Birdland Jazz Club and Birdland Theater Reveal August 2024 Programming

Birdland Jazz Club and Birdland Theater will operate this August with a full slate of nightly performances! 

At Birdland Jazz Club, catch John Pizzarelli & The Swing 7, Rich Townsend & The Magnificent Nightrain, Scott Alan, Delfeayo Marsalis and the Uptown Jazz Orchestra, Bruce Harris, Wayne Tucker Sextet, Julie Benko, James Carter: Lookin' at Lock, Frank Perowsky Jazz Orchestra Tribute to Mike Longo and Sam Burtis, Steve Ross, Birdland Big Band, Jihee Heo, Karen Mack, Ken Peplowski: Bird with Strings.

Birdland Theater will present Hayley Sales, Tia Fuller Quartet, Bryan Eng “Circle Room” Trio, Tyreek McDole Quintet, The String Queens, Lew Tabackin Trio, Donald Vega Quartet, Billy Hart Quartet, Ada Pasternak, Mingus Orchestra, Troy Roberts Quartet: “Green Lights” Album Release, Charlie Parker Birthday Celebration.

Repeat engagements include Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks, Jim Caruso's Cast Party with Billy Stritch at the piano, The Lineup with Susie Mosher, Lucy Wijnands, David Ostwald's Louis Armstrong Eternity Band, Frank Vignola's Guitar Night, The High Society New Orleans Jazz Band, The Birdland Big Band, Richard Cortez, Esteban Castro, and The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra.

See below for the full schedule! More information can be found at www.birdlandjazz.com

August Schedule

July 30 - August 3 (Tuesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (7/30-8/1); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (8/2-3) – Birdland Jazz Club
John Pizzarelli & The Swing 7
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. With John Pizzarelli (guitar and vocals), John Mosca (trombone), Tony Kadleck (trumpet), Kenny Berger (bari sax), Chris Byars (alto sax), Michael Karn (bass), Isaiah J. Thompson (piano), Aaron Kimmel (drums).
$50 tables / $40 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 1 (Thursday) 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Hayley Sales
Canadian-American singer and songwriter Hayley Sales found success at an early age: in 2007, still a teenager, her Universal Music Group debut recording, “Sunseed,” reached both the Japan Hot #100 and Canada Hot #100 charts—consequently, she began touring with major artists such as Jason Mraz, Gavin DeGraw, INXS, The Spice Girls, Feist, and Justin Nozuka. Tours with Sinead O'Connor, Bjork, Ben Harper and others followed. Pursuing both musical and acting careers (Sales has acted in movies and shows on 21st Century Fox, CBS, and Amazon Prime with the likes of Bob Odenkirk, Bruce Willis, and Michael Rooker), Sales is an all-around artist whose original music is a romantic blend of styles, with a nod to singers like Judy Garland and Rosemary Clooney. In recent years she has co-penned music with Sharon Stone and toured with Rufus Wainwright; her latest music has garnered her over 5 million views on socials, and she brings her own group to Birdland Theater for this one-night-only engagement.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 2-4 (Friday-Sunday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Tia Fuller Quartet
Grammy-nominated saxophonist Tia Fuller is an internationally-regarded performer and composer. Fuller's career highlights include performances in President Barack Obama's White House; on morning shows Oprah, Today Show and Good Morning, America; and on tour with Beyonce's all-female I Am...Sasha Fierce band. As the saxophone sound in Pixar's Oscar-winning 2020 animated jazz movie, Soul, Fuller's music has been heard all over the world. She brings a deeply cultivated power to her lines and melodies—and her music draws compositional influence from across many genres beyond just swinging jazz music: she dives into pop, R&B and mixed-meter stylings to create a sound that is uniquely hers. Fuller's latest release, Diamond Cut, was nominated for a Grammy and features some of jazz's greatest living masters.
$35 tables / $25 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 4 (Sunday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club
Rich Townsend & The Magnificent NighTrain
Rich Townsend is a bluesman, a jazzman, a rocker and a wildman. His group The Magnificent NighTrain is a full-bodied experience: dancefloor euphoria, funkified balladry, swampdog showmanship. Not just a band, this is a collective, a way of living. In 2018, Townsend got together with Public Enemy drummer T-Bone Motta and Chris Range on alto sax—their jams and shows together got audiences cheering, and soon the group expanded with percussion, trombone, fiddle, bass, guitars, more sax and more vocals. The music was infectious and the personalities were big. The New Group takes Townsend's initial vision—of haunted New Orleans funk, of wicked James Brown swinging, of speakeasy Rock-n-Roll, of kaleidoscopic Jazz frenzy—to a whole new level. See it to believe it!
$30 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 5 (Monday) 7:00 PM – Birdland Jazz Club
Scott Alan & Friends
The celebrated songwriter will be joined by some of today's brightest stars singing his compositions, including Audrey Belle Adams, Beatriz Melo, Marylee Fairbanks, LaRaisha DiEvelyn Dionne, Carla Mongado, Ashlyn Combs, Natalie Ortega, Cassidy Ewert, Eli Thomas, T'Arica Crawford, Jenna Miller Ferreira, Julian Carli, and Kendall Paige Parrett. After the 2007 release of his debut album Dreaming Wide Awake, Alan has gone on to release seven follow-up albums that include Keys, What I Wanna Be When I Grow Up, Live, Anything Worth Holding On To, Cynthia Erivo and Oliver Tompsett Sing Scott Alan, Lifeline, and Nothing More. His compositions have been featured on “American Idol,” “So You Think You Can Dance,” “Entertainment Tonight,” HBO, MTV, and VH1.
$45 tables / $35 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 6 (Tuesday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Bryan Eng “Circle Room” Trio
Join the Bryan Eng “Circle Room” Trio for an evening of Nat King Cole classics from “Route 66” to “It's Only a Paper Moon.” Bryan will be joined by Aaron Matson on guitar and Ilya Osachuk on bass. Multifaceted jazz pianist, singer, composer, and actor, Bryan Eng is one of the most promising and accomplished entertainers of his generation. With performances on Broadway, the Kennedy Center, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Birdland, and an ongoing residency at the Carlyle Hotel, the 25-year-old entertainer has already made his mark on the world's most esteemed stages. Eng graduated from Northwestern University where his Chicago acclaim proved inevitable. Eng relocated to NYC to join the Broadway cast of Plaza Suite starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick. Eng became the Carlyle Hotel's youngest resident performer in its 70-year history. He continues to maintain a rigorous national touring schedule leading his three groups: the Bryan Eng Trio, the Bryan Eng “Circle Room” Trio, and the Bryan Eng Sextet.  His latest album, A Few Days With You, was released in March on the Club44 Record label.
$30 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 6-10 (Tuesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (8/6-8); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (8/9-10) – Birdland Jazz Club
Delfeayo Marsalis and the Uptown Jazz Orchestra
The great New Orleans trombonist, producer, composer, and educator Delfeayo Marsalis is a powerful force in the music world. With over 120 recording credits as a producer (including one GRAMMY Award and several nominations) and nearly 50 recordings as a trombonist, Delfeayo could be said to have made his mark. But in 2000, this committed educator created the Uptown Music Theatre, a non-profit that leads musical theater training for youth, and in 2008 he formed the UMT's sister organization: the Uptown Jazz Orchestra. As the jazz arm of his grand endeavor, this 18-piece band upholds the traditions of New Orleans swing, ensemble riff-playing, and infectious, soulful dance music that form the foundations of American jazz. With a star-studded cast, they never fail to amaze.
$45 tables / $35 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 8 (Thursday) 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Tyreek McDole Quintet
Vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Tyreek McDole is a 24 year-old Haitian-American artist raised in Florida and based in New York. The 2023 winner of the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition, McDole offers audiences the gift of impeccable tone paired with charismatic, big-hearted lyricism, full of bluesy feeling. Also a talented drummer and trumpeter, McDole's musicality is broad, and with an easygoing stage presence, it's no wonder why he's shared performances with artists such as Theo Croker, NEA Jazz Master Gary Bartz, Rodney Whitaker, Rockelle Fortin, Winard Harper, Marcus Printup, Eric Reed, Carl Allen, Victor Goines, Isaiah J. Thompson, Ben Allison, and Matt Wilson on stages such as The Blue Note, Dizzy's Club, Birdland, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and Minton's Playhouse. Expect a warm feeling from this fabulous young artist!
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 9-11 (Friday-Sunday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM - Birdland Theater
The String Queens
Few ensembles can perform repertoire from such a wide range of genres and time periods—from the Baroque era to the 1920s Jazz Age to the world of contemporary pop—and deliver all of them authentically, with a personal style and a tight-knit ensemble sound. But The String Queens can—and they do. A dynamic trio of violin, viola, and cello that inspires diverse audiences to love, hope, feel, and imagine, this Washington, D.C., based group has been featured at concert halls across America, including Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. Their performance, dedicated to Vice President Kamala Harris, at the official Presidential Inauguration in January 2021—and their performance at Wimbledon in June 2021—both served as highlights of this terrific group's upward trajectory. Their latest album, “Rise,” was released in 2022. Enjoy these brilliant and innovative performers as they continue on their mission.
$35 tables / $25 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 10 (Saturday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
Bruce Harris
A virtuosic trumpet player whose love of the jazz tradition led Wynton Marsalis to name him in Ebony Magazine as one of 5 young jazz musicians to know, the beloved Bruce Harris is an artist, educator, and curator based in New York City. Regular performances at New York's most prestigious venues, including Smalls, Smoke, Dizzy's, Ginny's, Minton's, and Rockwood place Bruce squarely in the center of the city's booming music scene; and appearances on CBS's The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and NBC's The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon have placed him in an international limelight. Harris has performed with Wynton Marsalis, Dave Brubeck, Dr. Billy Taylor, The Count Basie Orchestra, Barry Harris, Roy Hargrove, and Tony Bennett. His first recording as a leader, “Beginnings,” was released on Posi-Tone; his second, “Soundview,” was released on Cellar Live and La Reserve. His latest work is “The Lighting of the Lamp” (La Reserve/Cellar Live, 2022) with co-leader Grant Stewart. Harris is sure to delight audiences with swinging lines and a clear tone.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 11 (Sunday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club
Wayne Tucker Sextet
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 / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 12 (Monday) 7:00 PM – Birdland Jazz Club
Julie Benko
Julie Benko – direct from Broadway's Funny Girl and Harmony –  marches her band out again! After announcing she was expecting her first baby, Julie introduces a new show that explores the surprises, challenges, and joys of pregnancy. This evening of music will highlight female songwriters (Brandi Carlisle, Laura Nyro), Broadway favorites (selections from Into the Woods, Baby and more), and Disney classics (songs from Cinderella, The Jungle Book, and more). The new arrangements are by her longtime music director and husband (and, of course, the father-to-be!) Jason Yeager. In addition to Yeager on piano, the show features Paul Francis on drums, Michael O'Brien on bass, Justin Poindexter on guitars and mandolin, and Gabe Terraciano on violin. Jeremiah James, Benko's former Funny Girl co-star, will be featured as guest vocalist. Benko joined the annals of theatrical lore for her sensational understudy-to-star trajectory as Fanny Brice in the recent Broadway revival of Funny Girl. She was called the 2022 “Breakout Star for Theater” in The New York Times, named among “10 Broadway Stars to Watch for 2023” by Variety, and hailed by CBS Mornings as “Broadway's breakout star.”
$40 tables / $40 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 13-17 (Tuesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (8/13-15); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (8/16-17) – Birdland Jazz Club
James Carter Quintet: “Lookin' at Lock - Music of Eddie ‘Lockjaw' Davis”
“To hear saxophonist James Carter is to be blown away,” says the Washington Post. An indomitable force of imagination and soulful expression, Carter has released 19 records under his own name (for such esteemed labels as Atlantic, Sony, and Universal) and nearly 40 more as a collaborator with giants of music such as Lester Bowie, Christian McBride, Ginger Baker, Hammiet Bluiett, Steve Turre, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Regina Carter, Benny Golson, Marcus Miller, Madeleine Peyroux, and the World Saxophone Quartet. Carter received the prestigious Dr. Alain Locke Award in 2004 for his contributions to African-American culture. His playing evokes avant-garde, spiritual, gospel, and modern musical traditions within a single solo. For this week upstairs at the jazz club, the saxophonist will explore the music of Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis, the gutsy tenor-man of Count Basie fame known for his blues-soaked melodies and his heartbreaking, heroic improvisations. James Carter (saxophones); Satish Robertson (trumpet); Gerard Gibbs (piano); Hilliard Greene (bass); Kahlil Kwame Bell (drums).
$45 tables / $35 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 13 (Tuesday) 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Lew Tabackin Trio
Jazz legend Lew Tabackin is a true original. Since the late 1950s, he has cultivated an expression at once raw, passionate, technically masterful and boundlessly imaginative. Adept as both a flautist and saxophonist, Tabackin's early career included work with jazz luminaries Donald Byrd, Elvin Jones, Billy Higgins, and Clark Terry in the 1960s, as well several years with The Tonight Show band. He formed small and large ensembles with his wife, the masterful pianist and arranger Toshiko Akiyoshi, which toured the world for three decades. Tabackin's playing remains remarkably vibrant, and he continues to perform regularly. For this one-night engagement, Tabackin brings in his trio, which is sure to cook up soulful, unbridled jazz for the modern moment.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 15 (Thursday) 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Donald Vega Quartet
Nicaraguan-born, Los Angeles-raised, and New York-based Donald Vega is a shining star of jazz piano. Mentored by drumming legend Billy Higgins, taught by piano great Kenny Barron, and regularly employed by bassist extraordinaire Ron Carter, Vega has lived inside the inner circle jazz family for most of his life, and his live concerts and recordings prove as much: Vega's writing, improvisation, and ensemble playing converse joyfully with the history of jazz. On recording, he has teamed up with drum and bass icons Lewis Nash and Christian McBride for Spiritual Nature (Resonance, 2012) and again with Nash for With Respect to Monty (Resonance, 2015), joined by Monty Alexander bassist Hassan Shakur. Vega teaches at The Juilliard School and tours regularly around the globe with the foremost names in jazz. He brings in his quartet for this one-night-only appearance.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 16-18 (Friday-Sunday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Billy Hart Quartet
One of the art form's greatest drummers and bandleaders, Billy Hart is an imaginative artist whose innovations on drum language of the 1960s placed him amongst modernists Jack Dejohnette, Joe Chambers, Elvin Jones and Tony Williams to bring jazz forward into the 1970s and beyond. Hart was the drummer in Herbie Hancock's Mwandishi band and Miles Davis's On the Corner band in the 1970s, recording also with Pharoah Sanders, Stan Getz, Cecil McBee, Kenny Barron, Lee Konitz, John Scofield, and countless others. One of the hardest-working veteran drummers in the music, Hart at 82 years old has been leading and supporting groups of younger stars for the last two decades, with Mark Turner, Ethan Iverson, and Ben Street forming the elder master's quartet. Their music is broad, pensive, and exploratory—and swinging.
$35 tables / $25 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 18 (Sunday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club
Frank Perowsky Jazz Orchestra Tribute to Mike Longo and Sam Burtis
Frank Perowsky's Jazz Orchestra pays homage to the great Dizzy Gillespie pianist Mike Longo and the Charles Mingus trombonist and brass artist Sam Burtis with a special Sunday concert. Perowsky's work as a reedist, composer and arranger for the likes of Peggy Lee, Sarah Vaughan, Billy Eckstine, Nancy Wilson, Frank Sinatra, Mel Torme, Michel Legrand, Stan Getz, Jimmy Dorsey, Woody Herman, Tito Rodriguez, Johnny Richards, Bill Watrous, Thad Jones/Mel Louis, Roland Hanna, Chico O'Farril, Dr. Billy Taylor, and Liza Minnelli is well known. Well-respected by masters across the genre, his arrangement of “Bouncin' with Bud” was recorded by Buddy Rich on the famous “Class of '78” album, and piano great Roland Hanna recorded Perowsky's “Samba De La Noce” on his album “Double Exposure.” His large ensemble shines the spotlight on Longo and Burtis, who both passed in the last 4 years—Longo, of the first jazz greats lost in the pandemic, and Burtis who passed earlier this year. Celebrate life, music, and the joy of friendship with a heavyweight cast of New York artists.
$30 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 19 (Monday) 7:00 PM – Birdland Jazz Club
Steve Ross – “I Remember Him Well: The Songs of Alan Jay Lerner”
Ross will celebrate the centenary of one of the musical theatre's most literate lyricists, Alan Jay Lerner. Lerner's equally notable musical partners include Kurt Weill (Love Life), Burton Lane (Royal Wedding, On a Clear Day…) and most famously and most prolifically Frederick Loewe. Lerner & Loewe's contributions to theatre and film are many and marvelous: Paint Your Wagon, Brigadoon, Camelot, Gigi and My Fair Lady. Steve's songs will include “I Talk to the Trees,” “On a Clear Day..,” “I Remember It Well,” “The Heather On the Hill,” “Wouldn't It Be Loverly?,” and “Almost Like Being In Love.” Ross has been a fixture of the cabaret community in Manhattan for over forty years. In 1981 he re-opened the legendary Oak Room at Manhattan's famed Hotel Algonquin where he held forth for over 15 years. He has appeared on Broadway in Noël Coward's Present Laughter and Off-Broadway in his Fred Astaire tribute I Won't Dance. Internationally, he has performed in London, Paris, Tokyo, Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Melbourne and Sydney as well as cabarets and theaters across America and on the high seas. He hosted a live cabaret series for BBC Television, and back in America was host of “New York Cabaret Nights,” a series for National Public Radio.
$40 tables / $40 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 20-24 (Tuesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (8/20-22); 5:30 & 8:30 & 10:30 PM (8/23); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (8/24) – Birdland Jazz Club
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. This week, they headline. Expect some featured guest artists who drop in weekly from iconic television bands (David Letterman, Saturday Night Live) and touring pop 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!”
$45 tables / $35 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 22 (Thursday) 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Ada Pasternak
Ada Pasternak was a violin prodigy receiving standing ovations from 2,000-person crowds—before she became what she is today: an evocative singer-songwriter whose pop melodies and feel-good grooves render heartbreak, coming-of-age, and the joy of being human. Brilliantly plucking her violin to support her gorgeous vocal runs and her infectious lyrics, Ada is a presence to behold. Born in Moscow to musician parents and the recipient of a Presidential Scholarship (full-ride) to Berklee College of Music, her life changed when she began writing her own songs. Rapid success has seen her music featured on Netflix and Hulu, a win as “Best Female Artist” in the International Acoustic Music Awards for her original song “Grow Older,” and millions of streams on both Youtube and Spotify. Ada is currently working on her debut album, so stay tuned—and in the meantime, don't miss this one-night-only performance at Birdland Theater.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 23-25 (Friday-Sunday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Mingus Orchestra
Celebrating the music of its founder Sue Mingus's late husband, this 10-piece ensemble—the sister group to both the larger Mingus Big Band and smaller Mingus Dynasty—explores lesser known works by the great bassist/composer with unconventional orchestrations and fiery imagination. For decades, the Orchestra, Big Band, and Dynasty held a famed weekly residency in New York City until the COVID-19 pandemic put them on pause. The Orchestra's Birdland performance in 2022 marked its public re-entrance, and it honored its namesake with a knockout performance. Charles Mingus laid his legacy in powerful bass playing, groundbreaking compositions of visionary genius, and an openness to the individual personalities of his groups' members. The Mingus Orchestra continues this legacy with a cast of New York's most inventive, accomplished jazz musicians. Sue Mingus passed in September 2022; with each performance the group honors her legacy, too.
$35 tables / $25 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 25 (Sunday) 5:30 PM – Birdland Jazz Club
Jihee Heo
Born in South Korea and based in New York, Jihee Heo is a swinging piano player whose new recording, “Flow” (Origin, 2024) presents the classic jazz trio sound, recorded at historic Rudy Van Gelder studios with the excellent rhythm team of Alex Claffy (bass) and Joe Farnsworth (drums). Her third full-length album and the second piano trio recording she has released, “Flow” sees Heo developing in the direction of straight-down-the-middle playing—which she has honed at prestigious venues and festivals such as Smalls, Mezzrow, Zinc Bar, The Django, Washington D.C. Jazz Festival, Leverkusen Jazz Festival, International African Arts Festival, Jersey Shore Festival, Bergen Pac, Harlem Stage, and Jacques Pelzer in Belgium.
$30 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 26 (Monday) 7:00 PM – Birdland Jazz Club
Karen Mack – “Catch & Keep” Album Release
Karen Mack is a multi-award-winning singer/songwriter based in NYC, with creative roots planted in jazz, folk, and swing. Her style meshes a warm storyteller's sensibility with an affinity for richly textured vocal harmony, wordplay and improvisation, creating a memorable listening experience on moving ballads, soulful blues, or fierce swing. Her new solo album Catch & Keep is a fun mix of contemporary jazz classics, including works by Dave Frishberg, Bob Dorough, Nellie McKay and Betty Bryant, alongside originals, produced and arranged by Peter Eldridge from the acclaimed vocal group, New York Voices. The band features Peter Eldridge (piano/additional vocals), Pete McCann (guitar), Matt Aronoff (bass), Jared Schonig (drums/ percussion), and very special guests Darmon Meader and Elliot Roth. Karen made her Carnegie Hall debut in 2019, and her Jazz at Lincoln Center debut in 2022 with the critically acclaimed vocal quartet Those Girls. She was part of the 25th Anniversary Gala for the NY Pops, and the UK premier of “Build Me A Bridge - The Music of Miller & Hammonds" at the Bridewell Theatre in London's West End. Peter Eldridge is at the forefront of both the jazz and the singer/songwriter realms as a vocalist, pianist, composer, and arranger, with a slew of critically-praised albums of his own and with New York Voices, including two Grammy-Award winning projects with Paquito D'Rivera and The Count Basie Orchestra.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 27 (Tuesday) 5:30 & 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Troy Roberts Quartet: “Green Lights” Album Release
2x Grammy-nominee Troy Roberts celebrates the release of Green Lights, his 15th album as a leader. A native of Perth, Australia, Roberts came to prominence nearly fifteen years ago as a semi-finalist in the 2008 Thelonious Monk International Saxophone Competition. Since then, he has received 3 DownBeat SM Jazz Soloist Awards, 2 Grammy nominations, and toured the globe with Jeff “Tain” Watts, Joey DeFrancesco, Aretha Franklin, Van Morrison, Christian McBride, Sammy Figueroa, Dave Douglas, Orrin Evans and Kurt Elling—among others. Long known for embracing a variety of stylistic influences, Roberts creates worlds of fusion with deeply funky pockets, long form pieces, sensational shout-choruses and spectacular improvised explorations. His music touches Indian classical, West African, Venezuelan merengue, gospel, jazz, and 20th century classical. Celebrating the music from his new record, Roberts will be joined by masters Paul Bollenback (guitar), Massimo Biolcati (acoustic bass) and Jimmy Macbride (drums)—and you should celebrate with them!!
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 27-31 (Tuesday-Saturday) 7:00 & 9:30 PM (8/27-29); 8:30 & 10:30 PM (8/30-31) – Birdland Jazz Club
Ken Peplowski Quartet & Orchestra: Bird with Strings with Special Guest Eric Marienthal
Earlier this year, Cleveland native tenor saxophonist and clarinetist Ken Peplowski, “...arguably the greatest living jazz clarinetist” (BBC), celebrated the release of a new landmark recording, “Unheard Bird.” The legendary Charlie Parker's best-loved album, “Charlie Parker with Strings,” was originally released in 1950, but a number of his arrangements were never recorded. They ended up in the hands of Peplowski, who went into the studio with a masterful band featuring Eric Marienthal (alto sax), Glenn Zaleski (piano), Peter Washington (bass), and Willie Jones III (drums), plus a 7-piece orchestra (3 violins, viola, cello, harp, and oboe) directed by Loren Schoenberg. To celebrate Parker's 104th birthday (August 29th, 1920), Peplowksi will play both the heard and the unheard arrangements of Bird With Strings. Not to be missed!
$45 tables / $35 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 29 - September 1 (Thursday-Sunday) 8:30 PM (8/29); 7:00 & 9:30 PM (8/30 - 9/1) – Birdland Theater
Charlie Parker Birthday Celebration
Celebrate Charlie “Yardbird” Parker, the giant of American music and namesake of Birdland Jazz Club! To honor this legend, Birdland Theater presents David DeJesus and his ensemble. Alto saxophonist DeJesus is a master musician 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 also a passionate educator, serving as Professor of Jazz Studies at SUNY Purchase and directing the conservatory's Latin Jazz Orchestra.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum
 

Monthly Engagements:

August 5, 12, 19, 26 (Mondays) 5:30 & 8:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks
Catch Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks every Monday evening in January 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!
$40 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 5, 12, 19, 26 (Mondays) 9:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
Jim Caruso's Cast Party
“Jim Caruso's Cast Party,” a New York institution for two decades, is a wildly popular weekly open mic night/variety show that has brought a sprinkling of Broadway glitz and urbane wit to Birdland since 2003. Called “show-business heaven” by The New York Times and “the gold-standard of open mic nights” by The Wall Street Journal, “Cast Party” presents a potent mix of Broadway stars, jazz swingers and cabaret legends, in addition to new faces and rising talent from every genre. The buoyant, sharp and charming Caruso guides the entire affair, while musical genius Billy Stritch (Liza Minnelli, Tony Bennett) holds court at the ivories and leads the Cast Party Symphony Orchestra (Steve Doyle on bass and Daniel Glass on drums). Eric Adams, the Mayor of the City of New York, recently proclaimed, “Whereas, I am enormously proud to lead a city renowned as a global capital of the arts, ‘Jim Caruso's Cast Party' has enriched our dynamic cultural landscape since 2003, and on the occasion of its 20th anniversary, I am pleased to recognize the weekly show's tremendous contributions to our performing arts and nightlife sectors.”
$30 + $20 food/drink minimum

August 6, 20  (Tuesdays except 8/13 & 8/27) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
The Lineup with Susie Mosher
“The Lineup with Susie Mosher” is a wild, anything-goes variety show featuring entertainers from the Broadway, cabaret and comedy scenes, ranging from today's hottest headliners to the best up-and-coming stars of tomorrow. Mosher – the noted actress and singer from Broadway and beyond, called “one of those talents you need to see to believe” by Time Out New York – hosts the spontaneous extravaganza every Tuesday, and each Lineup is unique and promises to deliver an unforgettable night of quintessential New York City entertainment.
$30 + $20 food/drink minimum

August 13, 20 (Tuesdays except 8/6 & 8/27) 5:30 PM – Birdland Theater
Lucy Wijnands
“Making art is being lost and found all at once,” muses the talented vocalist Lucy Wijnands—a New York favorite whose recent debut, Something Awaits, marked her transition from sought-after guest singer to leader and creator. The recording featured a “who's who” of swinging creative musicians, including Gadi Lehavi, piano (Ari Hoenig Trio), Omer Avital, bass (Roy Haynes, Kenny Garrett) and Itay Morchi, drums (Johnny O'Neal Trio). With a voice that is both modern and uncannily reminiscent, Wijnands is one of the world's best new jazz voices. An active performer both in New York City and internationally, concerts are both near (West Village favorite Mezzrow) and far (Paris's Sunset-Sunside)—Oakland's The Sound Room and Oslo's Club Gustav. For two early Tuesday evening shows at home in the Theater, the 2021 Ella Fitzgerald Vocal Competition winner will wow audiences with her natural gift for swinging expression.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 7, 14, 21, 28 (Wednesdays) 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

August 7, 14, 21, 28 (Wednesdays) 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 pianist Ted Rosenthal, bassist Gary Mazzaroppi, and drummer Alex Raderman, perform tunes from the standard repertoire, bringing in special guests weekly. In August, catch Jimmy Bruno and Pasquale Grasso (guitars, 8/7), Vinny Raniolo (guitar, 8/14), Sheryl Bailey (guitar, 8/21), Janis Siegel (vocals, 8/28). *Guitar night streams live every week at: YouTube.com/RadioFreeBirdland
$30 tables; $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 (Thursdays) 5:30 PM – Birdland Theater
The High Society New Orleans Jazz Band
Led by veteran trumpeter Simon Wettenhall and Grammy winning pianist Conal Fowkes, The High Society New Orleans Jazz Band are a New Orleans style Jazz band which for decades have been Woody Allen's band of choice for his movies, concert tours and weekly performances. The band have appeared on all the premiere concert stages of Europe and the United States. Band members have appeared in and provided music for Woody Allen movies including: Wild Man Blues, Sweet and Lowdown, Midnight in Paris, Blue Jasmine, Cafe Society, Magic In The Moonlight, and A Rainy Day In New York. With Conal Fowkes (piano/vocals co-leader), Simon Wettenhall (trumpet/vocals co-leader), Tom Abbott (clarinet), Harvey Tibbs (trombone), Josh Dunn (banjo), Brian Nalepka (bass/vocals), Kevin Dorn (drums).
$40 tables / $30 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 (Fridays) 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!”
$35 + $25 food/drink minimum

August 3, 17 (Saturdays except 8/10, 8/24, 8/31) 5:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
Richard Cortez
A leader in the new crop of vocal talents emerging from the New York City jazz scene, Richard Cortez's golden voice handles the Great American Songbook with a deep emotional intelligence, an unbridled passion for song, and—rare and moving—an activist's relationship to both his material and his audience. Cortez's openly gay renderings of timeless treasures by Cole Porter, Billie Holiday, Jerome Kern, and so many others deliver sweetness, self-assuredness and disarming vulnerability with a well-timed wit. Having stewarded—all simultaneously—a collection of weekly residencies at iconic gay venues across the city—among them Club Cumming, Metropolitan Bar, and Rebar—Cortez has focused and refined his artistry while growing his wide fan-base. Performances in distinguished productions such as Live at Emmet's Place with the Emmet Cohen Trio or Jazz at Lincoln Center's Jazz at Pride with drummer/bandleader Bryan Carter—not to mention several unforgettable shows at Birdland—have marked the vocalist's career for success. Don't miss this already legendary new voice.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 24, 31 (Saturdays except 8/3, 8/10, 8/17) 5:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
Esteban Castro
A force of indomitable technique, extraordinary passion, and expansive imagination, the 21 year-old Esteban Castro is a jaw-dropping pianist whose capacities on his instrument defy categorization. The First Prize winner at the 2019 MSM Precollege Philharmonic Concerto Competition, the 2017 Jacksonville Jazz Piano Competition, and the 2016 Montreux Jazz Piano Solo Competition, as well as the recipient of 15 Downbeat Student Music Awards, Castro has worked with musical heroes Ambrose Akinmusire, Cecile McLorin Salvant, Peter Evans, Gilad Hexelman, Billy Drummond, Mark Shim, and Ted Nash, among many others; he has performed to sold-out audiences at The Blue Note, The Montreux Jazz Club, The New Jersey Performing Arts Center, and Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, as well as in Switzerland, Italy, France, Peru, Canada, and Puerto Rico. He returns to Birdland for two Saturdays in August. Castro is a Young Steinway artist.
$30 tables / $20 bar + $20 food/drink minimum

August 4, 11, 18, 25 (Sundays) 8:30 & 10:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra
The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra (ALJO) brings 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. Thirteen 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.
$40 + $30 food/drink minimum

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