Monty Alexander, David DeJesus Sextet, and More to Play Birdland This Month

Birdland Jazz Club and Birdland Theater have announced jazz programming running July 10 through July 23.

Performers appearing at Birdland Jazz Club include Monty Alexander, David DeJesus Sextet, SRT with John "J.R." Robinson and Tom Scott and Wayne Tucker and the Bad Mothas.

Downstairs at Birdland Theater, catch Ashley Pezzotti, Miss Maybell & the Jazz Age Artistes and Carole J. Bufford.

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 July 10 through July 23

July 10 (Monday) 5:30 & 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks
Catch Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks every Monday evening in June 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!
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum


July 11 (Tuesday) 5:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Ashley Pezzotti
Called a “performer to watch” by DownBeat Magazine, Queens-born Ashley Pezzotti takes an early set on the Birdland Theater stage four consecutive Tuesdays in August to deliver her trademark renditions of American standards. This 25-year-old rising star has performed with jazz icon Wynton Marsalis (on his 2020 recording The Ever Fonky Lowdown), country legend Keith Urban, and piano prodigy Joey Alexander. On her debut recording, We've Only Just Begun, she was backed by the Emmet Cohen Trio and other young lions. A vocalist indebted to the great jazz singers like Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, and Carmen McRae, Pezzotti offers listeners a chance to relax into the music they know and love, while bringing a freshness of presence that enchants her audiences..
$20 + $20 food/drink minimum


July 11-15 (Tuesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (7/11-13); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (7/14-15) – Birdland Jazz Club
Monty Alexander
A master pianist with 70 years in music, Monty Alexander is a jazz legend. Named the 5th greatest jazz pianist in history in Hal Leonard's Fifty Greatest Jazz Piano Players of All Time, Alexander's achievements have earned him the highest honors: native Jamaica granted him the title of Commander in the Order of Distinction; Institute of Jamaica awarded him the Musgrave Medal; and the University of the West Indies bestowed upon him an honorary doctorate. What makes this 23-time guest of the Montreux Jazz Festival such a beloved figure? According to him, it is his insatiable capacity “to build up the heat and kick up a storm”—a joyful skill that has been recorded on over 70 discs as a leader. He is sure to uplift his listeners this week at Birdland.
$40 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum


July 12 (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


July 12 (Wednesday) 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Frank Vignola's Guitar Night
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,  *Guitar Night streams live every week at YouTube.com/RadioFreeBirdland
$30 tables; $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum


July 13 (Thursday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Miss Maybell & the Jazz Age Artistes
Miss Maybell and the Jazz Age Artistes play “old music for the young at heart,” and it's a sight to behold. Offering an exuberant mix of ragtime, early jazz, blues, and country classics, Maybell (the talented Lauren Sansaricq) and crew transport audiences to a different time, but in their expert hands, the music feels as fresh as ever. Vocalist/washboardist Sansaricq's lovely connection with pianist Charlie Judkins—called a “genius piano player” by the Syncopated Times—radiates an infectious energy. Their toe-tapping romps will leave audiences smiling. Brian Nalepka (bass and tuba) and Andy Stein (saxophone) round out the group, which was recently featured on The NPR Show “Person Place Thing” with Randy Cohen. Don't miss this delightful one-nighter!
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum


July 14 (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


July 16 (Sunday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club
David DeJesus Sextet The Latin Side of Bird
Alto Saxophonist David DeJesus is a master saxophonist, fluent across Latin, jazz and dozens of other styles. The director of the Birdland Big Band, he has been a fixture on the New York City music scene for three decades, performing with the best of the best: the Village Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, the Mingus Big Band, the Dizzy Gillespie Alumni All-Stars, Ron Carter's Great Big Band, and Jimmy Heath's Big Band; the Grammy-nominated Arturo O'Farrill Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra, Bobby Sanabria Big Band, Ruben Blades, Larry Harlow, and Gilberto Santa Rosa. DeJesus is a passionate educator, and serves as Professor of Jazz Studies at SUNY Purchase and directs the conservatory's Latin Jazz Orchestra.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum


July 16 (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


July 17 (Monday) 5:30 & 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks
Catch Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks every Monday evening in July 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!
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum


July 18 (Tuesday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Ashley Pezzotti
Called a “performer to watch” by DownBeat Magazine, Queens-born Ashley Pezzotti takes an early set on the Birdland Theater stage four consecutive Tuesdays in August to deliver her trademark renditions of American standards. This 25-year-old rising star has performed with jazz icon Wynton Marsalis (on his 2020 recording The Ever Fonky Lowdown), country legend Keith Urban, and piano prodigy Joey Alexander. On her debut recording, We've Only Just Begun, she was backed by the Emmet Cohen Trio and other young lions. A vocalist indebted to the great jazz singers like Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, and Carmen McRae, Pezzotti offers listeners a chance to relax into the music they know and love, while bringing a freshness of presence that enchants her audiences..
$20 + $20 food/drink minimum


July 18-22 (Tuesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (7/21-22); 8:30 & 10:30  – Birdland Jazz Club
SRT with John "J.R." Robinson and special guest Tom Scott
In an era where music is created virtually in basements, jazz-rock power trio SRT is creating music the old fashioned way: live and together in the studio. SRT features world-renowned, Grammy-winning drummer John "J.R." Robinson, the drummer on over 20 number one hits by artists such as Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Lionel Richie, Quincy Jones, Daft Punk, Lady Gaga and Steve Winwood. "J.R." was named one of Rolling Stone Magazine's "Top 100 Drummers of All Time." SRT also features Grammy-winning L.A. session-ace guitarist Andrew Synowiec, whose credits include The Who, Michael Buble, David Foster and hundreds of Hollywood film scores, and jazz organ phenom Mitch Towne, organist on the Grammy-nominated album "Velvet Portraits" by Terrace Martin. Joining SRT is very special guest, legendary Grammy-winning saxophonist Tom Scott whose iconic playing has been featured with countless artists, including Steely Dan, Aretha Franklin, George Harrison, Joni Mitchell and The Blues Brothers.
$40 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum


July 19 (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


July 19 (Wednesday) 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Frank Vignola's Guitar Night
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 Quartet, featuring bassist Gary Mazzaroppi, drummer Vince Cherico, and pianist Ted Rosenthal, will perform tunes from the standard repertoire, with special guests: Warren Vaché (trumpet 7/5), Tessa Lark (violin 7/5), Pasquale Grasso (guitar 7/12), Sara Caswell (violin 7/19), Bill Mays (piano 7/26).  *Guitar night streams live every week at YouTube.com/RadioFreeBirdland
$30 tables; $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum


July 21 (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


July 21-23 (Friday-Sunday)  7:00 & 9:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Carole J. Bufford – “Divine Decadence”
With a seductive blend of vintage charm and modern flair, “Divine Decadence” combines the best of the past and present, showcasing a diverse collection of songs spanning from the Roaring 1920s to the Vibrant 2020s. This captivating cabaret takes audiences on a dazzling 100 year journey celebrating the evolution of music and capturing the spirit of each decade. Carole J. Bufford and her trio breathe new life into timeless classics and offer scintillating takes on some of today's current hits. The show features songs made famous by Barbra Streisand, Ella Fitzgerald, Adele, Tina Turner, Solomon Burke, Patsy Cline, Liza Minnelli, Nancy Wilson, Amy Winehouse, Frank Sinatra, and more. Carole J. Bufford has become one of the most sought-after young performers in the New York nightclub and jazz scene. Her recent shows, “speak easy” (featuring the Grammy Award-winning Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks) and “Body & Soul” earned her rave reviews across the board, including The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. Carole is the recipient of a Nightlife, Bistro and BroadwayWorld Award for Outstanding Vocalist. She was featured in Michael Feinstein's Great American Songbook series at Jazz at Lincoln Center.
$35 tables / $25 bar + $20 food/drink minimum


July 23 (Sunday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club
Wayne Tucker and the Bad Mothas
The fantastic Wayne Tucker's contemporary stylings combine the best in jazz trumpet tradition with the smooth stylings of Stevie Wonder and other soul greats. A trumpeter, composer, arranger, violinist and vocalist based in NYC, Tucker has released 4 albums under his name and performs regularly with his band, The Bad Mothas—gaining local fame when, during the first summer of the pandemic, they set up at the entrance to Brooklyn's Prospect Park and began playing every day with the group. The trumpeter for jazz legends Kurt Elling, Dee Dee Bridgewater and Cyrille Aimée; pop legends Taylor Swift, David Crosby, Elvis Costello; R&B giants Ne-Yo and Gabriel Garzon-Montano; hip hop big-wigs Jidenna and Ryan Leslie; and rock band Brass Against; Tucker continues to present tasteful, grooving music that transcends genre boundaries and speaks directly to the heart.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum


July 23 (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

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