New York is a city recognized all over the world for being a jazz town. There is no shortage of venues available for catching a live show. However, when it comes to coverage of said venues, there is little coverage above Lincoln Center. It’s like the venues in Harlem don’t exist in the press. Coverage only focuses on the clubs in the village/downtown and midtown. Venues like the Village Vanguard, Blue Note, The Jazz Standard, Birdland, Iridium, Dizzy’s etc. Those are all fine establishments, but there is a lot more happening in this city, and it is largely ignored.
The video above puts Harlem into historical context when it comes to this music, but we should recognize that it isn’t just a thing of the past. There are still clubs in Harlem today. So venture past Lincoln Center, there is life and music there too.
As a reminder, there is also the upcoming Central Brooklyn Jazz Festival.
