New York City is exceptional in that it has the greatest jazz clubs in the world,” says David Schroeder, director of jazz studies at Steinhardt. When he’s not teaching, Schroeder (STEINHARDT ’93) performs with his faculty ensemble Combo Nuvo at renowned venues such as the Blue Note and Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola—the uptown, upscale Jazz at Lincoln Center nightclub that overlooks Central Park. For a more bohemian joint, he suggests Smalls, which is as intimate as its name implies. The downtown dive features up-and-coming musicians who jam all night long, and just $10 buys admission to its after-hours sessions, which sometimes last until 8 am.
But New York’s most legendary club, the Village Vanguard, has been around since 1935 and is known as the genre’s mecca. “It’s the quintessential jazz club in the basement of an old building, and it has a totally unique acoustical sound,” Schroeder explains. In fact, the triangular-shaped room allows sound waves to reverberate and project out like an opera house, which is why more than a hundred jazz albums have been recorded there by icons such as John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, and Wynton Marsalis.
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Posted By: DAVID JOHNSON
Tuesday, September 25th 2012 at 12:38PM
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