TYSHAWN SOREY
Village Vanguard178 7th Avenue South, New York 10014
Tyshawn Sorey is billed for this Village Vanguard engagement. No accompanying performers or set details are listed, so the billing does not establish whether he will appear solo or with an ensemble. The music takes place in the Vanguard’s triangular downstairs room, where the stage sits at the point of the room and the audience is asked for silence before the performance: a setting built for close attention to the playing.
Newark-born composer and multi-instrumentalist Tyshawn Sorey is celebrated for virtuosity, command of complex scores, and for bringing composition and improvisation together. His collaborators include John Zorn, Vijay Iyer, Roscoe Mitchell, Wadada Leo Smith, and Jason Moran. Sorey also leads a trio formed in 2021 with Aaron Diehl on piano and Harish Raghavan on double bass, though the available information does not confirm that the trio is appearing on this date. That group plays original music alongside reimagined versions of the American Songbook. Reviewers have called the trio “quietly stunning”; The Guardian wrote that its interpretations “don’t sound like anybody else’s,” while The New York Times described its music as patient and enveloping.
A narrow basement staircase leads to a triangular room with a red curtain and a stage at the point, where musicians play for a small audience of 123. Tables open like spokes from the stage, and the walls hold portraits of jazz legends. The acoustics are excellent, and the only sound before the music begins is the hum of the room. No food is served, only drinks at a bar. Shows start at 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., with seating beginning at 7:00 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. respectively. The atmosphere is focused entirely on the music, with silence requested before the concert begins.