New York comes to Bird & Beckett tonight! Richie Vitale, trumpet star, plays with local heroes Keith Saunders, piano; Eric Markowitz, bass; and Ron Marabuto, drums. Trust Keith and Ron…you want to hear this jazzman.

Doors open at 7:20 for the 7:3-9:30 show. $20 cash cover charge at the door. Call to reserve a seat – 415-586-3733. BYOB and a mask! Can’t make it down to the shop for the show. You can find it streamed live on our youtube channel and facebook page.

Born in Rochester, New York, on September 23 (also John Coltrane’s birthday), Richard Vitale played with drummer Philly Joe Jones at the early age of sixteen. After moving to New York City, Richie performed with jazz luminaries Joe Williams, Barry Harris, Joe Morello and Sal Nistico, with Johnny Mathis and Tony Bennett, and with Sting and James Taylor. His experience with big bands has been no less impressive, performing as jazz soloist with Ol’ Blue Eyes himself, Frank Sinatra, and in the jazz chairs of the Buddy Rich Big Band, the Count Basie Orchestra, the Duke Ellington Orchestra and the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Big Band, aka the Village Vanguard Jazz Orchestra. He’s taught Jazz Ensemble at LIU in Brooklyn and Master Classes at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester.

Richie currently leads an eleven-piece salsa band Orquesta Universal, featuring twice Grammy nominated, Cuban born singer, David Oquendo. Their album New York Salsa is in its 3rd release and is available on iTunes. He has led his quintet on tours of Japan, Korea, and Italy, recently performed in Beirut, Lebanon, plays San Francisco and LA, and frequently appears in clubs throughout the New York Metropolitan area. Richie’s first recording as a leader on the TCB label entitled Dreamsville, featuring alto master Gary Bartz, was released to critical acclaim — the reviewer in Jazz Journal hailed it as “a veritable treat from start to finish.” His second CD for TCB records was recorded live at Smalls jazz club in the heart of Greenwich Village. Jazz writer Peter Collins remarked, “The whole performance can be called spirited — a word that would be apt as well to describe Richard Vitale, his remarkable musical talents, and this splendid disk.” Richie’s third CD, Shake It, can be heard on TCB Records. Pete Malenverni says of that cd, “Throughout, one hears that this is a band used to playing together, a group of eminently skilled musicians, each with his own singular abilities to be sure, yet committed to the common goal of swinging together — and swing they do.”

If, as you should, you want to know more, check www.richievitale.com and search him out on YouTube — you could do worse than finding his performances on the Small’s archive — 24 videos in the company of Lou Rainone on piano, Paul Gill on bass and Cliff Barbaro on drums.