92YTribeca and WBGO present The Checkout: Live from 92YTribeca, a new series created by Joshua Jackson, host of WBGO's hour-long music magazine The Checkout and an unparalleled enthusiast for modern expressions in jazz.
Curated by Jackson in conjunction with 92YTribeca, The Checkout Live will convene some of the most exciting and innovative players on the NYC scene for monthly concerts that will be recorded for future broadcast and podcast. Join us for the city's hottest new jazz showcase, a living and breathing celebration of the present and future of the music.
"By definition the bass player is a pivotal figure in jazz, a steward of tonality as well as tempo. Determining a good one can require close listening: that quality reveals itself in the cohesion of the band as well as in the handling of line and phrase. All of this was accounted for in Mr. Williams's set, which also involved a pair of harmonically sound original compositions and a balance of tradition and novelty."
—Nate Chinen, The New York Times
Washington, DC-born, New York-based bassist Ben Williams is celebrating the release of his debut album State of Art out on Concord Jazz. The album is a result of Williams' first prize in the 2009 Thelonious Monk International Competition for double-bass. Recently, Williams has been touring with vibraphonist Stefon Harris & Blackout, an R&B and hip-hop-tinged group, which calls on Williams' unique connection with go-go, from his native Washington, DC, to inform its sound and pianist Jacky Terrasson's Trio. State of Art marks Williams' first album as a leader and features tenor/soprano saxophonist Marcus Strickland, guitarist Matthew Stevens, keyboardist Gerald Clayton, drummer Jamire Williams (who also appeared with the bassist on Terrasson's Push) and percussionist Etienne Charles, joined on three tracks by alto/soprano saxophonist Jaleel Shaw.
"An opulent listening experience of modern, orchestral jazz, brimming with passionate improvisations, deliberate contrapuntal melodies and plush harmonies."
—John Murph, Down Beat magazine
Since his arrival in New York in 1996, Pedro Giraudo has performed and recorded in a wide variety of musical projects and prominent ensembles, ranging from tango to jazz, in addition to his own Pedro Giraudo Jazz Orchestra. He has collaborated with nine-time Grammy award winner Paquito D'Rivera, Grammy award winner Pablo Ziegler, Latin American icon Ruben Blades, as well as with Branford Marsalis, Kenny Garret and Regina Carter, among many others, and has performed in venues such as The Blue Note (Japan & USA), Birdland (Austria & USA), Kennedy Center (Washington, DC), Iridium, Jazz Standard, Jazz Gallery, Blue Note, Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall (NYC). His latest CD, his fifth, is titled Córdoba—the name of his home city and province in Argentina—released in June 2011 on the ZOHO Music label.
$12 adv / $15 day of show.