Eliane Elias, A Sophisticated Reunion and More Coming Up This Month at Birdland

Birdland Jazz Club has announced its lineup for May 23-29, featuring Eliane Elias, A Sophisticated Reunion: Terri Klausner, Valerie Pettiford and Ty Stephens, Bill O'Connell and the Latin Jazz All-Stars, and more.

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Birdland will kick-off their great week of programming with the following acts:

May 23 (Monday) at 7:00PM

A Sophisticated Reunion

Starring Terri Klausner, Valarie Pettiford and Ty Stephens

The Broadway at Birdland concert series is proud to present "A Sophisticated Reunion" on Monday, May 23at 7pm. The one-night-only event will star Terri Klausner, Valarie Pettiford and Ty Stephens. It's "A Sophisticated Reunion" thirty-five years in the making! Sophisticated Ladies, a musical review based on the music of Duke Ellington, opened on Broadway in March 1981. The musical brilliance and fun resumes at Birdland when original cast members and co-stars Valarie Pettiford, Terri Klausner, and Ty Stephens reunite. The trio met during the run of the show and have remained best buddies for over three decades. Included in the concert will be some of the Duke's greatest hits, like "It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain'tGot That Swing)," "Hit Me With A Hot Note," and the title song, "SophisticatedLady." In addition, these talented entertainers bring elements of their individual acts to the evening, all under the musical direction of RonAbel.

All tickets $40, $10 food/drink minimum

May 23 (Monday) at 9:30PM

Jim Caruso's Cast Party

Jim Caruso's Cast Party is a wildly popular weekly soiree that brings a sprinkling of Broadway glitz and urbane wit to the legendary Birdland in New York City every Monday night. It's a cool cabaret night-out enlivened by a hilariously impromptu variety show. Showbiz superstars, backed by Steve Doyle on bass, Billy Stritch on piano and Daniel Glass on drums, hit the stage alongside up-and-comers, serving up jaw-dropping music and general razzle-dazzle.

All tickets $25, $10 food/drink minimum

May 24-28 (Tuesday-Saturday) at 8:30PM & 11PM

Eliane Elias

There's no question about it: GRAMMY Award Winner, four time "Gold Disc Award" recipient and three time winner of "Best Vocal Album" in Japan, #1 artist in sales and radio in France, with all recordings reaching top five on USA Billboard Jazz Charts, Jazz radio charts, and several reaching #1 on iTunes and Amazon.com to name a few accolades, Eliane Elias has taken her place in the pantheon of music giants. She has sold over 2 million albums during the span of her career.

All tickets $40, $10 food/drink minimum

May 25 (Wednesday) at 5:30PM

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 14th 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!

All tickets $25, $10 food/drink minimum

May 26 (Thursday) at 6:00PM

Yelena Eckemoff

With Mark Feldman (violin), Joe Martin (double bass) and Billy Hart (drums)

Yelena Eckemoff, the prolific and enthralling pianist and composer, has earned plaudits for her recent releases "Everblue", "Lions", "A Touch of Radiance", "Glass Song" and more. She has made high-level original music with sidemen on the order of Peter Erskine, Arild Andersen, Jon Christensen, George Mraz, and Mark Turner. With her new release "Leaving Everything Behind", she deepens her multifaceted body of work by drawing on older original material - a few pieces dating as far back as the 1980s. "To emphasize my concept behind this album, I needed to go back to my roots," says the pianist. "I wanted to draw on music I composed when I knew very little - if anything at all - about the modern jazz field."

All tickets $25, $10 food/drink minimum

May 27 (Friday) at 5:15PM

The Birdland Big Band

With Guest Conductor Rob Middleton

Founded by drummer and musical director Tommy Igoe, the Birdland Big Band features the finest musicians in New York! Coming up on 10 years at the club, the BBB roars into action every Friday, playing the finest Jazz, Latin and Brazilian music from the world's best arrangers. After work or before a show, drinks or a great dinner, come hear one of the world's best drummers driving the hardest swinging band in New York. Experience why the BBB is the must-see weekly jazz event in New York and kick off your weekend with what critics are calling "the best live music bargain in all of NYC!"

All tickets $40, $10 food/drink minimum

May 28 (Saturday) at 6:00PM

Barbara Carroll

Barbara is an elegant jazz pianist, composer and vocalist, long recognized as one of the premier players of swinging jazz piano and expressive vocals.

All tickets $30, $10 food/drink minimum

May 29 (Sunday) at 6:00PM

Eric Comstock and Barbara Fasano "Summer Standard Time"

2016 MAC Award winners for Major Duo Artists of the Year, married musical partners Eric & Barbara come home to Birdland with a set full of rhythm & romance. As entertaining as they are musically savvy, their intimate connection with their audiences has made them the New York nightclub world's most celebrated team. Pianist/singer Eric Comstock has been called "the heir apparent to the cabaret throne". Vocalist Barbara Fasano's new CD BUSY BEING FREE is being hailed as "busy being intoxicatingly sublime" & has just won the 2016 MAC Award for Major Recording of the Year. Sultry, swinging and surprising, Eric & Barbara will bring you laughs & love songs from Jerome Kern to Joni Mitchell, Cole Porter to Billy Strayhorn. The New York Times calls their shows "witty" & "exhilarating". They promise a terrific Sunday supper at Birdland, where the music & the stories are equally great. Come join the party!

All tickets $30, $10 food/drink minimum

May 29 (Sunday) at 9PM & 11PM

Bill O'Connell and the Latin Jazz All-Stars present "Heartbeat"

For years the go-to pianist and arranger for artists such as Mongo SantaMaria, Dave Valentin, Gato Barbieri,The Fort Apache Band and many others, Bill O'Connell has perhaps more that any other pianist developed a true melding of Latin and Jazz music. His own playing-from its robust chordal comping to its exuberant and sometimes knotty solos-transcends categorization and combines rhythmic complexities with glittering single note runs in a sort of Bud Powell-meets-Chick-Corea sound. O'Connell provides a thoughtful program of originals and a few re-imagined standards filled with energy and high spirits from a powerful voice in Latin Jazz.

All tickets $30, $10 food/drink minimum

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Purchase tickets at www.BirdlandJazz.com. For more information and reservations, call 212-581-3080. Ticket prices will vary by performer. At the tables, there is a $10 food/drink minimum per person in addition to the music charge. At the bar, the music charge will include one complimentary drink with no additional minimum.

Named for alto saxophonist and jazz pioneer Charlie "Bird" Parker who dubbed it "The Jazz Corner of the World," Birdland opened on December 15th 1949. For 60 years it has been home to jazz legends, from Parker, John Coltrane Duke Ellington and Count Basie to Oscar Peterson, Hank Jones, Diana Krall and everyone in between. The original 52nd street location was a cultural barometer and meeting place, inspiring the songs "Birdland" and "Lullaby of Birdland," and serving as a regular haunt for celebrities and cultural figures. The modern incarnation is a state of the art nightclub featuring award winning Southern and Cajun cuisine, first-rate sound and lighting and a who's who of contemporary musical artists, 7 nights a week.

Birdland is located at 315 West 44th Street (between 8th & 9th Avenues), New York, NY 10036. Students (with current ID) & Broadway Theatre-Goers (with Broadway ticket stub from same day of performance): 50% off music charge at 11PM shows only.

Birdland serves American Fare with a Cajun Flair nightly from 5PM until Midnight and until 1AM on Friday and Saturdays. Parking is available across the street at 332 West 44th Street. Concert Grand Piano By: Yamaha.

Visit www.BirdlandJazz.com, or follow BIRDLAND JAZZ CLUB on Twitter: @birdlandjazz, Facebook, Instagram, and on Pinterest.

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