Cindy Byram PR : The Town Hall Launches 2023 Season : Mariza Curates 4-Concert Series, Sweet Honey In The Rock's 50th And More

Arts and Entertainment

October 29, 2022

The Town Hall in New York City Announces Launch of its 2023 Presenting Season;

Iconic Vocal Group Sweet Honey In The Rock Celebrates its 50th Anniversary on March 24;

Portugal’s Fado Star MARIZA is Curator and Guest Artist in Four-Concert Series Featuring Artists from Brazil, Cape Verde and Angola on April 14, 15, and 21, and Mariza on April 22

Béla Fleck, Zakir Hussain and Edgar Meyer Set the Bar for Global Improvisation on May 5;

Django A Gogo, Guitarist Stephane Wrembel’s Celebration of Hot Jazz Legend Django Reinhardt, Returns with an All-Star Lineup on May 6

The Town Hall in New York City, which celebrated its 100th anniversary last year, has embraced a wide range of musical genres and is full of momentous performances by both national and international artists. For some, like Brazilian guitarist Joao Gilberto or sitar master Ravi Shankar, their debut in the United States on The Town Hall's stage marked a before and after in their careers.

"Town Hall has already had an amazing number of historic and important shows," says Executive Director Lawrence Zucker, who joined the Hall in 1978. "No doubt that in the next hundred years, Town Hall will continue to be where artists will want to come, to bare their souls and present their very best."

The iconic venue’s 2023 program honors its exceptional history as it continues to evolve.

The Spring Season will feature several special concert events, beginning with an American musical institution, the groundbreaking vocal group Sweet Honey in the Rock, on March 24 in a celebration of their 50th anniversary.

The Hall's program continues with an exclusive four-night Portuguese-language music program curated and hosted by Lisbon-based Fado superstar Mariza.

It opens with legendary Brazilian singer Ney Matogrosso, now celebrating his fifth Latin GRAMMY nomination, on April 14; continues with the New York debut of Angolan singer/songwriter Matias Damásio on April 15; and a performance by The Cesária Évora Orchestra from Cape Verde on April 21, featuring Cape Verdean vocalists Lucibela, Elida Almeida, Nancy Vieira, and Teófilo Chantre. Every evening, Mariza will join the featured artists on stage for a guest appearance. Fittingly, the series closes with a special concert by Mariza, on April 22.

Continuing its Global Icons series, the extraordinary trio comprising Béla Fleck (banjo), Zakir Hussain (tabla), and Edgar Meyer (cello), with special guest Rakesh Chaurasia (flute), appears on May 5.

And French guitarist Stephane Wrembel and special guests return to The Town Hall for the 20th anniversary edition of his wildly popular Django a Gogo, celebrating the music of Django Reinhardt on May 6.

"These are all masters coming from different genres —soul and gospel, Indian music, bluegrass, or Hot Jazz," said Town Hall's new Artistic Director, Melay Araya. "People sometimes use these terms very loosely, but speaking of global icons, in this case, is absolutely right."

About the Shows:

The history of Sweet Honey in the Rock, currently featuring Carol Maillard, Louise Robinson, Nitanju Bolade Casel, Aisha Kahlil (with Romeir Mendez on upright acoustic bass and electric bass) is a celebration of continuity and change. Their social commitment remains as strong -- and needed -- as ever, as they continue to take a stand against systemic injustice, especially concerning people of color, police brutality, gun control, and the Black Lives Matter movement. They deliver their message with a continually evolving music vocabulary — their distinct a cappella sound and their world, gospel, and folk roots burnished with elements of hip hop, jazz, and R& B. (March 24)

Born in Lourenço Marques – present-day Maputo – the capital of the former Portuguese colony of Mozambique, Marisa dos Reis Nunes, best known to the world as Mariza, learned about Fado while still a child. She would listen behind the curtains or while serving tables at her father's tavern in Mouraria, a neighborhood in Lisbon steeped in the Fado tradition. Being bi-racial, however, posed unique obstacles in the notoriously insular world of Fado.

As her career exploded and she bent Fado to her vision, Mariza noted that Fado "is very Portuguese music, but it's also universal." It's a view that has led to many collaborations with artists around the globe.

"She's a Fado singer and comes from that tradition, but she's also very broad in her musical tastes, especially within the context of Lusophone music," says Araya.

Mariza's open attitude and special relationship with The Town Hall, where she first performed in 2003, led naturally to exploring a deeper, broader partnership. The result is a groundbreaking series that opens a window into the Lusophone music world of rhythm and song. Mariza curates and is a special guest in concerts by Brazilian legend Ney Matogrosso (March 14), Angolan pop star Matias Damásio (March 15), Cape Verde's The Cesária Évora Orchestra featuring Lucibela, Elida Almeida, Nancy Vieira and Teófilo Chantre (March 21), and ending with a Mariza show (March 22)/

"This was a real opportunity, and I hope the beginning of a new approach for The Town Hall, working with artists who are not just brilliant performers themselves, but who are great curators and tastemakers and have a collaborative spirit," says Araya. "This was our idea, but it's really about Mariza's taste and relationships with artists from around the world."

The Town Hall program continues with Béla Fleck (banjo), Zakir Hussain (tabla), and Edgar Meyer (double bass), with the addition of virtuoso flute player Rakesh Chaurasia. It's a virtuoso ensemble that combines bluegrass, classical, and South Asian musical traditions into a sound that is at once familiar and with a global resonance. Their extraordinary interaction often suggests that of a jazz group, not only improvising on set melodies, harmonies, and rhythms, but also on musical genres, taking them to unlikely, unexpected musical places. (May 5)

The Town Hall’s Spring 2023 programming closes with another audience favorite, Django a Gogo, in a 2oth Anniversary show. French guitarist Stephane Wrembel has established a tradition celebrating the music of guitar legend Django Reinhardt, inviting master musicians to join, explore, and have a blast. What started as a small gathering in 2003 has grown over the years into a major event as Wrembel and his special guests -- from bluegrass daredevils to jazz virtuosos -- take the music of Django Reinhardt as a starting point and go off in joyful, can-you-top-this rides that showcase the genius of “Gypsy Jazz”.

(May 6)

Sweet Honey In The Rock - March 24 at 8pm

http://thetownhall.org/event/sweet-honey-in-the-rock-50th-anniversary-tour

The Town Hall And Mariza Presents - April 14, 15, 21, 22 at 8pm

https://thetownhall.org/mariza-presents

Béla Fleck, Zakir Hussain And Edgar Meyer – May 5 at 8pm

http://thetownhall.org/event/bela-fleck-zakir-hussain-edgar-meyer-2023

Django A Gogo Featuring Stephane Wrembel – May 6 at 8pm

http://thetownhall.org/event/django-a-gogo-2023-stephane-wrembel-django-reinhardt

The Town Hall

123 West 43rd Street (between 6th Avenue and Broadway), New York, NY 10036

Website: http://thetownhall.org/