Smoke Jazz Club Adds Houston Person, Willie Jones III, and More To October Concert Schedule

One of New York City's premier live music venues, Smoke Jazz Club, presents a stellar line-up of both legendary jazz performers and emerging voices during the month of October. Acclaimed for its essential music programming and inspired setting, Smoke Jazz Club recently reopened to much fanfare after being closed to indoor performances and dining for over two years. This revered institution has undertaken an impressive expansion and renovation that anchors its place as a world-renowned destination for the best in classic and modern jazz.

October begins with a highly anticipated four-night run led by Guggenheim Fellow Elio Villafranca in celebration of his latest Artist Share album Standing at the Crossroads (Sep 29-Oct 2). Smoke welcomes some of today's top players to help pay tribute to two jazz geniuses: Bria Skonberg and Benny Green(among others) make their Smoke debut in celebration of Dizzy Gillespie (Oct 14-16) followed by an all-star quartet comprised of Joe Lovano, Kevin Hays, Ben Street, and Al Foster paying homage to Thelonious Monk (Oct 20-23). The biweekly Wednesday night showcase of vocalists continues with Amina Figarova (Oct 19). Please scroll down for complete schedule or visit SMOKEjazz.com. When: Every Wednesday-Sunday @ 7:00 p.m. + 9:00 p.m. and additional 10:30 p.m.
(Fri & Sat only). Doors open at 5:00 p.m.

Where: SMOKE, 2751 Broadway (between 105/106th Streets),
New York, NY, Train: 1 to 103rd Street.

Tickets: In-Person $25-$60. Livestream $15. For more information and
to make reservations, please visit SMOKEjazz.com.

OCTOBER 2022 @ SMOKE (subject to change):

Thr-Sun Sep 29-Oct 2 Elio Villafranca & The Jass Syncopators cd release
Elio Villafranca - piano
Steve Wilson - alto & soprano saxophone
Vincent Herring - tenor saxophone and flute
Alex Norris - trumpet
Edward Perez - bass
Dion Parson - drums
Mauricio Herrera - percussion


Smoke is thrilled to welcome back Cuban jazz pianist and composer Elio Villafranca to celebrate the release of his latest album Standing at the Crossroads. This recording speaks about his own life experiences as an artist, growing up in the small town of San Luis, Pinar del Rio, surrounded by Congolese drums, educated in Russian classical music, while falling in love with jazz. Elio Villafranca leads his exciting group the Jazz Syncopators. Villafranca is a spellbinding pianist who has recorded and performed with master artists such as Pat Martino, Terell Stafford, Billy Hart, Paquito D'Rivera, Eric Alexander, Lewis Nash, David Murray, and Wynton Marsalis. He brings an original musical perspective and is at the forefront of an exciting new generation of musicians. Downbeat states, "Villafranca has emerged as a commanding presence on the jazz scene, not just in the U.S. but throughout the world." The Jass Syncopators highlight the significant influence from the Caribbean region, specifically from Cuba, on jazz music from its earliest days in New Orleans.


Thr-Sun Oct 6-9 Cyrus Chestnut Quartet
Cyrus Chestnut - piano
Freddie Hendrix - trumpet
TBA - bass
Willie Jones III - drums

Cyrus Chestnut, one of the great jazz pianists, leads a rewarding quartet featuring trumpeter Freddie Hendrix and drummer Willie Jones III. Inspired by gospel music throughout his life, Cyrus draws on a range of musical influences while never straying too far from the blues which The New York Daily News adds makes him "the rightful heir to Bud Powell, Art Tatum and Erroll Garner."

Wed Oct 12 Willie Jones III Quintet
Joe Magnarelli - trumpet
Justin Robinson - alto saxophone
James Austin - piano
David "Happy" Williams - bass
Willie Jones III - drums

Willie Jones III, one of the hardest swinging drummers in modern jazz, is also an important bandleader who leads groups with undeniable chemistry. Willie has worked with an impressive list of artists including Roy Hargrove, Arturo Sandoval, and Hank Jones and is a noted record producer and label owner who has released several critically acclaimed albums as a leader. The New York Times states, "He comes from a line of percussive descent established by Kenny Clark, and later modified by Philly Joe Jones; he's more than comfortable with polyrhythm, but it's straightforward swing that suits him best." His inspiring quintet features trumpeter Joe Magnarelli, alto saxophonist Justin Robinson, pianist James Austin, and bassist David "Happy" Williams.

Fri-Sun Oct 14-16 Bird & Diz: Dizzy Gillespie Celebration
Bria Skonberg - trumpet
Vincent Herring - alto saxophone
Benny Green - piano
Yasushi Nakamura - bass
Kenny Washington - drums

An all-star band gathers to play the music of Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. This highly anticipated celebration of the music of John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie and Charlie "Bird" Parker teams some of the most acclaimed artists of our time and is the Smoke debut for two of them: trumpeter Bria Skonberg and pianist Benny Green. Gillespie, the great trumpet, bandleader, and bebop innovator, would have been 105 years old on October 21. Trumpeter Skonberg is "poised to be one of the most versatile and imposing musicians of her generation," writes The Wall Street Journal. She teams with alto saxophonist Vincent Herring who the New York City Jazz Record "has firmly established himself as one of his generation's masters." Their rhythm section is no less impressive with bassist Yasushi Nakamura, drummer Kenny Washington and pianist Green who NPR praised as "a conservationist of the bebop idiom, and a joyful guardian of its lexicon."

Wed Oct 19 Amina Figarova Sextet
Amina Figarova - piano
Wayne Escoffery - tenor saxophone
Alex Pope Norris - trumpet
Bart Platteau - flutes
Yasushi Nakamura - bass
Rudy Royston - drums

Pianist and composer Amina Figarova leads her superb sextet. Her deeply personal, highly evocative responses to social turmoil, distinctive personalities she's encountered, and universal transitions of life inform this music. The Jazz Police reports, "This is a band that built its reputation playing original repertoire, each musician a powerful soloist in his or her own right; yet it is their signature interplay that moves the Amina Figarova Sextet above and beyond the vast majority of large chamber ensembles in modern jazz and places the pianist among the top echelon of composer/bandleaders...."

Thr-Sun Oct 20-23 The Music of Monk: Lovano, Hays, Street, and Foster
Joe Lovano - tenor saxophone
Kevin Hays - piano
Ben Street - bass
Al Foster - drums

An all-star quartet featuring Joe Lovano, Kevin Hays, Ben Street and Al Foster revisits the music of Thelonious Sphere Monk, one of the great geniuses and innovators of modern music, in celebration of his October 10th birthday. Joe Lovano is "one of the great connectors in the history of New York jazz over the last few generations" (The New York Times) reunites with drummer Al Foster "a not-so-secret special groove ingredient enlivening performances and sessions by a long list of heavy hitters." (Jazz Times) The quartet is completed by striking musical partners Kevin Hays on piano and Ben Street on bass.

Wed Oct 26 Cynthia Scott featuring Houston Person
Cynthia Scott - vocals
Houston Person - tenor saxophone
Jeb Patton - piano
TBA - bass
Willie Jones III - drums

Cynthia Scott, a soulful, Grammy-nominated vocalist, leads a swinging quintet featuring the legendary tenor saxophonist Houston Person. Scott worked with Ray Charles as a Raelette before launching her successful solo career and subsequently performing with Hank Crawford, David "Fathead" Newman, Wynton Marsalis, Harry Connick Jr. and many others. JazzTimes says Scott blends "the sinewy grit of Gladys Knight and the sophisticated sass of Shirley Horn" with "nods to such idols as Carmen, Ella, Sarah and Dinah." The Chicago Tribune called her "a mesmerizing vocalist." Houston Person is the very special guest with this quintet and All About Jazz says, "Whatever imponderable talent it takes to stay at the top of one's game for almost six decades, as Person has, he still has it in abundance."

Thu-Sun Oct 27-30 Russell Malone Quartet
Russell Malone - guitar
Rick Germanson - piano
Vincent Dupont - bass
Neal Smith - drums

Guitar master Russell Malone leads his exceptional and beloved quartet with pianist Rick Germanson, bassist Vincent Dupont and drummer Neal Smith. Malone is a musician deeply rooted in the blues and bebop and his soulfully swinging approach is just one of many reasons why he is so popular. Chicago Tribune states, "Though he spikes his solos with occasional running lines, it's gently rolled chords and lush sequences of harmonies that ultimately define his work," and Jazz Times describes him as "an uncommonly sensitive interpreter of ballads."