this week in music

BROOKLYN MUSEUM FIRST SATURDAY: “I SEE MYSELF IN YOU” AND BEVERLY BUCHANAN’S “RUINS AND RITUALS”

Beverly Buchanan (American, 1940–2015). Untitled (Double Portrait of Artist with Frustula Sculpture) (detail), n.d. Black-and-white photograph with original paint marks, 8½ x 11 in. (21.6 x 27.9 cm). Private collection. © Estate of Beverly Buchanan

Beverly Buchanan, detail, “Untitled (Double Portrait of Artist with Frustula Sculpture), black-and-white photograph with original paint marks, n.d. (Private collection / © Estate of Beverly Buchanan)

Brooklyn Museum
200 Eastern Parkway at Washington St.
Saturday, February 4, free, 5:00 – 11:00
212-864-5400
www.brooklynmuseum.org

The Brooklyn Museum continues its 2017 First Saturdays theme, “A Year of Yes: Reimagining Feminism at the Brooklyn Museum,” on February 4 with a focus on the exhibitions “I See Myself in You: Selections from the Collection” and Beverly Buchanan — Ruins and Rituals.” There will be live performances by Courtnee Roze, OSHUN, Leikeli47, and Everyday People (DJs mOma, Rich Knight, and Lola Chung, hosted by Saada Ahmed and Chef Roblé Ali); a tour of “Beverly Buchanan — Ruins and Rituals” led by curator and artist Park McArthur; an interactive performance inspired by the graphic novel The Other Side of Wall Street by Black Gotham Experience (William Ellis, Adrian Franks, Kamau Ware, and Cliff Washington) with DJ GoodWill; excerpts from SHE’s multimedia choreoplay by Jinah Parker, followed by a discussion with the dancers and Kevin Powell; a hands-on art workshop in which participants can make miniature homes inspired by “Beverly Buchanan — Ruins and Rituals”; a screening of Fit the Description, followed by a community talk with retired detective Clifton Hollingsworth Jr., founder of 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care, and U.S. Air Force veteran and composer and producer Malik Abdul-Rahmaan; pop-up gallery talks on African diaspora artists and revolutionaries, hosted by teen apprentices; a community resource fair with booths from Cultural Row Block Association on Eastern Parkway (CuRBA), Brooklyn Navy Yard, Black Youth Project 100, NYC Books Through Bars, the Safe OUTside the System Collective from the Audre Lorde Project, and others; a book club discussion about Audre Lorde’s Sister Outsider facilitated by Glory Edim and Jessica Lynne; a kids corner with drumming and storytelling by Garifuna artist James Lovell; and screenings of A Nick in Time and American Falls, part of Bé Garrett’s Legacy Projects, followed by a Q&A with members of the casts; In addition, you can check out such exhibits as “Iggy Pop Life Class by Jeremy Deller,” “The Dinner Party by Judy Chicago,” “Life, Death, and Transformation in the Americas,” “Marilyn Minter: Pretty/Dirty,” and “Infinite Blue.”

LOVE ROCKS NYC! A CHANGE IS GONNA COME: CELEBRATING SONGS OF PEACE, LOVE, AND HOPE

love rocks nyc

Who: Joe Walsh, Mavis Staples, Jackson Browne, Cyndi Lauper, Warren Haynes, Gary Clark Jr., Michael McDonald, Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi, Aaron Neville, CeCe Winans, Dr. John, Keb’ Mo, Marc Cohn, the Blind Boys of Alabama, Sam Moore, William Bell, Lisa Fischer, Anthony Hamilton, Joan Osborne, Amy Helm, Catherine Russell, Jackie Greene, Marcus King, Tash Neal, more
What: Benefit concert for God’s Love We Deliver
Where: Beacon Theatre, 2124 Broadway at 75th St.
When: Thursday, March 9, $99 – $2,499, 7:30
Why: Ticket go on sale to the general public on January 28 at 12 noon for “LOVE ROCKS NYC! A Change Is Gonna Come: Celebrating Songs of Peace, Love and Hope,” an all-star benefit concert raising money for the New York City nonprofit, nonsectarian organization God’s Love We Deliver, which, since 1985, has dedicated itself “to improve the health and well-being of men, women, and children living with HIV/AIDS, cancer, and other serious illnesses by alleviating hunger and malnutrition.” Presented by fashion designer John Varvatos and real estate executive Greg Williamson at the Beacon Theatre on March 9, the evening will feature performances by Joe Walsh, Mavis Staples, Jackson Browne, Cyndi Lauper, Warren Haynes, Gary Clark Jr., Michael McDonald, Aaron Neville, CeCe Winans, Dr. John, Keb’ Mo, and more, with the house band consisting of Will Lee, Paul Shaffer, Steve Gadd, Shawn Pelton, Eric Krasno, Larry Campbell, and Jeff Young. (A more complete list can be found above.) The name of the concert comes from Sam Cooke’s R&B classic, “A Change Is Gonna Come,” which continues to be as relevant today as it ever was. (Chase Cardmember Preferred Seating is available now here.)

LUNAR NEW YEAR 4715: THE YEAR OF THE ROOSTER

The Year of the Rooster will be celebrated at Brookfield Place and other locations over the next several weeks

The Year of the Rooster will be celebrated at Brookfield Place and other locations across town over next several weeks

Sara D. Roosevelt Park and other locations
East Houston St. between Forsythe & Chrystie Sts.
January 28 – February 17
www.betterchinatown.com
www.explorechinatown.com

Gōng xǐ fā cái! New York City is ready to celebrate the Year of the Rooster, or, more specifically, the Fire Rooster, this month with special events all over town. People born in the Year of the Rooster are trustworthy, responsible at work, talkative, loyal, thoughtful, and popular. Below are some of the highlights happening here in the five boroughs during the next several weeks of Chinese New Year.

Saturday, January 28
New Year’s Day Firecracker Ceremony & Cultural Festival, Sara D. Roosevelt Park, Grand Street at Chrystie St., free, 11:00 am – 3:30 pm

Chinese New Year Temple Bazaar, with live performances, martial arts, food, arts & crafts, and more, Flushing Town Hall, 137-35 Northern Blvd., $3-$5, 11:00 am and 2:00 pm

Sunday, January 29
Lunar New Year Celebration: Madison St. to Madison Ave., with the New York Eastern Chamber Orchestra conducted by Fei Fang, FJ Music, juggler Lina Liu, Chinese marionette puppet show, martial arts performance by American Tai Chi and Health Qigong Center, face painting, calligraphy, themed photo booth, and more, beginning at Harman store at 527 Madison Ave., free, 11:00 am – 3:00 pm

Lunar New Year Celebration, with live performance and brush and ink painting workshop sponsored by the New York Chinese Cultural Center, Staten Island Children’s Museum, 1000 Richmond Terr., $8, 2:00 – 4:00

Tuesday, January 31
Chinese New Year Celebration, with the New York Philharmonic performing works by Li Huanzhi, Adam, Saint-Saëns, Chen Qigang, Huang Zi (arranged by Bao Yuankai), Puccini, Li Qingzhu, and Ravel, David Geffen Hall, 10 Lincoln Center Plaza, $35-$110, 7:30

Friday, February 3
Pauline Benton and the Red Gate Exhibition Opening Reception, Flushing Town Hall, $5 suggested donation, 5:00

Saturday, February 4
Lunar New Year Celebration, with family-friendly arts and crafts, Queens Botanical Garden, 43-50 Main St., free, 1:00

Chinese New Year Celebration, with family workshops, dumpling making, storytelling, lion dance, live music, more, workshops $5-$20, party and performance $10-$20, China Institute, 40 Rector St., 1:00 – 7:00

Sunday, February 5
Eighteenth annual New York City Lunar New Year Parade & Festival, with cultural booths in the park and a parade with floats, antique cars, live performances, and much more from China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, and other nations, Chinatown, Sara D. Roosevelt Park, and Columbus Park, free, 1:00

Rooster Shadow Puppet Workshop, Flushing Town Hall, $8-$10 (free for teens with ID), 1:00

Lunar New Year Festival: Year of the Rooster, with live performances by Sesame Street puppeteers, Chinese opera by Qian Yi, lion parade, Balinese music by Gamelan Dharma Swara, the China Youth Orchestra, traditional music by Mingmei Yip, Vietnamese drums, drawing, paper folding, button making, tea gatherings, comics workshop, hand-pulled noodle demonstration with Chef Zhang, storytelling, collection chats, and more, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 Fifth Ave. at 82nd St., free with suggested museum admission, 11:00 am – 5:00 pm

Saturday, February 11
Lunar New Year Family Festival, with folk arts, live dance, food sampling, storytelling, a gallery hunt, a Nian monster mash-up, and more, Museum of Chinese in America, 215 Centre St., $12, 11:00 am – 4:00 pm

Lunar New Year 4715: Year of the Rooster Celebration, with costume contest, riddles, martial arts, live music and dance, rice balls contest, paper lantern arts and crafts, games, more, P.S.310, 942 62nd St., free, 11:00 am – 2:30

Year of the Rooster Celebration, with lion dancers, lion parade, live music and dance, martial arts demonstrations, theatrical players, and more, New York Chinese Cultural Center at Arts Brookfield, 230 Vesey St., free, 1:30 – 3:30

Saturday, February 11, and Sunday, February 12
Lunar New Year: Year of the Rooster, with puppet shows, scavenger hunt, calligraphy workshop, fortune cookies, and more, Prospect Park Zoo, 450 Flatbush Ave., $6-$8, 11:00 am – 4:00 pm

Friday, February 17
Lunar New Year Shadow Puppet Slam, hosted by Kuang-Yu Fong and Stephen Kaplin, adults only, Flushing Town Hall, $13, 7:00

VINCE GIORDANO: THERE’S A FUTURE IN THE PAST

Vince Giordano

Vince Giordano shows off his remarkable collection of Jazz Age arrangements in THERE’S A FUTURE IN THE PAST

VINCE GIORDANO: THERE’S A FUTURE IN THE PAST (Dave Davidson & Amber Edwards, 2016)
Cinema Village
22 East 12th St. between University Pl. & Fifth Ave.
Through Thursday, January 26
212-529-6799
www.cinemavillage.com
www.firstrunfeatures.com

Vince Giordano has an infectious glee throughout most of Vince Giordano: There’s a Future in the Past, a lively documentary that celebrates his dedication and passion for keeping the music of the 1920s and 1930s alive. “He’s totally consumed by his mission,” one member of his band, the Nighthawks, explains. “He’s meant to be a bandleader,” another one says. Director-producers Dave Davidson and Amber Edwards follow the youthful Giordano, who will turn sixty-five in March, as the band plays at the Newport Jazz Festival, with Garrison Keillor on A Prairie Home Companion, at Sofia’s in the Edison Hotel, at Lincoln Center’s Midsummer Night’s Swing, and at the New York Hot Jazz Festival at the Players club as well as recording a tune in the studio with David Johansen for Boardwalk Empire. The Grammy-winning Giordano and the Nighthawks have performed music for nearly two dozen films, including several by Woody Allen. But leading a Jazz Age band in the modern era is no easy task; Giordano, who plays the tuba, the string bass, and the bass saxophone and handles the vocals, has no roadies and no agent, so he and partner Carol Hughes are seen lugging equipment around, scrambling for gigs, and getting the orchestrations just right, testing Giordano’s gleeful onstage demeanor. “When I first met him, I thought he was very unusual and a nice person, but I didn’t think he was exceptional and crazy like he is,” Hughes says. The Brooklyn-born Giordano is also a music historian and archivist, having collected some sixty thousand arrangements, with twenty-five hundred brought to any single show, making for a wide range of setlists. Among those singing Giordano’s praises are many members of the eleven-piece Nighthawks, some of them who have been part of the band since the 1970s; sharing fun stories are reed players Mark Lopeman and Dan Levinson, trumpeters Jon-Erik Kellso and Mike Ponella, violinist Andy Stein, pianist Peter Yarin, trombonist Jim Fryer, and guitarist Ken Salvo.

The heart of the film is watching the remarkable band play such songs as “Stampede,” “Shake That Thing,” “The Moon and You,” and a glorious “Rhapsody in Blue” at Town Hall, by such legendary composers and bandleaders as George Gershwin, Fletcher Henderson, Paul Whiteman, Bix Beiderbecke, and Duke Ellington. One of the most poignant parts occurs when Sofia’s, where Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks played every Monday and Tuesday night for five years, closes, so Giordano must find a new home, which he does, at Iguana NYC. (You can also catch them at the “Highlights in Jazz” forty-fourth annual gala on February 9 at BMCC’s Tribeca Performing Arts Center with Ms. Vinnie Knight and Cynthia Sayer & Her Joyride Band.) Vince Giordano: There’s a Future in the Past is a poignant tale of a New York City treasure whose obsession brings great joy to the rest of us.

VINCE GIORDANO: THERE’S A FUTURE IN THE PAST

Vince Giordano will be at Cinema Village for QAs this weekend after 7:00 9:00 screenings of new doc

Vince Giordano will be at Cinema Village for Q&As this weekend after 7:00 and 9:00 screenings of new doc

VINCE GIORDANO: THERE’S A FUTURE IN THE PAST (Dave Davidson & Amber Edwards, 2016)
Cinema Village
22 East 12th St. between University Pl. & Fifth Ave.
Opens Friday, January 13
212-529-6799
www.cinemavillage.com
www.firstrunfeatures.com

Nearly twelve years ago, I met with bandleader, musician, archivist, and historian Vince Giordano for a profile I was writing for the now-defunct New York Sun. “It’s really sad to say, but America has been a culture of, ‘If it’s old, it’s no good anymore.’ And I think that’s unfortunate,” the Brooklyn-born Giordano carefully explained. “A lot of stuff just gets swept aside. For many, many years, I was kind of the lone wolf out there, just plugging with this music. It’s a shame. Classic things don’t get outdated or old; they’re still great.” Giordano’s celebration of and dedication to the classic Jazz Age music of the 1920s and 1930s is on full display in Dave Davidson and Amber Edwards’s documentary, Vince Giordano: There’s a Future in the Past, which opens January 13 at Cinema Village. The film follows Giordano and his band, the Nighthawks, as they play live concerts and perform music for major Hollywood films. Giordano also shows off his vast collection of more than sixty thousand musical arrangements. Giordano, Davidson, and Edwards will be at Cinema Village for Q&As following the 7:00 and 9:00 screenings January 13, 14, and 15; in addition, Davidson will be joined by sound designer Paul Kozel for Q&As January 13 at 3:00 and January 18 at 7:00. You can also catch Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks every Monday and Tuesday night at 8:00 doing their swing thing at Iguana NYC on West Fifty-Fourth St. Keep watching this space for a full review of the documentary.

MLK DAY 2017

The legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., will be celebrated all over the city and the country this weekend

The legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., will be celebrated all over the city and the country this weekend

Multiple venues
January 14-16
www.mlkday.gov

In 1983, the third Monday in January was officially recognized as Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, honoring the birthday of the civil rights leader who was assassinated in Memphis on April 4, 1968. Dr. King would have turned eighty-eight this month, and you can celebrate his legacy on Monday by participating in a Martin Luther King, Jr., Day of Service project or attending one of numerous special events taking place around the city. Below are some of the highlights:

Saturday, January 14
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration: Historic Heroines: Coretta Scott King, 11:00 am, 2:00, 3:00; Muslim Arts Series: Many Tunes, One Melody, 5:00 & 6:00, Children’s Museum of Manhattan, 212 West 83rd St., $8-$12

Action in a Time of Injustice: MLK Salon with Yavilah McCoy, JCC Harlem, JCC in Manhattan, 334 Amsterdam Ave., $5, 6:45

Sunday, January 15
MLK, Jr., I Have a Dream Celebration: Totally Tots Studio — Meet the Artist, 10:00 am; Holding History: MLK’s Life, 11:00 am; Protest Posters, 11:00 am; DNA Bracelets, 12 noon; MLK, Jr. Cinema, Our Friend, Martin (Rob Smiley & Vincenzo Trippetti, 1999), 11:00 am, 3:30; Story Time at BCM: Martin’s Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and other books, 1:30 & 3:00, Brooklyn Children’s Museum, 145 Brooklyn Ave., $11

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration: Historic Heroines: Coretta Scott King, 11:00 am, 12 noon, 2:00, 3:00, 4:00, Children’s Museum of Manhattan, 212 West 83rd St., $8-$12

Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Concert: Soul to Soul, with Lisa Fishman, Cantor Magda Fishman, Elmore James, Tony Perry, and musical director Zalmen Mlotek, presented by National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, Museum of Jewish Heritage, 36 Battery Pl., $20-$28, 2:00

Special Presentation: Moonlight (Barry Jenkins, 2016), screening followed by Q&A, JCC Harlem, JCC in Manhattan, 334 Amsterdam Ave., $5, 5:30

Monday, January 16
MLK, Jr., I Have a Dream Celebration: Totally Tots Studio — Meet the Artist, learn about Kehinde Wiley, 10:00 am; Love, Hope & Peace Postcards, 11:00 am; I Have a Dream Totes, 12 noon ($5); Brooklyn United Marching Band – Celebrating the Dream Performance, 2:00; Story Time at BCM: Martin’s Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and others, 1:30 & 3:00; Freedom Hands, 2:00, Brooklyn Children’s Museum, 145 Brooklyn Ave., $11

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration: Martin’s Mosaic, 10:00 am, 1:00 pm; Historic Heroines: Coretta Scott King, 11:00 am, 12 noon, 4:00; KaNu Dance Theater, 2:00 & 3:00, Children’s Museum of Manhattan, 212 West 83rd St., $8-$12

Brooklyn Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: Thirty-first annual celebration, with keynote speaker Opal Tometi, the Institutional Radio Choir, and Sacred Steel band the Campbell Brothers, Peter Jay Sharp Building, BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, 30 Lafayette Ave., free, 10:30 am; screening of Ava DuVernay’s 13th, BAM Rose Cinemas, free, 1:00; launch of Frederick Douglass in Brooklyn with readings by Carl Hancock Rux, commentary by Theodore Hamm, and audience Q&A, BAM Fisher lower lobby, 321 Ashland Pl., free, 1:00

MLK Express Yourself Day, create signs with your own poster board, Old Stone House, 336 Third St., free, 11:00 am – 4:00 pm

The World Famous Harlem Gospel Choir Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Matinee, B. B. King Blues Club & Grill, 237 West 42nd St., $25-$30 (plus $10 minimum per person at tables), 12:30

What’s Your Dream? Martin Luther King Jr. Day Family Program: reading of Kobi Yamada’s What Do You Do with an Idea?, broadcast of King speech, and art workshop, Museum at Eldridge Street, 12 Eldridge St., free, 1:00 – 2:30

MLK Day Screening: The Negro and the American Promise (1963), Museum of the Moving Image, Redstone Theater, 36-01 35th Ave., $7-$15 (includes admission to galleries), 3:00

Artists Celebrate Dr. King’s Legacy: Featuring Sweet Honey in the Rock, JCC in Manhattan, 334 Amsterdam Ave., $5, 5:00

Special Presentation: Moonlight (Barry Jenkins, 2016), screening followed by Q&A, JCC Harlem, JCC in Manhattan, 334 Amsterdam Ave., $5, 7:30

Martin Luther King, Jr. Evening Show: A Decade of Soul, classic soul & Motown revue, preceded by Aretha Franklin Tribute feat. “Lady Jae” Jones & the Decade of Soul Band featuring Bruce “Big Daddy” Wayne and special guest Prentiss McNeil of the Drifters, $20-$25 (plus $10 minimum per person at tables), B. B. King Blues Club & Grill, 237 West 42nd St., 7:30

LIVE FROM BARNES & NOBLE: JOSH GROBAN, DENÉE BARTON, DAVE MALLOY, AND CAST MEMBERS FROM THE GREAT COMET…

great-comet

Who: Josh Groban, Denée Barton, Dave Malloy, Steve Suskin, more
What: Live performance and book signing
Where: Barnes & Noble, 150 East 86th St. at Lexington Ave., 212-369-2180
When: Friday, January 13, free, 4:00 (priority seating with book purchase at B&N Upper East Side starting at 9:00 am)
Why: Steven Suskin’s new book, The Great Comet: The Journey of a New Musical to Broadway (Sterling, November 2016, $40), takes theater fans behind the scenes of the remarkable story of Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812, an electropop opera based on a seventy-page section of Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace that began life in the eighty-seven-seat house Ars Nova in 2012, only to find itself a smash hit at the 1,200-capacity Imperial on Broadway four years later. The book includes a five-song CD (with three songs from the off-Broadway production and two from the Broadway edition) as well as a foreword by Public Theater artistic director Oskar Eustis. On January 13 at 4:00, Suskin will be at the Upper East Side B&N on Eighty-Sixth St. to sign copies of the book, joined by Denée Barton, who is exquisite as Natasha, Josh Groban, who has earned raves as Pierre, and Dave Malloy, the show’s creator, composer, librettist, orchestrator, music director, and original Pierre. The B&N event will include live performances along with a signing; the participants will only be signing copies of the new book that were purchased that day, starting at 9:00, at the store, which also gets you priority seating; no other memorabilia will be autographed.