilliard-trained identical twins Peter and Will Anderson have been hailed as "virtuosos on clarinet and saxophone" by The New York Times. Their passion for classic jazz shines through each time they perform. Having shared the stage with some of the music's biggest straight-ahead jazz acts-including Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, Wycliffe Gordon, Cecile McLorin Salvant, Paquito D'Rivera, and Wynton Marsalis-the brothers constitute a formidable force. They've headlined shows at Carnegie Hall, The Blue Note, Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and live on Garrison Keillor's Prairie Home Companion Radio Program. Birdland welcomes them every Tuesday in May as they deliver their no-funny-business, straight-down-the-middle, jazz-lover's type of jazz: this month paying tribute to the great Duke Ellington.
$30 + $20 food/drink minimum

May 2-6 (Tuesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (5/2-4); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (5/5-6) - Birdland Jazz Club
Emmet Cohen Trio Plus Special Guests
Special Guests: Warren Wolf (vibraphone, 5/2), Bruce Harris (trumpet, 5/3), Jerry Weldon (saxophone, ) and Houston Person (saxophone, 5/6). Virtuoso pianist Emmet Cohen has taken the jazz world by storm. The Cole Porter Fellow of the American Pianists Association, Cohen made a name for himself as the 1st place winner in a number of the United States' most prestigious piano competitions, including the 2019 American Pianists Awards, the 2014 American Jazz Pianists Competition, and the 2011 Phillips Piano Competition at the University of West Florida-as well as placing as a finalist in the 2011 Thelonious Monk International Piano Competition. More recently, however, Cohen became a pioneer of a new kind. When the pandemic caused a lockdown in March 2020, he began filming concerts from his Harlem apartment, calling them "Live From Emmet's Place" and featuring his trio of bassist Russell Hall and drummer Kyle Poole with special guest friends. The series became an instant hit; now, with over 1,000,000 views across more than 300 high-production videos, Emmet's Place is a (literal) household name in jazz. For this week at Birdland, Cohen will hold things down with his trio of Kyle Poole and Phil Norris: be there to see some riveting swing! Saxophone legend Houston Person joins on the final night.
$40 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

May 3 (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

May 3 (Wednesday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Frank Vignola's Guitar Night with Karrin Allyson
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 8:30pm 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 Trio, featuring bassist Gary Mazzaroppi and drummer Vince Cherico, will perform tunes from the standard repertoire, inviting up a rotation of special guests. This week it's Karrin Allyson.
$30 tables; $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

May 4 (Thursday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Sean Mason Quartet
Upon arriving in New York City to attend The Juilliard School, Sean Mason made waves among both his peers and his elders with his original brand of gospel, bebop, early jazz, and soul. An imaginative pianist, Mason's technique and stylistic breadth places him among the top pianists in his generation: though possessed of a deep historical knowledge of his instrument, Mason's playing is decidedly contemporary. Recent work has included performances with Wynton Marsalis, Catherine Russell, Herlin Riley, Joe Farnsworth, Emmet Cohen, and Branford Marsalis, as well as with his own Trio and Quintet. Mason says simply: "My purpose is to play dance music." He brings a quartet for this evening at the Birdland Theater.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

May 5 (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!"
$30 + $20 food/drink minimum

May 5-7 (Friday-Sunday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Joe Alterman Trio
Enjoy a week with Birdland favorite Joe Alterman, the pianist who Ramsey Lewis calls "a joy to behold"; who Les McCann calls "a giant"; and whose warm, upbeat pianism calls forth the exuberant wit of Ahmad Jamal, the blues of Red Garland, and the reflections of Bill Evans. The Atlanta native has been performing in New York City for over ten years; his new release, The Upside of Down, captures the power of two sets he played at Birdland in 2019 and 2020 in the months just preceding the pandemic. With close compatriots Nathaniel Schroeder and Marlon Patton on bass and drums, Alterman brings the heat on keys, and conjures up the down-home good feelings which we so badly need right about now. Perhaps this is why famed jazz critic Nat Hentoff says that the young pianist "would have been able to hold his own jamming with...Lester Young, Count Basie, Oscar Peterson, and Duke Ellington." Let Alterman and company swing you out of your seats. Really-don't be surprised if you start dancing!
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

May 7 (Sunday) 5:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
Birdland Big Band with Darmon Meader
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). For this special Sunday performance, however, the Birdland Big Band showcases vocalist and saxophonist Darmon Meader. Meader's work as a member of the renowned singing group New York Voices brought him onto world stages with legends such as Jon Hendricks, Sheila Jordan, Bob Dorough, Ray Brown, George Benson, Nancy Wilson, Bernadette Peters, and the Count Basie Orchestra. This first Sunday in May, come see for yourself why Time Out New York proclaims that "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!"
$30 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

May 7 (Sunday) 8:30 & 10:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
Arturo O'Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra
Pianist, composer and educator Arturo O'Farrill-leader of the "first family of Afro-Cuban Jazz" (The New York Times)-leads the GRAMMY award winning Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra (ALJO), who bring 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. Twelve 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.
$30 + $20 food/drink minimum