Some jazz histories shout. Mary Lou Williams’ story moves differently. It sits at the piano, listens closely, and then changes the room. Williams was one of the great pianists, composers, and arrangers in American music. Born Mary Elfrieda Scruggs in Atlanta in 1910 and raised in Pittsburgh, she began playing piano as a child and […]
Tony Bennett (August 3, 1926 – July 21, 2023) was one of the most beloved jazz musicians of all time. Armed with a set of golden pipes and an even more golden heart, Bennett garnered near-universal admiration with a career spanning over seven decades. The landscape of music has shifted to become nearly unrecognizable since […]
“I had spent many years pursuing excellence, because that is what classical music is all about… Now [jazz] was dedicated to freedom, and that was far more important.” – Nina Simone On June 27th, 2023, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated three new individual landmarks, all with ties to the history of modern […]
We’ve recently unearthed information about another great African American jazz musician who called our neighborhood south of Union Square home, and have added him to our South of Union Square map’s music and African American history tours. Born in Dennison, Texas, on October 31, 1930, Booker T. Ervin was a tenor saxophonist who resided at […]
Art Smith was an influential American jewelry designer who gained popularity in the mid-20th century for his bold and abstract designs. At his studio in Greenwich Village, Smith created unique theatrical pieces, inspired by surrealism and biomorphism. His jewelry was meant for everyday wear, designed to be comfortable enough for daily use but suitably eye-catching […]
In 1951, Harry Belafonte decided he was finished with singing. For the past few years, he had been taking acting classes at the Dramatic Workshop of The New School with the influential German director Erwin Piscator, alongside Marlon Brando and Sidney Poitier. All the while he was performing with the American Negro Theater. Belafonte was […]
Charles Mingus (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) has earned a well-deserved fame and notoriety over a lifetime of performance, composition, and controversy. The ‘bad boy’ of jazz was known as a brilliant innovator, a searing commentator on the civil rights struggles of his day, and a sometimes tempestuous performer or collaborator. As is often […]
Village Preservation is very proud to honor Zinc Bar as a Village Awardee in 2022. Join us in recognizing Zinc Bar and these other worthy awardees at Village Preservation’s Annual Meeting and Village Awards on Tuesday, June 14th. Registration is free and open to all!
Bessie Smith (April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937) was an icon. Her talent, accomplishments, and message lit a path for many who have come after her to rise to the top of their own profession. Anita Baker nominated Smith for her posthumous induction to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. That was in 1989, […]
While our blogs typically focus on the history of our neighborhoods and the incredible trailblazers who came before us, it is particularly satisfying to write about great artists who are still among us. David Amram is one of those extraordinary people. Village Preservation conducted an oral history with Mr. Amram on January 28, 2014, and […]
While the name of John Hammond Sr. (December 15, 1910 – July 10, 1987) might be unfamiliar to some, as a talent scout, producer, musicologist, broadcaster, journalist, and mentor, he helped the world to discover artists from Billie Holiday to Bob Dylan and scores more in between. Hammond was absolutely one of the most transformative figures […]
June is named African-American Music Appreciation Month. But insofar as it is hard to conceive of genres of American music that have not been fundamentally shaped or originated by Black musicians, every month should rightfully be African American Music Appreciation Month. Any time, however, is a good time to call attention to a few great […]
Greenwich Village is, in some circles, considered the “Capital of Jazz.” As jazz critic, author, and president of the Jazz Journalists Association Howard Mandel put it: “Greenwich Village is the capital of jazz because it has welcomed adventurous thinking, artistic expression, and audiences eager to hear the best of what’s exciting and new.” Some things […]
Part of our blog series Why Isn’t This Landmarked?, where we look at buildings in our area we’re fighting to protect that are worthy of landmark designation, but somehow aren’t landmarked. Nos. 4 and 6 East 12th Street are a pair of largely intact 4-story and basement ca. 1846 Greek Revival houses located just east […]
Part of our blog series Why Isn’t This Landmarked?, where we look at buildings in our area we’re fighting to protect that are worthy of landmark designation, but somehow aren’t landmarked. The impressive 18-story neo-Renaissance style office building at 55 Fifth Avenue was built in 1912 by Maynicke & Franke. According to the New York Times, the […]
Billie Holiday is considered one of the preeminent jazz vocalists of all time. She sold out concerts at Carnegie Hall, starred in hit movies, and gave voice to the African American civil rights movement at a critical time in its development. Holiday had a phenomenal run as an entertainer before her death in 1959. While […]
Part of our blog series Why Isn’t This Landmarked?, where we look at buildings in our area we’re fighting to protect that are worthy of landmark designation, but somehow aren’t landmarked. 204 East 13th Street is a 4-story Neo-Grec style tenement built in 1875. The building has exceptionally vivid and intact architectural detailing on its cornice […]
When searching through the chronicles of Greenwich Village history, some things almost seem too Village-y to be true, with all their quirky details and theatrical anecdotes. A prime example: The Pepper Pot Inn at 146 West 4th Street, a 1920s multi-level restaurant that became a sensation. Purchased in 1918 by Carlyle “Doc” Sherlock and his […]
This is one in a series of posts marking the 50th anniversary of the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District. Check out our year-long activities and celebrations at gvshp.org/GVHD50. Music is an integral part of the cultural legacy and impact of our neighborhoods! In March 2019 we explored the iconic music venues and punk meccas of the East […]
This is part of a series of curated tours to help the public explore the buildings and history shared on our recently-launched East Village Building Blocks site — see it here. From 19th-century concert halls to punk palaces of the 1970s, many influential music scenes got their start or found a home among the East Village’s legendary music venues. […]
This is one in a series of posts marking the 50th anniversary of the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District. Click here to check out our year-long activities and celebrations. The Greenwich Village Historic District is one of New York’s oldest historic districts. As we approach the 50th anniversary of its designation, we’re taking […]
Lee Morgan, prodigy jazz trumpeter, born on July 10, 1938, in Philadelphia. One of his sisters bought him his first trumpet, and by the time he was a teenager he played with John Coltrane for the album Blue Train. At 18, Dizzie Gillespie tapped Morgan to join his band. The jazz world opened up before […]
I recently wrote about the rich and interesting cultural history behind the Ukrainian National Home, located at 140-142 Second Avenue just south of 9th Street in the East Village, for the website 6sqft. That incredibly diverse story extends from Peter Stuyvesant and his direct descendants to German teetotalers, Jewish gangsters, Ukrainian Nationalists, Dixieland Jazz stars, […]
On 2nd Avenue, just south of 9th Street at No. 140-142, sits one of the East Village’s oddest structures. Clad in metal and adorned with Cyrillic lettering, the building sports a slightly downtrodden and forbidding look, seeming dropped into the neighborhood from some dystopian sci-fi thriller. In reality, for the last half century the building […]
On August 29, 1920, Charles Parker Jr. was born in Kansas City, Kansas. A towering figure in American jazz, he spent his final years in New York, and lived at 151 Avenue B, in a now-landmarked building often referred to as the “Charlie Parker House,” from 1950 to 1954, one year before his untimely demise. Parker […]
The Cornelia Street Cafe which opened its doors in July 1977 needs your help. In 1998, the Cafe was one of the restaurants recognized by GVSHP with one of our annual Village Awards presented to “Cornelia Street Restaurants”. We recently received this email from them: “It is time for us to protect the legacy of the Greenwich […]
Off the Grid is highlighting the 2016 Village Awards winners in the lead up to the June 14th Annual Meeting & Award Ceremony. Click here for more information about the event and to RSVP. Read about other awardees here. Today we look Smalls Jazz Club, one of the premiere remaining successful Greenwich Village jazz clubs. Smalls Jazz […]
The great modern painter Piet Mondrian was born on this day, March 7th, in 1872. Mondrian (born Pieter Cornelis Mondriaan) is perhaps most closely associated with the De Stijl movement of the 1910’s and 20’s in his native Netherlands, and with ‘mod’ French fashion design of the 1960’s (see Yves Saint Laurent’s iconic Mondrian dresses). But the time and place which […]
It’s been a heavy spring so far, with troubling news around the world, the nation, and in our city. But the colorful blooms of spring are finally opening – crocuses, daffodils, forsythia, hellebores – and besides, it’s JazzApril. Why not celebrate, if you can? “If I were celebrating JazzApril in the Village I’d do a tour […]
In honor of Black History Month, the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) has released a list of 25 designated landmarks related to African-American culture and history. One of the 25 is the Charlie Parker Residence at 151 Avenue B in the East Village. The building became an official New York City Landmark in 1999 for its […]
We hope you can join us for The Village and All That Jazz, an evening of music and history at Zinc Bar Monday, March 4th presented by GVSHP’s Brokers Partnership – RSVP here. Pianist Joe Alterman will perform and award-winning music critic Gary Giddins will explore the jazz scene of the Village during the 1960s, […]
