THE MCKITTRICK HOTEL AND HOT JAZZ PRODUCTIONS PRESENT
THE 5TH ANNUAL NEW YORK HOT JAZZ FESTIVAL
LIVE AT GALLOW GREEN AND THE HEATH ON SEPTEMBER 30
“One of the most enjoyable hangs of the year!”
– DOWNBEAT
TIME OUT NEW YORK CRITICS’ PICK
The hot jazz and swing party of the year returns to Chelsea’s McKittrick Hotel once again featuring three stages with continuous live music for 12 hours from sixteen ensembles and a myriad of special guests and performance artists. Celebrating traditional (pre-bop) jazz, with rising stars and legendary performers alike, the festival will showcase the best talent of the hot jazz and swing worlds in New York and beyond with music spanning the entire scope of early jazz – from its New Orleans beginnings through the Jazz Age and into the Swing Era.
LINEUP
(subject to change)
• Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks
• The Hot Sardines
• Mwenso and The Shakes
• Evan Christopher
• Julien Labro & Olli Soikkeli Quartet
• Sasha Masakowski
• Tatiana Eva-Marie & the Avalon Jazz Band
• Olivier Franc & Jean Baptiste Franc
• Cynthia Sayer Trio
• Blind Boy Paxton
• Nicole Rochelle
• DeWitt Fleming Jr.
• Eddy Davis
• Queen Esther
• Sugartone Brass Band
• Charlie Halloran Band
• New Eureka Jass Band
• The Moonlighters
• Evan Arntzen’s Animule Dance
• Tuba Machine
• Midnight Speakeasy All-Star Band
MYSTERY TRAIN PHONOGRAPH TABLEAU
• Lilian Lorraine & her Lovely Ladies
• Antique Phonograph DJ MAC
Additional artists will be announced shortly.
Mr. Giordano will be presenting two separate programs at the Fest: Hot Potpourri and From Harlem To Montmartre: a Jazz Age Voyage. The second program will celebrate the centennial of James Reese Europe’s 369th infantry regiment, the “Harlem Hellfighters” band, who brought their form of ragtime and jazz to France for the first time when they arrived on the battlefields of Europe in WWI. The program will also celebrate the subsequent influence of the Hellfighters' distinguished veterans, who channelled the Harlem Renaissance to the Lower Montmartre district of Paris in the 1920s.
The Nighthawks will be joined by several special guests, including tap dance whiz DeWitt Fleming Jr., with an homage to the legendary Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, who appeared in Lower Montmartre in the '20s and later starred in a James Reese Europe biopic. The luminescent French vocalist/dancer Nicolle Rochelle will join the Nighthawks in an tribute to the most famous celebrity to come out of Lower Montmartre: Josephine Baker. More artists joining Mr Giordano are to be announced shortly.
Another notable homage in the Fest will be the New York premiere of a new Fats Waller revue, created by tap dance star Michela Marino Lerman with the explosive Michael Mwenso & The Shakes. This production has already enjoyed a successful run in London’s West End and will be presented here to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the passing of this legendary piano player and songwriter.
The French theme of this year's edition of the Festival will be extended by a number of French artists. French-born Elizabeth Bougerol will co-lead the exhilarating Hot Sardines, one of the founding ensembles of the Festival and one of the most prominent acts of the current hot jazz and swing revival.
French accordion virtuoso Julien Labro with Gypsy swing guitar wizard Olli Soikkeli will make the Fest debut with their new quartet.
Another of the Fest's founding bands, Avalon Jazz Band, led by the rising star vocalist Tatiana Eva-Marie, will present From Paris To New Orleans program with both Manouche and Eastern European Romani twist. NOLA's-own rising star, Sasha Masakowski, will join the Avalon as a special guest.
Soprano saxophonist Olivier Franc, one of the top living disciples of Sidney Bechet, will be joined by his son, the stride piano specialist Jean Baptiste Franc, for a tribute to Bechet: the native son of New Orleans, who became a major presence in the clubs of Lower Montmartre in the '20s then rose to worldwide prominence.
The greatest New Orleans clarinet player of our time, the inspiring Evan Christopher, will be appearing as part of the New York Hot Jazz Festival’s year-long celebration of Crescent City tricentennial.
Big Easy celebration will also include a representative of a younger generation of New Orleans hot jazz specialists — formidable trombonist Charlie Halloran, who is making his Fest debut with a band of his own."
Several New York-based bands will also salute the Big Easy, Gotham-style! Among them are John Gill’s New Eureka Jass Band and the exhilarating Sugartone Brass Band, led by tuba powerhouse Kenneth Bentley, bringing NOLA brass sound to the Fest for the first time.
Another traditional jazz sound to be heard at the Fest for the first time is the Hawaiian-style string band swing of Bliss Blood’s Moonlighters.
Vince Giordano
The Festival will feature a visual and sonic art installation dedicated to the early history of jazz recording. The installation is created by Phonograph DJ MAC (aka Michael Cumella), the host of the long-running The Antique Phonograph Music Program on WFMU and the visual/immersive/performance artist Lillian Lorraine (aka Syrie Moskowitz.) Ms. Moskowitz will also be exhibiting her Jazz Age-inspired artworks throughout the McKittrick’s Heath.
DeWitt Fleming Jr. and Tatiana Eva-Marie will serve as the 5th anniversary Festival’s co-hosts.
SCHEDULE
• 2pm-4pm: Hot Jazz Brunch
• 4pm-12am: Hot Jazz Festival Marathon
• 12am-2am: Midnight Speakeasy Party (included with tickets above)
SCHEDULE
• “Hot Jazz Benefactor” tickets are $200, and include priority entry from 4pm, reserved seating at both main stages and acknowledgement in the festival newsletter.
• Reserved Seating tickets are $135, with access to reserved seating area at the lower level stage from 4pm.
• General Admission first tier tickets are $49, with 4pm entry. Succeeding advance GA tiers are $59 and $69. Advance pricing available while tickets last.
• Hot Jazz Brunch that kicks off the Festival at Gallow Green at 2pm is an additional $39 (must be combined with General Admission, Reserved Seating or Benefactor tickets) and features an additional Festival band. Brunch comes complete with coffee, tea, the rooftop’s seasonal brunch buffet and live hot jazz music.
For complete festival details and lineup, visit the official site www.nyhotjazzfest.com. For the venue information, visit www.mckittrickhotel.com or call 212-904-1880.
