Sunset Jazz in December

Saturday, December 16th
Clark Gayton Group
Originally hailing from Seattle and now a resident of New York City, Clark graduated from the Berklee School of Music in 1984 and has since blown his horn with many great artists including Sting, Whitney Houston, Rihanna, Prince, Stevie Wonder, and Wyclef Jean. His own band, Explorations in Dub, regularly performs a hybrid of jazz, reggae, trip-hop, and techno. Clark Gayton plays trombone on Bruce Springsteen's Wrecking Ball Tour and has also joined him on tour with the Seeger Sessions Band. 

Tuesday, December 19th
Aria & The Soul of Peru
Aria Nadège is an independent recording artist from Greenwich Village, New York. Her gorgeous, velvet voice and warm tone has graced many stages in Los Angeles and New York including The House of Blues, The Xen Lounge, and The Bowery Electric. Her band, Aria & The Soul of Peru, are working on their debut EP Vintage Vacation.

Wednesday, December 20th
Sweet Megg & The Wayfarers
Sweet Megg & The Wayfarers seamlessly incorporate elements of Dixieland, Harlem swing, Parisian cabaret, and gut bucket blues into one charming musical performance. Saxophonist Ryan Weisheit reimagines a world where Sidney Bechet, Lester Young, and Charlie Parker blow side by side. Together Sweet Megg, Ryan, and all the Wayfarers create a world where jazz is alive and well and living in New York.

Thursday, December 21st
Jon Davis Trio
Pianist and composer Jon Davis has been performing and touring with many of the finest jazz musicians around the world for more than 25 years and has appeared on over 50 recordings. He has performed with such artists as the John Handy Quartet, Johnny Coles, Buddy Montgomery, as well as jazz legends Joe Henderson, Milt Jackson, and Stan Getz. 

Friday, December 22nd
Ron Affif Trio 
Ron Affif is an American jazz guitarist of mixed Lebanese and Italian origin. He is the son of boxing welterweight and middleweight Charley Zivic, who as a jazz fan initiated Affif into music. He is also the nephew of guitarist Ron Anthony (who played with George Shearing and Frank Sinatra) who gave him his first guitar lesson when he was 12. Based in New York, he has gained a reputation for his personal approach to jazz.

Saturday, December 23rd
Yacine Boulares Group
Yacine Boulares is a French-Tunisian saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer based in New York. After studying at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris, he soon understood the necessity to get to the roots of jazz and in 2009 he was granted a Fulbright Scholarship to study at the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music. In New York, Yacine got to learn from Chris Cheek, Donny Mc Caslin, Reggie Workman, and with countless musicians. But New York also exposed him to a myriad of different musics. Soon he was part of ex Fela Kuti drummer Jojo Kuo's Afrobeat Collective, late Cameroonian singer Martino Atangana's African Blue Note, and Tabou Combo. Through his music, he connects to his North African roots.

Sunday, December 24th
Naama Gheber Quartet
Naama Gheber is a New York-based jazz vocalist inspired by the emotionaly direct compositions of Rodgers and Hart, Fields and Hugh, Cole Porter, and other great composers and lyricist of the 1930s and ‘40s. Possessed with an urbane and elegant voice, Gheber’s sensitive interpretation and crisp phrasing have become recognizable elements of her signature style and timeless appeal.

Wednesday, December 27th
Michael Louis-Smith & Stacy Dillard Quartet
Guitarist Michael-Louis Smith is a top-tier bandleader and recording artist, who has toured nationally at major venues such as LA’s Troubadour Club, NYC’s legendary Apollo Theater, and Vermont’s Discover Jazz Festival. He will be performing alongside NYC saxophonist Stacy Dillard and their quartet.

Thursday, December 28th
Nanny Assis Trio 
Anybody who sees Nanny Assis performing immediately feels that music for him is more than just a career. He can snatch audiences away by translating rhythms and notes into pure essence, while other times energizing them enough so they can stand up and dance. His ability to make any kind of music sound smooth makes Nanny a notable and gifted artist. 

Friday, December 29th

Patience Higgins Quartet
Patience Higgins is a multi-reed player who plays saxophone, flute, clarinet, oboe, and English horn. Under the direction of Mercer Ellington and now Paul Ellington, he has been a member of the Duke Ellington Orchestra for the last twenty years. He has toured and recorded with Frank Foster and Count Basie Orchestra, Savion Glover, Aretha Franklin, Lionel Hampton, Ray Charles, Muhal Richard Abrams, Archie Shepp, and has performed in many Broadway shows and at every jazz festival in the world. 

Saturday, December 30th
David Gibson Quartet
Trombonist David Gibson has enjoyed a varied music career that is deeply rooted in the genres of jazz and funk. While reared in Oklahoma, Gibson’s musical journey steered him to New York City. Jazz luminary Curtis Fuller once said about Gibson: “Out of all the young players I hear in music today, David is one of the very few who speaks the language of jazz.”

Sunset Jazz at Top of The Standard
Monday through Saturday, 4-9pm 
First performance at 6:30pm
The Standard, High Line