Linda Lavin, Anita Gillette and More Set for Birdland in September

Birdland (315 West 44th Street – between 8th & 9th Aves.) has announced entertainment for the month of September, 2012.

· Grace Kelly Quintet
CD Release Celebration
Monday, September 3 @ 7:00 p.m. ($20)

· Oregon featuring Ralph Towner
Celebrating more than 40 years as an ensemble, the multiple Grammy nominated jazz/classical/world music fusion quartet "Oregon" has inspired audiences worldwide, from Carnegie Hall to Vienna's Mozartsaal. The music by this American quartet, composed mostly by guitarist, pianist, trumpeter Ralph Towner is without boundary, an adventurous merging of jazz, chamber music textures and folkloric sounds coming from various latitudes and longitudes. Yet Towner, along with founding members Paul McCandless (woodwinds) Glen Moore (bass) and later addition Mark Walker (drums) always manage to strike the perfect balance between composition and improvisation, accessibility and expression.
September 4 – 8 @ 8:30 p.m. & 11:00 p.m. ($30 Side Seating, $40 Center Seating)

· Michael Pedecin Quintet
CD Release Celebration
Thursday, September 6 @ 6:00 p.m. ($20)

· Dave Liebman Group
Dave Liebman (woodwinds) Vic Juris (guitars) Tony Marino (bass) Marko Marcinko (drums)
Saxophonist Dave Liebman, a 2010 "NEA Jazz Master," learned directly from jazz icons, spending extensive periods as a member of groups led by MiLes Davis and Elvin Jones. As a leader Liebman has been associated since 1970 with a succession of extraordinary groups from Open Sky Trio to Lookout Farm to Quest, each of whom has framed a distinct phase of his musical evolution. The Dave Liebman Group, "one of the most accomplished in jazz today," (Chicago Tribune) has been together for over twenty years, recording fifteen CDs, with only one change in personnel. They cover a panoply of contemporary styles, mixing original compositions with adaptations of jazz standards.
September 11 – 15 @ 8:30 p.m. & 11:00 p.m. ($30 Side Seating, $40 Center Seating)

· Michael Feinberg "Elvin Jones Project"
CD Release Celebration
featuring Tim Hagans (trumpet) Donny McCaslin (sax) Leo Genovese (piano) Ian From an (drums)
Thursday, September 13 @ 6:00 p.m. ($20)

· Broadway at Birdland: "Portrait of an Artist" Steve Bakunas with Linda Lavin
Broadway at Birdland is proud to announce a new series called "Portrait of an Artist," in which actor/director/painter Steve Bakunas interviews musical and theatrical icons while painting their portrait before the audience's eyes! These famous folks will share their successes, failures and lessons learned in a very intimate one-on-one chat on the historic Birdland stage. Online media partner BroadwayWorld.com will also be on hand to film the event, which will air exclusively on the site at a later date. Steve Bakunas kicks off this unprecedented series with an intimate no-holds-barred conversation with his wife, Tony and Golden Globe winning actress Linda Lavin. The audience will be privy to Lavin's personal and professional life while Steve's portrait unfolds. By his count, Steve Bakunas has had about 70 jobs throughout his life. The Connecticut native has done everything from selling Fuller brushes and used cars to driving for the Grateful Dead and working in Circus Vargas. Ultimately, he became a stage actor before discovering his creative bent as a painter, sculptor, set designer, carpenter, builder and jazz drummer. Married to actress Linda Lavin, he now buys and restores older homes and is revitalizing low-income neighborhoods in the couple's North Carolina hometown. A sophisticated folk-inspired artist, his portraits have been shown at galleries in Wilmington, NC, and New York City. This past season, Linda Lavin was celebrated with a Tony and Drama Desk nomination for her performance in The Lyons at the Cort Theater. Last year, she earned raves as the alcoholic aunt in Jon Robin Baitz's Off-Broadway hit Other Desert Cities, then went on to belt the show stopping tune "Broadway Baby" in the Kennedy Center's production of Follies. New York audiences have seen Lavin in The Tale of the Allergist's Wife, Gypsy, The Diary of Anne Frank, Collected Stories, Broadway Bound (Tony Award), Last of the Red Hot Lovers and It's a Bird…It's a Plane…It's Superman. Of course, the world knows her as Alice Hyatt in the long-running TV series, "Alice." Linda began her career in New York City nightclubs like The Showplace and Downstairs at the Upstairs, and has recently been performing in concert halls and cabarets across the country. A regular at Birdland, she recently released her first solo CD, Possibilities.
September 16 @ 1:00 p.m. ($25)

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