The Legendary Count Basie Orchestra, Champian Fulton Trio, and More to Play Birdland This Month

Birdland Jazz Club and Birdland Theater have announced all jazz programming running May 22 through June 4.

Performers appearing at Birdland Jazz Club include The Legendary Count Basie Orchestra, Champian Fulton Trio, The Peperoncino Jazz Festival with Russell Ferrante, John Patitucci, Brian Blade, and Joe Lovano and Jay Leonhart's J7.

Downstairs at Birdland Theater, catch The Anderson Brothers, Vince Giordano & the Nighthawks, Steven Wilson's Analog Band and Scott Robinson Quartet.

Repeat engagements include 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 May 22 through June 4

May 22 (Monday) 5:30 & 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks
Vince 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

May 23 (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.
$20 + $20 food/drink minimum

May 23-27 (Tuesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (5/23-25); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (5/26-27) - Birdland Jazz Club
The Legendary Count Basie Orchestra directed by Scotty Barnhart, Guest Vocalist Carmen Bradford
What needs to be said about the Count Basie Orchestra? This legendary big band has been synonymous with jazz for nearly 90 years, when Count Basie began leading his ensemble in the 1930s featuring such legends as Lester Young, Jo Jones, Walter Paige, and vocalist Jimmy Rushing. After decades of exuberant swing, iconic dance crazes, artful thematic albums and the perfection of the classic big band sound, Count Basie passed in 1984. Since then, the group has continued touring and recording under the direction of other leaders: Frank Foster, Thad Jones, and others, including Scotty Barnhardt, who had led the Orchestra since 2013. The Orchestra swings hard, delivering famous numbers from the Basie catalog and blessing audiences with its famous swing feeling.
$40 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

May 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

May 24 (Wednesday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Frank Vignola's Guitar Night with Roni Ben-Hur
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 Roni Ben-Hur.
$30 tables; $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

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

May 26-28 (Friday-Sunday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Steve Wilson's Analog Band
One of jazz's most celebrated figures on the alto saxophone, the ever inventive and endlessly passionate Steve Wilson-the leader on 7 acclaimed recordings and sideman on over 130-brings his Analog Band to Birdland Theater for four nights. In 2017, the GRAMMY-winning Wilson released Sit Back, Relax, and Unwind (JMI Recordings) on vinyl only, a totally "analog" session using no digital equipment, as was customary in earlier epochs of recording history. The band from that session, featuring pianist Ray Angry (The Roots, D'Angelo), drummer Willie Jones III (Roy Hargrove), and bassist Corcoran Holt (Kenny Garrett) joins Wilson for this engagement at the Theater. Wilson, who Jazz Times hails as "one of the finest alto and soprano saxophonists of our time," has served as an integral part of trailblazing bands by Maria Schneider, Chick Corea, George Duke, Dave Holland, Christian McBride, and so many more. Don't miss this great artist!
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

May 28 (Sunday) 5:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
Champian Fulton Trio Live at Birdland Release Celebration
Champian Fulton celebrates the release of her newest album, which was recorded live at Birdland! A great jazz singer is something special, and something special indeed is Champian Fulton. Daughter of trumpeter Stephen Fulton, Champian grew up inside the world of music, and as she grew she developed a swinging sound on the piano and a voice beyond her years-a sound reminiscent of the old master vocalists. Named the Hot House Readers Poll 2019 Pianist and Vocalist of the Year, and with well over a dozen albums to her name, she is understandably a Birdland fan favorite. Fulton's new album Meet Me at Birdland has received international acclaim, and is available now.
$30 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

May 28 (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 29 (Monday) 5:30 & 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks
Vince 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

May 30 (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.
$20 + $20 food/drink minimum

May 30 - June 3 (Tuesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (5/30-6/1); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (6/2-3) - Birdland Jazz Club
Peperoncino Jazz Festival at Birdland: Italianitry 2.0 with Russell Ferrante, John Patitucci, Brian Blade (5/30,31); Remembrance Trio with Joe Lovano, John Patitucci, Brian Blade (6/1,2,3)
The Peperoncino Jazz Festival's New York Session is a new venture by the Italian jazz festival to connect the Italian and New York jazz scenes. The first New York session had John Patitucci as its Artistic Director; for seven days, it celebrated jazz, Italy, and the cultural nexus of the two, with artists such as Marco Panascia, Elio Coppola, and Jerry Weldon. For this second season of the New York festival, Birdland will host two trios led by bassist John Patitucci: Italianitry 2.0 with pianist Russell Ferrante, bassist John Patitucci, and drummer Brian Blade (5/30,31); Remembrance Trio with saxophonist Joe Lovano, John Patitucci, and Brian Blade (6/1,2,3). Join the New York Session #2 for your favorite artists as they pay tribute to the beauty of jazz and Italian culture.
$40 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

May 31 (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 31 (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, inviting up a rotation of special guests.
$30 tables; $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

June 2 (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

June 2-4 (Friday-Sunday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Scott Robinson Quartet
Virtuoso multi-instrumentalist Scott Robinson is widely hailed for his unique, eccentric approach and his powerful improvisations. The top call man for baritone saxophone, Robinson has worked with orchestras led by Maria Schneider, Frank Mantooth, Bob Mintzer and John Fedchock, but his skills on tenor sax, trumpet, clarinets, and even the mysterious sarrusophone are well-known. Having appeared on over 275 recordings to date-20 as a leader-Robinson's music draws from a wide range of traditions. His playing at once wry, humorous, magnetic, and profound, this is the rare musician from whom you don't know what to expect-and it's precisely that joy of surprise which makes Robinson so assuredly a wonder to watch perform. He brings a quartet to Birdland for this engagement.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

June 4 (Sunday) 5:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
Jay Leonhart's J7
Bassist, singer and songwriter Jay Leonhart is both a veteran instrumentalist and an inspiring, storied vocal performer. With decades of accomplishments on his musical resume just as a bassist-including acts so varied as Tony Bennett, Ozzy Osbourne, James Taylor, Thad Jones, and Queen Latifah-Leonhart surprises many a musician with his disarming vocals and his smart, often humorous original songs, which he has recorded to critical acclaim since 1983's Salamander Pie. An uncanny artist who has recorded nearly 20 records as a leader and appeared on some 250 as a sideman, Leonhart was named The Most Valuable Bassist in the recording industry three times by the National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences between 1975 and 1995. He is sure to move and entertain his audience-this time with a larger ensemble in tow.
$30 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

June 4 (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