TYSHAWN SOREY
Village Vanguard178 7th Avenue South, New York 10014
At Village Vanguard, Tyshawn Sorey is billed for this performance. The available listing names Sorey alone: it does not specify an ensemble, additional musicians, or a program, so the night is presented as a Sorey date rather than a confirmed trio or other configuration. Expect the focus to be on his own work, without assumptions about the personnel or repertoire.
Newark-born Sorey is a composer and multi-instrumentalist whose work spans percussion, piano and trombone. He brings composition and improvisation into contact, drawing on traditional and experimental idioms while, as the MacArthur Foundation puts it, “defying distinctions between genres, composition, and improvisation.” His collaborators include Vijay Iyer, Steve Lehman, John Zorn, Wadada Leo Smith, Anthony Braxton and Marilyn Crispell. The Wall Street Journal called him “a composer of radical and seemingly boundless ideas,” while The New York Times noted his “gale-force physicality” and “sense of scale and equipoise.” Pitchfork described Members…Don’t! as a “challenging yet immersive meditation.”
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.