TYSHAWN SOREY
Village Vanguard178 7th Avenue South, New York 10014
Tyshawn Sorey is billed at the Village Vanguard on November 15. The available listing names Sorey alone and does not specify a formation, collaborators, or the material planned for the performance. Official Vanguard pages have presented both the Tyshawn Sorey Trio and a program with Kris Davis, Ingrid Laubrock and Sorey, but neither identifies the lineup for this date. Expect the evening to put the music first in the Vanguard’s triangular basement room, where the stage sits beneath a red curtain and silence is requested before the concert begins.
Newark-born composer and multi-instrumentalist Tyshawn Sorey works across composition and improvisation, playing drums and percussion, trombone, and piano. A trio associated with him features Sorey on drums alongside Aaron Diehl on piano and Harish Raghavan on double bass, moving between original pieces and reimagined American Songbook material, though that configuration is not confirmed here. Sorey has performed with John Zorn, Vijay Iyer, Wadada Leo Smith, Steve Lehman, Anthony Braxton and Marilyn Crispell. The New York Times called his trio “stunning”; The Guardian wrote that its readings of standards “don’t sound like anybody else’s.” The New Yorker has called him “an extraordinary talent who can see across the entire musical landscape.”
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.