Elena Pinderhughes
Blue Note131 West 3rd Street, New York 10012
Elena Pinderhughes leads the November 2 bill at Blue Note, with the evening presented simply under her name. The listing does not specify a band, guests, repertoire, or any special project, so this is a chance to hear the Berkeley-born solo artist in a focused club set without a prescribed format attached.
Pinderhughes is an award-winning flutist, vocalist, composer, and songwriter raised in the Bay Area, working across jazz, R&B, and hip-hop influences. She appeared on Chief Adjuah's albums Stretch Music and Diaspora, and her collaborators include Herbie Hancock, Robert Glasper, Esperanza Spalding, Terrace Martin, Common, Lupe Fiasco, Kenny Barron, Vijay Iyer, Terri Lyne Carrington, Ambrose Akinmusire, and Future. The Guardian called her “the most exciting and creatively assured jazz flutist to have emerged in years.” Reviewing her single “life goes on,” Jazz Sensibilities found her flute playing warm and melodic, calling it “an effective opening statement” as a solo artist; a PAN M 360 review praised her “dazzling solos.”
Blue Note Jazz Club is a dedicated listening room in the heart of Manhattan's jazz district, where the music is the focus and the space is designed to let the sound fill the room. The club features a stage with a small audience area, and the atmosphere is one of quiet concentration on the music. Shows typically begin at 8:00 PM with a second set at 10:30 PM, and the audience sits on chairs close to the stage. The club has a bar, and drinks are available. The experience is primarily about listening to live jazz, with occasional gospel and soul performances, and the audience often stays to talk and enjoy the music after the sets.