Welcome to Jazz Standard

FRI - SUN AUGUST 1 - 3

Vijay Iyer Quartet

Vijay Iyer – piano
Rudresh Mahanthappa – alto saxophone
Stephan Crump – bass
Marcus Gilmore – drums

One of “today's most important pianists” (The New Yorker), Vijay Iyer is a forceful, rhythmically invigorating, and largely self-taught performer who weds a cutting-edge sensibility to a unique sense of compositional balance. His exuberant improvisations—anchored in cyclical rhythmic structures and ringing harmonies—draw upon African, Asian, and European musical lineages to create fresh, original music in the American creative tradition. Alto sax mainstay Rudresh Mahanthappa “has a tone like iron and charges from 0 to 80 in about four seconds.” (The New York Times) Tragicomic is Vijay Iyer’s latest CD release on Sunnyside Records and his first quartet recording since Reimagining in 2005.

Tickets: $25 / $30 Friday & Saturday

MON AUGUST 4

Hector Del Curto's “Eternal Tango Quintet”

Hector Del Curto – bandoneon
Octavio Brunetti - piano
Pedro Giraudo – bass
Nick Danielson – violin
Jisoo Ok – cello

Originally from Buenos Aires, Hector Del Curto won accolades at age 17 for his prowess on bandoneón, and has performed with legendary masters like Osvaldo Pugliese, Astor Piazzolla and Pablo Ziegler. Now based in New York, his Eternal Tango Quintet combines the authentic spirit and rich textures of classic tango with the exploratory freedom of jazz. This ensemble of gifted instrumentalists has inspired audiences and critics alike with its riveting performances at New York’s Lincoln Center Summer Festival, TangoFest in Stowe, Vermont, and the Fiesta Iberoamericano de las Artes in Puerto Rico, just to name a few. His critically acclaimed CD, “Eternal Tango” on Green Parrot Records was released at Jazz Standard in June 2007.

Tickets: $20 plus tax

TUE - WED AUGUST 5 - 6

Bobby Sanabria Big Band

Bobby Sanabria – drums, musical director, vocals
Hiram “El Pavo” Remón – vocals, guiro, maracas
David De Jesus – alto, soprano saxophone
David Bixler – alto saxophone, flute
Peter Brainin – tenor, soprano saxophone
Kevin Bryan, Shareef Clayton, Justin Davis, Andrew Neesley – trumpets
Joe Fiedler, Michael Boscorino, Timothy Vaughn, Chris Washburne - trombones
Enrique Haneine – piano, vocals
Alex Hernández – acoustic bass, vocals
Cristian Rivera – congas, vocals
Giancarlo Anderson – bongo, cencero, vocals

Drummer, percussionist, bandleader and composer: No matter what hat Bobby Sanabria may wear, his goal is always to create music with style, grace, and a deep-seated sense of commitment. Bobby’s 2007 album, Big Band Urban Folktales (Jazzheads), included his distinctive treatments of Frank Zappa’s “The Grand Wazoo” along with pop standards like “Besame Mucho” and “Since I Fell For You” – and earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best Latin Jazz Album. He’s also featured on El Espiritu Jibaro (Sunnyside), co-starring trombonist Roswell Rudd and cuatro virtuoso Yomo Toro. ”One of the most informed, astute and passionate champions of Afro-Cuban music on the scene today…” (Fernando Gonzalez, Down Beat).

Tickets: $25 plus tax

THU - SUN AUGUST 7 - 10

Arturo O'Farrill Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra

Arturo O’Farrill – piano, musical director
Michael Philip Mossman, Jim Seeley, John Walsh, Seneca Black – trumpet
Reynaldo Jorge, Gary Valente, Luis Bonilla – trombone
Doug Purviance – bass trombone
Bobby Porcelli, Erica von Kleist – alto saxophone
Peter Brainin, Ivan Renta – tenor saxophone
Jason Marshall – baritone saxophone
Ruben Rodriguez – bass
Vince Cherico – drums
Jimmy Delgado – percussion
Tony Rosa – percussion

“Too many people spend useless amounts of energy defining jazz by what it isn’t,” Arturo O’Farrill declares. “They argue against electric instruments, avant-garde performance techniques, ethnic varieties, blah blah blah, yada yada yada…Defining our music through its interpretation by all interested parties, in all the Americas (and ultimately throughout the planet), is forward thinking, progressive, and embodies the true spirit of innovation and exploration.” It is this spirit that imbues Song for Chico (Zoho Music), the new album by the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra, featuring “Such Love,” “Cuban Blues,” “Song for Chico,” and the Ellington classic “Caravan.” “The music we play, from Duke Ellington to Rene Hernandez, from Machito to Astor Piazolla, from Dizzy Gillespie to Gustavo Bergalli, is dedicated to the notion that the music we call Jazz is bigger than we first imagined.” (AO’F)

Tickets: $30 plus tax

MON AUGUST 11

Pedro Giraudo Jazz Orchestra

Pedro Giraudo – bass, compositions & arrangements
Will Vinson, Todd Bashore, Luke Batson, Carl Maraghi – reeds
Jonathan Powell, Tatum Greenblatt, Ryan Keberle, Mike Fahie – brass
Jess Jurkovic – piano
Jeff Davis – drums
Tony de Vivo – cajon
Special Guest Sofia Tosello – vocals

The passion and energy of Pedro Giraudo’s 13-piece band has captivated audiences around the world. Since arriving in New York in 1996, the Argentine musician has worked with Pablo Ziegler, Kenny Garrett, and Hector Del Curto’s Eternal Tango, among other credits. “Gerry Mulligan and Charles Mingus...remade what a previous generation would have called the big band sound, and both did it with lighter, tighter forces and distinctive, modern charts. Pedro Giraudo picks up that torch and runs with it.” (Jeffrey Hildt, Encore)

Tickets: $15 plus tax

TUE - THU AUGUST 12 - 14

Ron Miles Quartet featuring Bill Frisell, Reginald Veal, Matt Wilson

Ron Miles – trumpet
Bill Frisell – electric and acoustic guitar
Reginald Veal – bass
Matt Wilson – drums

The fruitful collaboration of Ron Miles and Bill Frisell is now in its second decade. It began in 1996 with the Bill Frisell Quartet CD (Nonesuch Records) and continued with Ron’s albums Woman’s Day (Gramavision, 1997) and the duo session Heaven (Sterling Circle, 2002). In its new recording and in performances over the past year, the Ron Miles Quartet has focused on exploratory interpretations of Ron’s own tunes (“Sunday Best,” “Since Forever”) and classic compositions by Ornette Coleman (“Happy House”), Duke Ellington (“Black Beauty”), and John Coltrane (“Mr. Sims”). The top-shelf rhythm section of Reginald Veal and Matt Wilson rounds out the lineup for this much-anticipated Jazz Standard engagement.

Tickets: $25 plus tax

FRI - SUN AUGUST 15 - 17

Christian Scott

Christian Scott – trumpet
Mathew Stevens – guitar
Danny Grissett – piano
Joe Sanders – bass
Jamire Williams – drums

His first two Concord Jazz releases, the Grammy-nominated Rewind (2006) and Anthem (2007), combined to make 24-year-old trumpeter Christian Scott one of the one of the brightest new jazz stars to emerge on the scene in the past decade. This New Orleans native represents the next generation of Crescent City horn blowers—a lineage founded by King Oliver and Louis Armstrong and extended by Wynton Marsalis, Terence Blanchard and Nicholas Payton. “Scott’s adventurous spirit and virtuosity keeps alive the promise of jazz-rock fusion's earlier days when Miles Davis’ disciples created bands like Weather Report and Return to Forever.” (Charles J. Gans, Associated Press)

Tickets: $25 plus tax

MON AUGUST 18

Hector Del Curto's “Eternal Tango Orchestra”

Hector Del Curto, David Hodges, Juan Pablo Jofre Romarion – bandoneons
Nick Danielson, Sami Merdinian, Sergio Reyes, Anna Elashvili – violin
Katie Kresek – viola
Jisoo Ok – cello
Pedro Giraudo – bass
Gustavo Casenave – piano

Under the leadership of celebrated bandoneonist/composer/arranger Hector Del Curto, eleven superb musicians will bring the true color and intensity of a full tango orchestra to the intimate setting of Jazz Standard, performing original interpretations of both traditional and new tangos. Hector’s album Eternal Tango, saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera testifies, is “the perfect balance between precision and delicacy of the chamber music and the passion and expressive power of the popular music of his native Argentina.”

Tickets: $20 plus tax

TUE - WED AUGUST 19 - 20

Peter Bernstein Trio

Peter Bernstein – guitar
Doug Weiss – bass
Bill Stewart – drums

Peter Bernstein is one of the most accomplished jazz guitarists of his generation. This adventurous and indefatigable player has gigged and/or recorded with everyone from Maceo Parker and Brother Jack McDuff to Jim Hall and Lee Konitz. He’s appeared as a sideman on more than three dozen CDs—Monk, his latest release on the Xanadu label, is Peter’s seventh career album as a leader. “Melody is his watchword. His ideas have a deeply tuneful thrust. He’s a swinger, and keeps things moving with an assured, supple rhythm.” (Zan Stewart, Newark Star-Ledger)

Tickets: $20 plus tax

THU AUGUST 21

Andrea Tierra with special guest Dana Leong

Andrea Tierra – voice
Dave Silliman – drums, percussion
Sam Sadigursky – saxophone, flute, clarinet
Edmar Castaneda –harp
Andres Garcia – tiple
With special guest Dana Leong – cello

Song stylist Andrea Tierra blends the diverse rhythms of Latin America (cumbia, bambuco, bossa nova and more) with jazz improvisation and poetry to create a unique musical brew. A native of Medellin, Colombia, Andrea released her first volume of poetry, Canto (Singing), in 2006; her debut CD, Melodía Verde, appeared in 2008. She has performed at festivals throughout the US and Latin America and at leading jazz venues in New York. This Jazz Standard one-nighter features an exceptional band including Colombian harp master Edmar Castaneda and cellist Dana Leong.

Tickets: $20 plus tax

FRI - SUN AUGUST 22 - 24

Kate McGarry

Kate McGarry – vocals
Gary Versace – organ
Keith Ganz – guitar
Matt Penman – bass
Clarence Penn – drums
With Special Guests Peter Eldridge & Jo Lawry (vocals) and James Shipp (percussion)

Kate McGarry continues to redefine the art of vocal jazz on her upcoming release If Less is More... nothing is everything. Set for an August 19 release on Palmetto Records, the new album features McGarry’s stunning renditions of standards from the Great American songbook like Irving Berlin’s “Let's Face the Music and Dance” and a stylish update of “You're My Thrill.” From the second half of the 20th century, Kate offers an aching interpretation of the Cars’ 1978 hit “Just What I Needed,” while her recasting of Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are A-Changin’” invokes a compelling battle cry for change. “The phrase ‘less is more’ is one that governs my approach to music,” says Kate McGarry. “I've always been drawn to the space of silence between the notes. It’s in the silences that the secrets of the songs reveal themselves.”

Tickets: $25 / $30 Friday & Saturday

MON AUGUST 25

Pedro Giraudo Jazz Orchestra

Bassist/composer/arranger Pedro Giraudo and his great band return to Jazz Standard for another high-energy evening of contemporary big band brilliance. (See 8/11)

Tickets: $15 plus tax

TUE - THU AUGUST 26 - 28

Ted Nash Quartet: The Mancini Project

Ted Nash – reeds
Frank Kimbrough – piano
Ben Allison – bass
Matt Wilson – drums

He’s a three-time Down Beat “Rising Star” on both tenor and alto saxophones, and a crucial contributor to the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and the Jazz Composers Collective. His recent projects include collaborations with the Augusta Ballet, Zenon Dance Company, and the Orquestra Jazz Sinfonica in Sao Paulo. Ted Nash’s creative career has gone from strength to strength, and now reaches a new plateau with the release of The Mancini Project on Palmetto Records. This collection, as entertaining as it thought-provoking, draws on composer/conductor Henry Mancini’s rich repertoire of movie themes and songs—including “Something For Nash,” which Mancini wrote as a feature for Ted’s father, trombonist Dick Nash, on the soundtrack for the 1987 Blake Edwards film Blind Date.

Tickets: $25 plus tax

FRI - SUN AUGUST 29 - 31

Larry Willis Quintet

Joe Ford – alto & soprano saxophone
Steve Davis – trombone
Larry Willis – piano
Buster Williams – bass
Louis Hayes – drums

Larry Willis, who was born in Harlem in 1942, is now in the sixth decade of his eclectic and productive career. A voice major at the Manhattan School of Music, by the age of 19 Larry was playing piano with the late great altoist Jackie McLean. (Willis made his jazz recording in 1966 on Jackie’s Blue Note classic Right Now.) Larry’s extraordinary versatility has served him well in diverse musical settings, from the bands of Shirley Horn and Stan Getz to a seven-year stint with Blood, Sweat & Tears to his own quintets and trios. For this Jazz Standard engagement, Larry Willis has assembled an outstanding unit in which each musician is an accomplished bandleader in his own right.

Tickets: $25 / $30 Friday & Saturday

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