New York City Live Music Calendar for April and May 2011 Plus Other Events

Currently working on a new calendar for May and June which should be up and running by Sunday. Once again, weekly events are listed at the bottom of the page instead of at the top: scroll down and you’ll find them. If you didn’t see anything that struck you as fun this time around, check back later because we’re in the midst of a massive update.

A few things you should know about this calendar: acts are listed here in order of appearance, NOT headliner first and supporting acts after; showtimes listed here are actual set times, not the time doors open. If a listing here says something like ”9 PM-ish,” chances are it’ll run late. Cover charges are those listed on bands’ and venues’ sites: always best to click on the band link provided or go to the venues page for confirmation since we get much of this info weeks in advance. This is not a list of every band playing every club in NYC: these are critics’ picks, every one recommended for you if the artist or band happens to play a style you enjoy. We try to be descriptive rather than using all kinds of superlative adjectives.

4/1 clever garage rock duo the Fools a 5 PM (no joke – makes sense, right?) at Goodbye Blue Monday.

4/1, 6 PM (no joke) country night with the Melody Allegra Band, Alex Battles & the Whisky Rebellion and Serena Jean and her band at Spike Hill, $6.

4/1, for real, 7 PM Americana siren Abbie Gardner of Red Molly – who’s also a tremendously nuanced, torchy jazz singer – plays the cd release show for her long-awaited new one at the Rockwood – early arrival advised, this may sell out

4/1 – no joke – lyrical jazz piano titan Fred Hersch solo, 7 PM at the Rubin Museum of Art in Chelsea, $18 adv tix highly rec.

4/1 – no joke –  7:30 PM Piedmont fingerstyle blues guitar virtuoso Mary Flower at the Good Coffeehouse, 53 Prospect Park W, $15

4/1, 8:30ish (no joke), Her Vanished Grace (playing the cd release show for their new one) and Religious to Damn do a goth-tinged doublebill at Union Hall, $8.

4/1 for real, ghoulabilly and noir retro rock with the Dead Sextons at Europa in Greenpoint, 8ish, $10

4/1, 9 PM (seriously) Charles Bradley & the Menahan Street Band and Lee Fields & the Expressions at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, $17 adv tix at the Mercury rec.

4/1, 9 PM an amazing purist rock triplebill, no joke – wickedly catchy, jangly Rickenbacker guitar rockers Jay Banerjee & the Heartthrobs, garage-rock purists the Above and then garage legends the Fleshtones at Maxwell’s.

4/1, 9 PM, no joke, tuneful yet noisy new jazz with Kretzmer/Syversen/Niggenkemper/Peskoff at 1012 Willoughby in Brooklyn, sugg don.; they’re at Local 269 on 4/4/ at 9 for $10

4/1 haunting, twangy southwestern gothic band And the Wiremen play the Bell House at 9ish opening for the Waco Bros., $12 adv tic rec.

4/1, 9 PM Providence doom/metal duo The Body followed by a rare rare NYC appearance by Australian metal blunderbuss Whitehorse at the Acheron in Greenpoint – maybe your only chance to see them, don’t miss it if metal is your thing.

4/1-2, for real, 9/10:30 PM Omer Avital plus Joel Frahm – saxophone, Aaron Goldberg – piano, Johnathan Blake – drums plus Itamar Borochov – trumpet and Matan Chapnizka – tenor saxophone at the Jazz Gallery, $20

4/1 no joke – Brooklyn’s funnest band, Chicha Libre plays a rare Friday show at their home base, Barbes, at 10 before heading off on South American tour.

4/1, no joke, the New Cookers – not the Billy Hart/George Cables crew but guys inspired by the original Freddie Hubbard album – at BAM Cafe, 10 PM

4/1, 10 PM (no joke) goth legend Peter Murphy plays Highline Ballroom, adv tix $35 rec.

4/1, 11 PM (no joke – when this guy’s involved you know he means business) the snarling retro Americana noir sounds of the Reid Paley Trio at Cafe Orwell in Bushwick

4/1, 11 PM roots rock powerhouse Tom Clark & the High Action Boys play Lakeside 11 PM – not a joke.

4/1, no joke, intense Greek traditional party band Magges – sort of the Greek Gogol Bordello -at Lafayette Grill & Bar downtown, 11 PM

4/1 midnight (no joke) lush, atmospheric, socially aware Radiohead-influenced rockers My Pet Dragon at the Mercury, $10 adv tix at the box office highly rec.

4/1-2 the Prisoners of 2nd Ave. – who do a decent oldschool NY Dolls facsimile – at Bowery Electric. And they want $20 for it. No joke.

4/1, 2 PM Broadway Musicals of 1864 at the Town Hall featuring such popular songs as “Let’s Round Up Some Irishmen,” “I Need Some Mercury (Because Down Below Is Killing Me),” “We Won’t Call It Slavery Anymore” and the John Wilkes Booth version of “Dixie.”

4/1, 3 PM the New York Stock Exchange presents a concert to celebrate the successful prevention of the Fukushima nuclear explosions – as we all know by now, there was no meltdown, nor any emission of deadly plutonium or uranium isotopes – with vintage Elvis footage accompanied by a live band at the World Financial Center.

4/1, 6 PM brand-new social networking site narciss.us presents Shallow Is What We Aim For, We Are Pampered Children, Poser Dumb and My Eyelashes Are Longer Than Yours at Glasslands; celebrity dj Fella Tio spins blo-fi between sets.

4/1, 6 PM Steve Brotherdale’s Joy Division plays the Warsaw ep cover to cover followed by Melvin Seals’ Jerry Garcia Band at B.B. King’s.

4/1, 7 PM How to Stuff Your Trousers: A Panel Discussion with the Pros at Galapagos. What works best? A roll of quarters? A veggie hot dog? String cheese? Six of the best in the business, including Tom Jones, Engelbert Humperdinck, David Lee Roth, Keith Urban and our favorite perennial mayoral candidate, Murray Hill share the secrets of their craft.

4/1, 7 PM It’s Inarticulate Night at the Bell House. Ever wonder…um…why you can’t….um…talk to…you know…um…people? Now’s your chance to meet a whole club full of others just like you who will spend the whole night staring at their shoes or trying to figure something coherent enough to say to get the bartender to bring them a beer. $15 cover includes a year’s subscription to New York Magazine.

4/1, 4 PM Taurus & Libra present Payday: The Traveling Party. Ever wonder what it’s like to have to get up and go to work all week long instead of sleeping til 5 PM and living off mommy’s credit card? Join your group leaders Emily and Faden as they take you on an “ironical” voyage around New York. You’ll see the inside of a real check cashing place, meet a real-life bill collector, dodge undercover cops as you drink cheap beer from a paper bag outside a bodega, use real scissors to cut grocery coupons from the newspaper and go on a dollar-store crawl for cheap toilet paper without GPS or an iphone app. Authentic working-class attire is a must: trucker hat, overalls, 1970s sneakers for the guys; moth-eaten polyester, uneven bangs, torn corduroys for the girls.

4/1, 8 PM at Crash Mansion, it’s Eurethra, the world’s #1 Eurythmics cover band. Relive the golden days of the day-glo decade that you fetishize even if you never experienced it with unforgettable hits like Aqua, Plus Something Else and The First Cut! If you get tired of the band, women can join the free wet t-shirt contest in the men’s room.

4/1, 8:30 PM it’s a John Zorn-a-thon at the Stone with John Zorn’s Are You Itchy?, John Zorn’s Don’t Sit on That Chair, John Zorn’s Call the Exterminator, John Zorn’s Call the Exterminator Again and finally John Zorn’s Sidewalk Sale.

4/1, 10 PM the Central Park Conservancy presents a special VIP concert with Kenny G for Platinum Circle members in the new private Great Meadow in Central Park. Enjoy the new golf driving range (please be aware that frisbee is no longer allowed). The line to the brand-new Shake Shack starts at the Battery. Helicopter shuttles to the Hamptons will be running all evening from where the zoo used to be.

4/1 the New York Times exclusive interview with Justin Bieber, conducted by Bono at the Bloomberg Society at 5th Ave. and 42nd St. Get the scoop on both performers’ opposition to abortion, and after struggling to down his first Guinness, hear Justin confess how he thinks that Ryan Secrest is cute.

4/1 it’s the battle of the kiddie bands at Southpaw. This year’s first round pits tiny terror two-year-old William Slomowitz-Park and his avant garde percussion troupe The Isaagnys against the Borough Park death-metal of Siobhan Satmarowitz’ Mitzvah Tank. Meanwhile, the snotty punk-pop of Park Slope’s Germ Bombs pairs off against Turtle Bay newcomer Asanitansamarama Patel and Dowry Large Extra. And Williamsburg contender Yeast DuPont’s laptop project Trite Is goes up against Long Island City’s The Overprotected. All proceeds to benefit the Crusade Against Suicide, in memory of last year’s winner, Hayes Bessemer of the Kaplan Klass Killers (KKK).

4/1, 10 PM Flavorpill and Khloe Kardashian present the first annual Buttcrack Awards at Public Assembly. Do your pants hang low? Do they wobble to and fro especially when you bend over? First prize winner gets a year’s subscription to New York Magazine.

4/1, 11 PM the drummer from the Strokes is dj’ing at a “celebrity party” on the roof of the empty “luxury” condo building behind the Mercury Lounge that nobody wants to move into, free admission with condo tour and $50 credit check.

4/1 Whitney Houston plays the Recoup Lounge way over by the projects, 11:30 ish – she might be running a little late for this one – with the guy you see hanging out in Tompkins Square Park with the broken Casio.

4/1 it’s the first annual Foursquare New York City Marathon, brought to you by the new green BP Oil. You get 26 hours to do as many Foursquare checkins as you can. See who can become the new mayor of the Prada store: in the door, out the door, in the door, out the door! Breakfast, lunch AND dinner at Fette Sau! Bring a sleeping bag to Freeman’s!

4/1, 7-10 PM the NY School of Autotune celebrates with a recital at Arlene Grocery followed by the Body Shots Olympics sponsored by MTV.

4/2, 6 PM pianist Aysegul Durakoglu plays the cd release show for her new one featuring works by Chopin and Debussy at Drom, $10 adv tix rec.

4/2, 7 PM Marc Ribot and a hall of fame of downtown jazz peeps play noir soundtrack stuff including new arrangements of Henry Mancini (Touch of Evil), Andre Previn (Scene of the Crime), Roy Budd (Get Carter) and also Lounge Lizards, Rootless Cosmopolitans, and new noir by the guitarist himself at the Tishman Auditorium at the New School, 66 W 12th St., free.

4/2, 7 PM Nashville/Toronto gothic rock with Lorraine Leckie & Her Demons at Banjo Jim’s.

4/2, 7 PM world-renowned choral ensemble the Tallis Scholars sing a program titled Celebrating the Genius of Victoria at Church of St. Mary the Virgin, 145 W 4th St., $35 tix avail.

4/2, 7:30/9:30/midnight Jared Gold plays the cd release to his groovy new B3 organ jazz album at the Bar Next Door with his trio.

4/2, 8 PM rustic, haunting, sprawling Balkan/jazz/Americana band Kotorino at Barbes

4/2, 8:30 PM a triplebill put together by Brooklyn Jazz starting with the Rob Garcia 4: Noah Preminger – tenor sax, Jacob Sacks – piano, Joe Martin – bass, Rob Garcia – drums followed at 9:45 by the Anne Mette Iversen Quartet: John Ellis – sax; Danny Grissett – piano; Anne Mette Iversen – bass; Mark Ferber – drums and then at 11 the Adam Kolker Trio plus woodwinds: Adam Kolker – reeds; Jeremy Stratton – bass; Billy Mintz – drums plus a wind section, all this for $15 at the Cornelia St. Cafe.

4/2, 9 PM Unsteady Freddie’s monthly surf rock extravaganza at Otto’s is a really good one this month starting at 9 with pounding, ferocious Dick Dale-inspired Connecticut band 9th Wave, the Chillers at 10, Sea Turtles at 11, twangy retro NYC legends the Supertones at midnight and sometime after that Estonia’s Android Vasja.

4/2, 9 PM a classic Syrian music extravaganza celebrating centuries of music in the city of Aleppo featuring a historical lecture by Mohamed A. Alsiadi at Alwan for the Arts followed by a show by a 10-piece allstar Syrian/Middle Eastern orchestra, $20/$15 stud/srs.

4/2, 9 PM haunting Appalachian/Balkan vocal duo AE followed at 10:30 PM by bluesman Blind Boy Paxton at the Jalopy.

4/2 new wave literate rock legend Graham Parker at City Winery, 9 PM, $25 seats avail.

4/2, 9:30 PM Mr. Ho’s Orchestrotica Quartet playing Esquivel at Caffe Vivaldi.

4/2, 10 PM eclectic Selegalese flavored roots reggae with Meta & the Cornerstones at the 92YTribeca, $12 adv tix rec. The City Billies open with their blend of bluegrass and reggae at 9.

4/2, 10 PM snarling Syd Barrett/Stooges style garage rock with Obits at the Bell House, $13 adv tix rec.

4/2, 10 PM Sonny Rollins band trombone vet Clifton Anderson at BAM Cafe.

4/2, 10 PM anthemic 80s-tinged keyboard-driven art-rock band Overlord at Fontana’s

4/2 jangly, lyrical southwestern gothic rocker Tom Shaner plays Lakeside, 11 PM.

4/3, 1 and 3 PM the Baltimore Consort play eclectic 16th century Spanish compositions at the Cloisters, $35 gen adm.

4/3, 2 (two) PM the Parker String Quartet – who for what it’s worth just won a Grammy – free at Flushing Town Hall.

4/3, 3 PM the Greenwich Village Orchestra plays Ives – Variations on America; “American Songbook Selections,” and Howard Hanson’s sweeping, cinematic Symphony No. 2 at Washington Irving HS Auditorium, $20 sugg don. reception to follow.

4/3, 6 PM: Nico Soffiato on guitar, Nick Vedeen on alto sax, Giacomo Merege on bass and Zach Mangan on drums at Downtown Music Gallery.

4/3, 7 PM delightfully irreverent “unconventional oboe trio” the Threeds play Caffe Vivaldi joined by Eleanor Dubinsky who follows at 8 PM, playing new arrangements of Bjork, Mingus, the Doors, Carmichael and Dubinsky as well.

4/3 Nina Simone-influenced, popular Ethiopian-American chanteuse Meklit Hadero at the Skirball Center, 7 PM, $20.

4/3, 7 PM Stephanie Rooker & the Search Engine play wickedly smart, socially aware, psychedelic funk and downtempo grooves at the little room at the Rockwood.

4/3 tuneful British/Canadian janglepop band Early Winters (Carina Round’s latest project) at Public Assembly, time/$ TBA.

4/3 glammy, punkish, entertainingly funny Justice of the Unicorns at Bruar Falls at 8 followed at 9 PM rustic lyrical psychedelic Portland songwriter Shelley Short at Bruar Falls

4/3, 10 PM tuneful, sly, literate Americana band the Sometime Boys – the acoustic side project of ferocious art-rockers System Noise – at Banjo Jim’s.

4/4, 7 PM the Ebene Quartet performs the Debussy String Quartet and arrangements of pieces by Miles Davis and Astor Piazzolla, plus “Misirlou,” at the Greene Space, $20.

4/4 Colombian chanteuse Lucia Pulido at 7:30 followed by low-register oldschool Cuban band Gato Loco at 9:30 at Barbes. Gato Loco are also here on 4/18 at 10.

4/4, 7:30 PM the Janus Trio play new work by Paul Clift, Ashley Nail, Christopher Trapani & Lu Wang for flute, viola & harp at the Tank, $10

4/4, 7:30 PM paint-peeling noiserock intensity with the Sediment Club at Bowery Electric, $10.

4/4, 7:30 PM new music ensemble Sequitur plays Robert Sirota’s A Sinner’s Diary; the NY premiere of Victoria Bond’s Frescoes and Ash; the world premiere of Catullus Dreams by David Glaser; the NY premiere of Mix Tape by Armando Bayolo; and the world premiere of Noemi by Daniel Godfrey. at Symphony Space, $20 adv tix rec.

4/4, 8/10:30 PM veteran Chicago blues guitarist Joe Louis Walker at the Blue Note, $10 “bar seating” avail.

4/4, 8:30 PM the Becca Stevens Band’s cd release show at the big room at the Rockwood.

4/5, noon, Members of the Chamber Music Society Lincoln Center play Brahms’ Piano Quartet in G minor at the Greene Space, free.

4/5, 7 PM members of Ensemble ACJW perform Ravel’s Sonata for Violin and Cello, as well as David Bruce’s octet Steampunk at the Greene Space, $20.

4/5-6 trumpeter Jeremy Pelt leads a pretty amazing group with JD Allen – tenor saxophone; Danny Grissett – piano; Peter Washington – bass; Darrell Green – drums at the Jazz Standard, sets 7:30/9:30 PM, $20.

4/5, 8 PM at Southpaw: a new low, free Colt 45 malt liquor “while supplies last,” no music, just drunkenness.

4/5, 8 PM Third World at Highline Ballroom $30 adv tix onsale now – don’t know how much, or how many original members, they have left (they were old when they started the band in the early 70s) – ostensibly they have a new album out. 196 Degrees in the Shade?

4/5, 8:30 PM adventurous mostly-female klezmer hellfaisers Isle of Klezbos at the Sixth St. Synagogue, 325 East 6th St (betw First & Second Aves), $15 includes a drink (in temple – yay!)

4/5, 9 PM Dina Rudeen plays the cd release for her brilliant new one at the little room at the Rockwood; dark psychedelic jazz pianist/composer Dred Scott plays at midnight with his trio.

4/5, 9 PM noisy distantly Balkan tinged guitar/trumpet madness with Ben Syversen’s Cracked Vessel at Local 269

4/5, 10 PM UK indie rock pioneers Wire at the Music Hall of Williamsburg; 4/6 they’re at Bowery Ballroom, $20 adv tix rec.

4/5, 11 PM lush atmospheric cinematic art-rockers the Quavers at Cake Shop.

4/6, 7 PM string quartet Ethel play Julia Wolfe’s Early That Summer; Dohee Lee’s HonBiBaekSan; Jacob TV’s Syracuse Blues; Pamela Z’s ETHEL Dreams of Temporal Disturbances; Huang Ruo’s The Flag Project (excerpt) and Anna Clyne’s Roulette at the Greene Space, $20

4/6 jazz pianist Michel Reis plays the cd release show for his haunting new one Point of No Return at Miles Cafe, 7:30 PM

4/6, 8 PM Alison Leyton-Brown’s oldtime piano blues gand House of Stride at Barbes followed at 10 by the provocative, gorgeously harmony-driven oldtimey Roulette Sisters.

4/6, 8 PM clever, playful funk/jazz guitar vet Askold Buk at P&G Bar.

4/6, 9 PM Raya Brass Band at Radegast Hall – it’ll be interesting to see who drowns who out – the Balkan brass monsters or the douchebags who hang out here.

4/6, 9:30 PM an amazing chromatically-charged, minor-key doublebill with haunting Appalachian/Balkan vocal duo AE and multistylistic Russian/tango/cinematic string band Ljova and the Kontraband at Joe’s Pub, $15.

4/7, noon, new music trio Janus play Debussy, Treuting, and Negron at the Greene Space, free.

4/6, 10 PM fun, catchy, female-fronted ska/pop band Across the Aisle at Matchless.

4/7, 7:30 PM a benefit for Japan – a rare small-room performance by the Asuka Kakitani Jazz Orchestra at the Gershwin Hotel, $10

4/7 Metropolis Ensemble and Music from China perform works by Kati Ogocs and Yu-Hui Chang, 7:30 PM at the downstairs Thalia theatre space at Symphony Space, $20.

4/7, 8 PM a good, smart, artsy keyboard-driven rock doublebill: Overlord at Rock Shop in Gowanus followed eventually at 10 by the Secret History.

4/7, 8 PM the Jack Quartet play Tetras by Iannis Xenaxis and Death Valley Junction by Missy Mazzoli, as well as Ari Streisfeld’s arrangements of pieces by haunted Renaissance composer Gesualdo.at the Greene Space, $20.

4/7, 8 PM Norwegian pianist Leif Ove Andsnes plays a darkly pensive, thematic program of two Beethoven Sonatas, No. 21, “Waldstein,” and No. 32, Op. 111, bookended by Brahms (Four Ballades, Op. 10) and Schoenberg (Sechs kleine Klavierstucke, Op. 19) at Carnegie Hall.

4/7, 8:30 PM fiery Talibam trumpeter Peter Evans leads his quartet and quintets at Littlefield.

4/7, 9 PM Timatim Fitfit play “gypsy baroque piano rock” at Pete’s.

4/7, 9ish, Rebirth Brass Band at the Brooklyn Bowl; 4/10 they’re at Maxwell’s

4/7, 10 PM chanteuse Marta Topferova – who never met a latin style she couldn’t make her own, and make it compelling – at Barbes.

4/7, eclectic Brazilian/country/New Orleans band Nation Beat at Rodeo Bar, 10ish.

4/7, 11 PM cool oldschool style ska with the Forthrights at Otto’s

4/8, noon, free, the Escher Sting Quartet performs Zemlinsky and Brahms at the Greene Space.

4/8 some cool people on the bill at the small room at the Rockwood. Bassist Saskia Lane of the Lascivious Biddies and others at 6; soulful siren Jo Williamson at 8; cowpunks the Nightmare River Band at midnight.

4/8, 7 PM at the Greene Space – let’s cross our fingers and hope they’re ok – the Tokyo String Quartet performs on its “Paganini Quartet” of matched Stradivarius instruments Haydn’s String Quartet in F major Op. 77 No. 2, the fourth movement of Bartók’s String Quartet No. 4, and Beethoven’s “Grosse Fugue” Op. 133. at the Greene Space, $20.

4/8 indie rock siren AK Healey’s recently reunited, jangly, pensive LES band Scout at the big room at the Rockwood, 7:15 PM, $15; be aware that they’re opening for a vomitous corporate easy-listening band and may only play a short set.

4/8, 7:30 PM adventurous new compositions with the Janus Trio and Mantra Percussion at First Presbyterian Church (Brooklyn Heights), 124 Henry St, Brooklyn, NY, 2/3 to Clark St.; A/C to High St.; R/4/5 to Borough Hall.

4/8, 7:30 PM eclectic classical organist Gail Archer plays Liszt at the Church of the Heavenly Rest, 5th Ave. at 90th St.

4/8, 8 PM torchy catchy compelling soul/trip-hop band Mattison in the back room at the Gutter bowling alley in Williamsburg.

4/8-9, 8 PM NYU performers play NYU composers at the Black Box Theatre, 82 Washington Square East adv tix free but required for the show.

4/8 the unstoppably romantic, effervescent, razor-sharp Hawaiian swing band the Moonlighters at Haylards, 406 3rd Ave(at 6th Street), Gowanus

4/8 assaultive, cleverly fun punk jazz with guitarist Jon Lundbom & Big Five Chord playing the cd release show for their new one at Zebulon, 9 PM

4/8, 9 PM PinkBrown feat. Cracked Vessel guitar arsonist Xander Naylor with Max Jaffe on drums and Johan Andersson on saxophones at 1012 Willoughby.

4/8, 9 PM long-running garage rockers the Greenhornes at the Bell House.

4/8, 9 PM a hall of fame cast of West Coast Middle Eastern musicians led by percussionist Souhail Kaspar play music of Umm Kulthum, Mohamed Abdel Wahab, Farid al-Atrash and Abdel Halim Hafez at Alwan for the Arts, $20/$15 stud/srs.

4/8, 9ish cleverly eerie new music improvisers Dollshot at Galapagos, $10.

4/8, 9 PM it’s the Lakeside 15 year anniversary party – amazing how such a friendly, unpretentious place could survive under siege from yuppies and tourists for so long. And whoever’s behind the bar by 9 is bound to be cool. We may be there.

4/8, 9/10:30 PM south Asian and Middle Eastern new jazz sounds with Rudresh Mahanthappa’s Gamak feat. Dave Fiuczynski on guitar at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $15

4/8, 9:30 PM eclectic acoustic Americana roots/zydeco/country band Blue Sky Mission Club at Hill Country

4/8, 10 PM the Black Angels at Bowery Ballroom; 4/9 they’re at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, $20 adv tix. at the Mercury highly rec., this will sell out.

4/8, 10 PM second wave garage rock vets the Greenhornes at the Bell House, $15.

4/8 the Pinstripes play roots reggae and ska at Two Boots Brooklyn, 10 PM. Yankee reggae maybe?

4/8, 11 PM up-and-coming Americana chanteuse Cal Folger Day at Pete’s

4/8, 1 AM (actually weehours of 4/9) psychedelic funk/afrobeat/latin band the People’s Champs at the big room at the Rockwood.

4/9, 5:15 PM twangy surf guitar monsters El Muchacho at Otto’s

4/9, 8 PM up-and-coming southwestern gothic star Kerry Kennedy – part noir femme fatale, part fiery bandleader – at Union Hall, $12 adv tix highly rec.

4/9 a killer triplebill at the Postcrypt Coffeehouse – back uptown again after a brief stay in the East Village – with Alyson Greenfield at 8:30, Carol Lipnik at 9:30 and Lorraine Leckie at 10:30.

4/9, 8:30 PM hypnotic Mississippi hill country blues guitarist Will Scott at 68 Jay St. Bar.

4/9, 8:30/11 PM Jamaican jazz piano titan Monty Alexander at Birdland, $30 seats avail.

4/9, 9 PM a killer doublebill at Bowery Electric with ferociously lyrical songwriters, Linda Draper and Matt Keating.

4/9, 9 PM smart, tuneful, lyrical female-fronted powerpop/janglerock band Delusions of Grand Street at Trash.

4/9, 10 PM Magges – the Greek rock equivalent of Gogol Bordello – at 10-11 Bar, 171 Ave.C between 10th & 11th St. It’s Chuck Metaxas’ birthday show, somebody buy him some ouzo for once!

4/9, 10 PM Karikatura play gypsy punk at Two Boots Brooklyn, 10 PM.

4/10, 6 (six) PM Sara Lewis – simmering jazzy chanteuse who veers between dark cabaret-based piano songs and Beatlesque pop – at Caffe Vivaldi.

4/10 satirical all-female folk group the Lascivious Biddies at the small room at the Rockwood, 6 (six) PM

4/10, 6 PM Ras Moshe & the Music Now Ensemble feat. Kyoko Jitamura and Shayna Dulberger and Andrew Drury, followed at 7 by Belgian duo Olivier Stalon on bass and Pablo Masis on trumpet at Downtown Music Gallery.

4/10, 7 PM cellist Sebastian Baversteam plays a solo show at Barbes followed at 9 by Stephane Wrembel.

4/10, 7 PM adventurous new music ensemble Lunatics at Large continue their Sanctuary Project music-and-poetry series at Synagogue for the Arts, 49 White St., $20

4/10, 8:15 PM second-wave garage rock legends Johnny Chan & the New Dynasty 6 at Otto’s

4/10 hilarious, diverse satirical cowpunk rockers Uncle Leon & the Alibis at Rodeo Bar 10ish

4/11, 7 PM Gina Leishman, vox, baritone ukulele; Charlie Burnham, violin; Matt Munisteri, guitar and Brad Jones, bass at Barbes followed at 9:30ish by Chicha Libre.

4/11, 8ish adventurous new music string quartet Ethel play two world premieres including Dohee Lee’s HonBiBaekSan (The Ritual of White Mountain) and Hafez Modirzadeh’s A Hot Time in the Ol’ Town; as well as performances of Terry Riley’s Sunrise of the Planetary Dream Collector, and Pamela Z’s ETHEL Dreams of Temporal Disturbances at le Poisson Rouge, $20.

4/11, 9 PM eclectic violinist/composer Mazz Swift, Kontraband/Tall Tall Trees percussionist Matthias Kunzli, charismatic noir punk/goth rocker Vera Beren’s Gothic Chamber Blues Ensemble and Patti Hearst-inspired all-female Tania & the Revolutionaries at Small Beast at the Delancey

4/11 oldtime Americana with the Builders & the Butchers at the Mercury, 10 PM, $10.

4/11 fiery charismatic art-rock/goth-punk siren Vera Beren books the night at Small Beast at the Delancey, including a set with her band at 10ish

4/12 catchy tuneful brilliantly melodic jazz from Terry Dame’s Monkey on a Rail in just their third concert since the early zeros, at Barbes at 7 followed by Slavic Soul Party at 9.

4/12-13 bassist Ben Allison leads a two-guitar sextet with Brandon Seabrook and Steve Cardenas plus Jason Lindner on keys, Rudy Royston on drums and Jonathan Blake on tenor at the Jazz Standard, sets 7:30/9:30 PM, $20

4/12 bassist Lauren Falls leads a quintet with Seamus Blake, tenor sax; Mike Moreno, guitar; Can Olgun, piano; Trevor Falls, drums, 8:30 PM at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

4/12-17, 8/10:30 PM the Crusaders – who reputedly have returned to their roots as a late 60s style funk/groove band – at the Blue Note, $30 “seats” avail ($35 on the weekend)

4/13, 7:30 PM The Orchestra of the S.E.M. Ensemble with Ostravská Banda conducted by Petr Kotik play John Cage: Concert for Piano and Orchestra with Joseph Kubera, piano; Carolyn Chen – Wilder Shores of Love (world premiere); György Ligeti – Concerto for Piano and Orchestra with Daan Vandewalle, piano; Alex Mincek – Pendulum #7 for saxophone and ensemble (world premiere) at Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, $15 tix avail.

4/13, 8 PM soaring, sultry, playfully quirky Universal Thump frontwoman/pianist Greta Gertler solo at the Cornelia St. Cafe followed by Cuddle Magic (separate admission – their concept of being a chamber-rock jamband is cool, but they’ve got to avoid getting all twee) at 10.

4/13, 10ish tongue-in-cheek, period-perfect early 50s style country from Susquehanna Industrial Tool & Die Co. at Rodeo Bar.

4/13, 10ish indie classical composer Emily Wells – whose latest stuff has the playful, accessible feel of Todd Reynolds’ recent work – at Glasslands, $10 adv tix onsale now.

4/13, 10 PM trumpeter Steven Bernstein’s funky Sex Mob at 55 Bar.

4/14, 7:30 PM wry, funny acoustic Americana jam band Tall Tall Trees at Pete’s; they’re also at the big room at the Rockwood the following night at midnight.

4/14, 7:30 PM pyrotechnic violinist Gil Morgenstern’s reliably fascinating, thematic Reflections Series concludes its 2010-2011 season with a program titled Transfigured Nights with pianist Donald Berman and cellist Ole Akahoshi including Arnold Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht and Shostakovich’s Trio in E Minor, at WMP Concert Hall, $25.

4/14, 8 PM irrepressible alt-country chanteuse Shelby Lynne at City Winery, $30 seats avail.

4/14, 8 PM provocative, smart Palestinian-American world music songwriter Stephan Said at Drom, $10 adv tix rec. –  the theme is “Tahrir to Madison, Building a Global Movement.” With GritTV host Laura Flanders, Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Gospel Choir, actress Najla Said, co-sponsors OR Books, FEN Magazine, Helo Magazine, The Mantle, the New Jersey Outreach Group, and WeTheWorld. The show begins with a musical incantation of selections from OR Book’s upcoming acclaimed book “Tweets From Tahrir: Egypt’s Revolution as It Unfolded, in the Words of the People Who Made It.” $10 adv tix rec.

4/14, 8/10 PM Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society – the cutting-edge big band that jumpstarted the big band craze – at Iridium, $25.

4/14 a couple of good dark rock acts at Zebulon starting at 8:30 PM with the historically-inspired Elisa Flynn followed eventually by haunting atmospheric goth-tinged art-rockers Bee & Flower and their killer basslines at 10:15

4/14, 8:30 PM a killer oldschool hip-hop extravaganza at Santos Party House hosted by D-Stroy (Arsonists) with Keith Murray, Lords of the Underground, Group Home, Real Live, Nine, Shabaam Sahdeeq, K Banger, Crazy Legs, DJ Evil D, DJ Eclipse, DJ Rockin Rob, Kon & Amir, and Video Music Box legend Ralph McDaniels dj’ing, $15 adv tix very highly rec.

4/14, 8:30 PM Canadian bluegrass/alt-country songwriter Luther Wright & the Wrongs at Hill Country; 4/15 he’s at Rodeo Bar, 10ish.

4/14, 9 PM ferociously lyrical banjo-punk Americana rocker Curtis Eller – can’t wait to hear what he has to say about Fukushima – at Rest Au Rant, 30-01 35th Ave., Astoria; 4/16 he’s at Banjo Jim’s at 8

4/14, 9:15 PM cynical misanthropic funny lyrical songwriter Jim Bianco – the kind we like best – at the big room at the Rockwood.

4/14 cutting-edge alto sax composer/powerhouse Jacam Manricks leads a large-ish ensemble at Miles Cafe, 9:30 PM, $20.

4/14, 9:30 PM bossa/jazz guitarist/songwriter Sasha Dobson at Caffe Vivaldi. She’s also here on 4/30 at 7.

4/14, 10:30 PM careening Balkan madness with Veveritse Brass Band at the Jalopy.

4/15, 7 PM legendary Clash collaborator Ellen Foley (Mick Jones wrote Should I Stay or Should I Go about her) at Lakeside.

4/15, 7 PM torchily compelling songwriter Abby Payne at the small room at the Rockwood; she’s also at Pete’s on 4/26 at 10:30 PM.

4/15, 7:30 PM the Jack Grace Band bring their oldschool 60s country cool and crazed antics to Hill Country; they’re also here on 4/29.

4/15, 7:30 PM Anne-Marie McDermott, piano and Maureen McDermott, cello play Brahms and Beeethoven at Third St. Music School Settlement, free.

4/15, 8 PM quietly fiery, eclectic, haunting and charismatic keyboard goddess/retro rock tunesmith Rachelle Garniez at Barbes followed at 10 by wild jazzy gypsy rock/jazz from Jay Vilnai’s Vampire Suit .

4/15-22 two of the most exhilarating singers on the planet, John Kelly and Carol Lipnik perform their suite The Escape Artist, which ”traces the experience of a performer who has a catastrophic trapeze accident. While stranded on a gurney with a broken neck in a hospital emergency room, he escapes and finds refuge in the images that flood his mind: the sinners and saints, prostitutes and gods that populate Caravaggio’s paintings.” With music by Lipnik and Kelly plus selections by Monteverdi and John Barry, at PS 122, 8 PM, $25/15 stud/srs.

4/15, 8 PM Niger’s desert blues legends Etran Finatawa – who played one of the 20 best shows we saw last year – at Symphony Space, $35.

4/15, 8 PM a cool reggae triplebill at the smaller studio space downstairs at Webster Hall with Echo Movement, Maui Waui and the Green (whose blend of vintage Hawaiian and roots reggae is totally original), $10 adv tix rec.

4/15, 8 PM at Bargemusic Ensemble East plays music for Japanese instruments: Michiyo Miyagi – Haru no Yo (“Spring Evening”); Fukuda Rando – Miyama Higurashi (“Crickets in the Mountains”); Tadao Sawai – Tori no Yoni (“Flying Like a Bird”); James Nyoraku Schlefer – Sankyoku No.1; Toshio Funakawa – Quartet; Hikaru Sawai O-Koto, $35, early arrival advised, this ought to sell out.

4/15 tuneful oldschool Canadian country singer Serena Jean with her band at 8 PM at Matchless.

4/15, 8 PM terse oldschool Chicago blues guitarist Irving Louis Lattin at Lucille’s; he’s also here on the 29th.

4/15, 8 PM noisy, funky all-female punk legends the Bush Tetras at the Kitchen, $12.

4/15, 9 PM Dwight & Nicole at the Brooklyn Bowl, $5. If the quieter, boudoir side of 1960s soul and funk is your thing, if you prefer Stax/Volt to P-Funk, you have to see these two at some point. He takes Steve Cropper guitar to the next level; there’s nobody better at lush soul ballads than she is.

4/15, 9 PM ferociously smart lyrical Americana/blues songwriter Joe Pug at Rock Shop in Gowanus, $10; 4/16 he’s at the Mercury at 11:30 PM for $2 more.

4/15, 9 PM Franz Nicolay of World Inferno (and that awful trendoid band we won’t mention) does his own good noirish solo stuff at Cake Shop.

4/15, 10 PM intense, female-fronted art-rock/noise/funk rockers System Noise at Trash – vote for them to play Warped Tour!

4/15, 10 PM long spiraling oldschool funk jams with Sister Sparrow & the Dirty Birds at Sullivan Hall, $10

4/15, 11 PM O’Death at the Knitting Factory – this will probably sell out – $10 adv tix rec.

4/16, 2 PM slinky, haunting vintage 1950s Egyptian film music revivalists Zikrayat free with museum adm. at the Museum of the City of New York.

4/16, 3 PM punk/metal rockers Cojoba followed by ska-punks OFC and hardcore from No Comply and Drain the Sky at ABC No Rio

4/16-17, 5-7 PM free at Issue Project Room, some ideas close to our hearts: “Yolande Harris’s installation Tropical Storm, developed in a residency with Alvin Lucier at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in Florida, is a shot of a Florida storm, with the sound of rainfall as the only audio. In The Pink Noise of Pleasure Yachts in Turquoise Sea, Harris explores the place of sound in the underwater animals, and the effects of the sound of recreational boating on the smallest sea creatures.”

4/16, 6 PM Bliss Blood and Al Street’s amazing new noir torch song project Evanescent at DBA, 113 North 7th Street (Berry/Wythe), Williamsburg

4/16, 7 PM charismatic, literate NYC noir rock legend LJ Murphy at Banjo Jim’s with his band

4/16, 7 PM Eleventh Dream Day opens for the recently reunited Come at the Bell House adv tix $20 rec.

4/16, 7:30 PM, repeating 4 PM on 4/17, Lisa Bielawa’s Synopses: Synopsis #2: In the Eye of the Beholder for percussion performed by Aaron Trant, Synopsis #4: I’m Not That Kind of Lawyer for solo double bass performed by Doug Balliet, Synopsis #6: Why Did You Lie to Me? for solo cello performed by Eric Jacobsen, Synopsis #9: I Don’t Even Play the Bassoon for solo viola performed by Miranda Sielaff, and Synopsis #10: I Know This Room So Well for solo English horn will be performed live, with new choreography by Catherine Gallant at NY City Center, 130 West 56th St., $15 tix avail.

4/16 NYC’s funnest, most socially aware, intensely tuneful rock band, the Brooklyn What are also NYC’s best rock promoters. Their monthly residency this month at Trash starts at 8 with smart, lyrical, potent Latin rock vets Kofre followed at 9 by the Brooklyn What, powerpop BW spinoff New Atlantic Youth, some great ska/punk en Espanol with Los Skarroneros and then early 70s style proto-metal band Pistols 40 Paces.

4/16, 8 PM slinky, haunting vintage Middle Eastern/East African group Sounds of Taraab at Barbes

4/16, 8 PM Central Asian troupe Turku play ancient Silk Road repertoire at Drom, $10 adv tix highly rec., this will sell out.

4/16, 8:30 PM ex-Citizens Band music director/pianist Duke Bojadziev plays his orchestral and film works at Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall with a chamber orchestra and many special guests, $30 tix avail.

4/16, 9/10:30 PM Tyshawn Sorey – drums, Loren Stillman – saxophones, Todd Neufeld – guitar, John Escreet – piano, Chris Tordini – bass at the Jazz Gallery, $20

4/16, 9 PM ecstatic New Orleans funk/soul orchestra Brother Joscephus & the Love Revival Revolution Orchestra at the Brooklyn Bowl, $5

4/16, 9 PM sprawling, theatrical, cleverly literate Americana/art rockers Balthrop Alabama at the 92YTribeca ,$10.

4/16, 9 PM bluegrass with Hilary Hawke & the Flipsides followed at 10:30 by M Shanghai String Band at the Jalopy

4/16 psychedelic roots reggae monsters Dub Is a Weapon play their cd release show at Sullivan Hall, 9ish, $10 adv tix rec.

4/16, 9:30 PM NYC’s most exciting blues guitarist, Mississippi hill country style player Will Scott at Hill Country.

4/16, 11 PM fearless funny Americana punk rockers Spanking Charlene evoke a cooler, yuppie-free LES vibe at Lakeside

4/16, 11ish acoustic Americana/indie band Bogs Visionary Orchestra at Goodbye Blue Monday; they’re also here late on 4/27.

4/16, midnight ecstatically fun Afrobeat band Elikeh plays Joe’s Pub, $14.

4/17, 1 and 3 PM all-male choral sextet Lionheart sing Thomas Tallis’s “masterful and heart-wrenching settings of the Lamentations of Jeremiah, performed in alternation with their traditional Latin chant responsories—as they might have been heard in the chapel of Elizabeth I” at the Cloisters, $35 gen adm.

4/17, 3-9 PM a benefit for Japan with Dizzy Ventilators, Sarah White, pinoy ukelele ska band Brown Rice Family, Caneli Beat, Band Aid Japonica, DJ Mihoko, Brown Sugar baritone sax goddess Moist Paula, Mobius Collective and Retada at BPM, 237 Kent Ave., Williamsburg between Grand & North 1st, sugg don.

4/17, 4 PM hilarious retro Weimar bandleader/crooner Max Raabe & Palast Orchester at NJPAC in Newark, $21 tix avail.

4/17, 6 PM Daniel Carter and Pascal Niggenkemper: “Legendary multi-winds player & new acoustic bass wiz!” at Downtown Music Gallery.

4/17, 6:30 PM Ensemble ACJW with pianist Emanuel Ax playing Dvorák, Prokofiev, and Villa-Lobos at le Poisson Rouge, $20.

4/17, 7:30 PM powerful, emotionally vivid jazz pianist/composer Kris Davis leads a trio at Littlefield, $10.

4/17, 8:30 PM a phenomenally good dark lyrical rock doublebill with the Oxygen Ponies  followed by southpaw guitarslinger/siren/songwriter Randi Russo playing the cd release show for her career-best new one Fragile Animal at the Mercury.

4/17, 9 PM Gamelan Dharma Swara at the Fat Cat. Wow. NYC’s very own competitive gamelan orchestra, transfixing all the pool players. This will be a trip.

4/17, 9 PM pianist Bobby Avey leads a quartet with Miguel Zenon, alto saxophone; Thomson Kneeland, bass; Jordan Perlson, drums at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

4/17, 9 PM rustic oldschool country and hokum blues with the Second Fiddles at the Jalopy

4/18 QNG  (Quartet New Generation), who bring a truckload of recorders of various sizes to every performance and then get amazing antique and modern sounds out of them – at Advent Church, 93rd and Broadway, 7:30 PM,

4/18-19, 8 PM powerful jazz vibraphonist Mark Sherman and his Quintet with Jim Ridl, Dean Johnson, Tim Horner and special guest Randy Brecker at the Kitano, $25 plus $15 min at tables

4/18, 8 PM the irresistible Pipettes – snarling cockney girls playing oldschool Motown and soul – at Rock Shop in Gowanus, $15; 4/20 they’re at the Mercury for the same price with hilarious faux-French garage rockers les Sans Culottes opening the night at 9:30.

4/18, 9:30 PM a rare small club date with the JD Allen Trio at Smalls, this will sell out, early arrival advised. Guitarist Peter Bernstein, who opens the night solo on electric at 7:30, isn’t bad either.

4/18, 10ish haunting, smart, tuneful Americana rock siren Jan Bell & the Cheap Dates at Rodeo Bar.

4/18 free jazz titans the Ullmann/Swell 4 with reedman Gebhard Ullmann and trombonist Steve Swell – winding up their tour for their irrepressible, deliciously fun latest album – 10 PM at University of the Streets, 130 East 7th Street, $10

4/18, 10:30 PM charming, romantic oldtimey Boston swing/blues quartet Lake Street Dive at the big room at the Rockwood.

4/18, 10:30 PM the self-explanatory and badly needed Hate My Day Jobs at Bowery Electric

4/19 Moroccan-American chanteuse Malika Zarra plays the cd release show for her new one Berber Taxi with her band at the Jazz Standard, sets 7:30/9:30 PM

4/19-24 and 4/26-5/1 Bill Frisell plays the Vanguard: first with Eyvind Kang on violin and Rudy Royston on drums, then with Ron Miles on trumpet, Tony Scherr on bass and Kenny Wollesen on drums.

4/19, 8:30 PM keyboard rock the Joe McGinty Seven followed by fearless, wickedly lyrical, entertaining songwriter Ward White’s cd release show at 9:30 at Bowery Electric.

4/19 scorching electric banjo noiserock/jazz at the Seabrook Power Plant cd release show, 9:30ish at Littlefield, $8 adv tix rec.

4/20, 7:30 PM a cool reggae/ska quadruple bill at Sullivan Hall with Soul Rebel Project, Across the Aisle, Roast Beef Curtains and Mighty Mystic, $10

4/20 Tomoko Omura – violin; Glenn Zaleski – piano;Yoshiki Yamada – bass; Ryo Noritake – drums, 7:30 PM at Miles Cafe, $20.

4/20, 8 PM all-woman noir punk/glam rockers the Foxx at Cake Shop – this band is amazing, how they stayed off our radar for so long is a mystery. They would have ruled the airwaves in 1980. Sort of like a more pop Vera Beren or a louder DollHouse. Followed at 9 by funny, entertaining retro LA girlpunks Shannon & the Clams.

4/20, 8 PM accordionist Mariel Berger’s “avant Balkan” band Paper Snakes plays two ferocious sets at the Brooklyn Lyceum

4/20, 9 PM purist retro garage rock with the Solid Set at Lakeside.

4/20, 9 PM celebrate world pot day…well, Williamsburg pot day…at the Charleston at 9 PM with a smoking early 70s style stoner rock triplebill of Strange Haze, followed by Weedbeerd and then the inimitable, hilarious Mighty High. Anna Maria Pizza is across the street if you get hungry.

4/20, 10 PM psychedelic dub reggae with John Brown’s Body followed by the Easy Star All-Stars at Highline Ballroom, $20 adv tix highly rec. Note that some loser from a reality tv show – who’s decided to switch from corporate rock to reggae – opens the show at 9.

4/21, three excellent, separate-admission shows at Joe’s Pub. 7 PM haunting slinky Middle Eastern/jazzy torch song band Pharaoh’s Daughter is $15; lyrically intense, noirish British rocker Spottiswoode’s cd release show at 9 is $15; Afrobeat band Emefe’s show at 11:30 is $TBA.

4/21-22, 7ish Mogwai at Webster Hall, adv tix $28.50 rec.

4/21, 7:30 PM adventurous new music ensemble Lunatics at Large play five brand-new commissioned works by Ryan Fusco, Andre Bregegere, Laura Koplewitz, Alex Shapiro and Mohammed Fairouz as part of their Sanctuary Project at WMP Concert Hall, $25.

4/21 the monthly ska bill has moved from the Knit to Trash starting at 8 with Sewage, Shootout, the Rudie Crew and King Django.

4/21, 8 PM in “Scuttling around in the shallows, Jana Winderen continues her investigation into the sound of shrimp, exploring how the smallest creatures of the ocean use sound for communication, orientation, and feeding. Hydrophones—originally a military development—are repurposed, inadvertently producing unexpected qualities not informed by their original design. Winderen uses these hydrophones to create immersive sonic environments, something far from the original intention of these surveillance devices.” At Issue Project Room, $12.

4/21, 8 PM an avant garde doublebill with Parias Ensemble and choir Quince Vocal Ensemble at the Gershwin Hotel ,$10.

4/21, 8:30 PM, Melvin Van Peebles wid Laxative – the celebrated filmmaker/musician with members of Burnt Sugar – at Zebulon

4/21, 8:30 PM Susie Ibarra’s Electric Kulintang – sort of the Filipino counterpart to Electric Junkyard Gamelan – at the Atrium at Lincoln Center, 8:30 PM, early arrival highly advised.

4/21 dark intense eclectic original bluegrass band Frankenpine at Banjo Jim’s, 9 PM

4/21 Lunas Atlas (violinist Rima Fand’s new Frederico Garcia Lorca poetry/music project) at the Jalopy at 9 followed by bluegrass hellraisers Freshly Baked (f.k.a. Graveyard Shift) at 10:30.

4/21, 9 PM eerily playful indie folk/art-rock siren Larkin Grimm at Death by Audio.

4/21 a real power trio with Avishai Cohen – trumpet; Omer Avital – bass; Nasheet Waits – drums at Smalls, 9:30 PM, early arrival advised.

4/21, 10 PM the “Revive Da Live Big Band Tribute to the legendary Guru & the Jazzmatazz Legacy” at le Poisson Rouge, $20 adv tix highly rec., this will probably sell out.

4/21, 10 PM captivating Americana frontwoman Julia Haltigan and her band at the big room at the Rockwood.

4/21, 10:30 PM torchy oldtimey jazz/pop with Miss Tess & the Bon Ton Parade followed by the wild oldtimey Americana/country sound of the Woes at Southpaw, $10.

4/22 Ryan Truesdell leads a 14-piece big band to recreate Gil Evans’ classic 1961 album Out of the Cool at the Jazz Standard, 7:30/9:30 PM, $35

4/22 sprawling acoustic Americana with Jones St. Station at le Poisson Rouge, 7:30 PM, $10 adv tix rec.

4/22 baritone country/western swing crooner Sean Kershaw & the New Jack Ramblers at Hill Country, 7:30 PM.

4/22 it’s a rare Friday night Unsteady Freddie surf shindig at Otto’s starting at 9 PM with satirical spoof the Alien Surfer Babes (a Witches in Bikinis spinoff), NYC’s legendary, twangy, original surf band the Supertones, the Space Rangers at 11 and the fiery Octomen sometime after midnight

4/22, 8 PM pianist Jenny Q Chai and Iktus Percussion Quartet play the world premiere of Five Pieces by Nils Vigeland, as well as works by Gérard Grisey, Lukas Ligeti, Vivian Fung, and two world premieres from emerging composers Inhyun Kim and Dillon Kondor downstairs in the Thalia Theatre at Symphony Space, $15/$10 stud.

4/22, 8:15 PM legendary Haitian big band Orchestre Septentrional at the north cove at Battery Park City, free

4/22, 8:30 PM acoustic Irish/punk rockers Box of Crayons at Bowery Electric

4/22, 9 PM gypsy chanteuse Sanda Weigl’s cd release show for her intense, excellent new one Gypsy in a Tree at the 92YTribeca, $15 adv tix highly rec.

4/22, a monster noisy rock quadruple bill at Death by Audio with the Sediment Club at 9 followed by Degreaser, Pop 1280 and Woman, who absolutely slayed with their ear-drilling hypnotic guitar swirl the last time they played here.

4/22 Evanescent – retro music goddess Bliss Blood’s flamenco-tinged, hauntingly cinematic duo project with guitarist Al Street – at Cin-M-Art Space, 9 PM, 43 Murray St. (W. Broadway & Church)

4/22, 9 PM slinky danceable oldschool plena and bomba sounds with Quimbombo at BAM Cafe.

4/22-23, 9/10:30 PM Orrin Evans’ Captain Black Big Band CD release show at the Jazz Gallery, $20. Note that their Dizzy’s Club engagement is sold out.

4/22 electric bluegrass/country/rock guitar/mandolin monsters Demolition String Band at Rodeo Bar, 10ish.

4/22, 10 PM jazzy oldschool latin soul with the Brooklyn Boogaloo Blowout at 55 Bar.

4/22, 10:30 PM psychedelic 1960s style pop with latin tinges from Damian Quinones Y Su Nuevo Conjunto at Fifth Estate, 506 5th Ave., Park Slope

4/22, 11 PM hilarious retro country songwriter Hayes Carll at Bowery Ballroom, $15 adv tix rec.

4/22, 11 PM the Boss Guitars play surf classics and obscurities Lakeside, 11 PM.

4/23 Jorma Kaukonen + Jack Casady at Hiro Ballroom are sold out.

4/23, 1 PM a free concert at Bargemusic, early arrival advised, most likely piano music; there’s another on 5/7.

4/23, 1 and 3 PM, early music ensemble Pomerium sings works by Lassus, Monteverdi, Gesualdo, and Byrd at the Cloisters, $35 gen adm.

4/23 intriguing female-fronted noir-soul band Shenandoah & the Night at the Brooklyn Bowl

4/23, 8 PM pianist Vicky Chow and the Del Sol String Quartet at the Gershwin Hotel, playing Gershwin, D’Rivera and others, $10

4/23, 9 PM scorching, noisy, glam-ish punk rock with the K-Holes followed eventually at 11 by campy, entertaining faux 60s girlgroup punks Shannon & the Clams at Glasslands, $10

4/23 Cuban reggaeton siren Telmary Diaz with a live band at BAM Cafe, 9 PM – early arrival advised, this will sell out.

4/23, 10 PM Spanglish Fly at Mehanata. Good match of band and venue: fiery danceable fun female-fronted retro 60s latin soul band and cool, unpretentious Bulgarian bar where tourists and trendoids dare not enter.

4/23, 10:30 PM a rare NYC appearance by bluegrass stars Lightning in the East at the Jalopy.

4/24, 3 PM Chinese Music Ensemble of NY’s 50th Anniversary Concert feat. “a 45 musician orchestra in various settings from small ensembles to the entire orchestra” at Merkin Concert Hall, $25 adv tix rec.

4/24, 6 PM, OMG – you want eclectic and amazing, this is it: Balkan clarinet titan Vasko Dukovski with GL Diana on sitar, Daniel Ori on bass at Caffe Vivaldi.

4/24, 7 PM stars of the NYC Balkan underground, trumpeter Ben Holmes and accordionist Patrick Farrell at Barbes followed at 9ish by Stephane Wrembel.

4/24, 8 PM rustic, intense French gypsy rockers Poum Tchack at Galapagos, $15

4/24 Esquela – the new Americana rock project from the Yayhoos’ Keith Christopher with powerhouse singer Rebecca Frame – plays Rodeo Bar at 10ish.

4/25, 7:30 PM the Del Sol Quartet plus singer Amy X Neuberg play Neuberg, Reza Vali, Ronald Bruce Smith and Ben Johnson compositions at Symphony Space, $20

4/25 charismatic intense somewhat scary cellist/vocalist Audrey Chen plays Roulette, 8:30 PM. One of the crew here insists that her set – “music” might not be an accurate word for it – at Issue Project Room last year was the best show of 2010. Your life will not be complete until you’ve survived an hour or so of her sonic assault.

4/25, 9 PM Ben Syversen’s Cracked Vessel – a wild mix of noise-rock and Balkan brass music, whose debut album was one of our picks for the best of 2010 – at Bar 4. They’re also at the 1012 Willoughby basement series in Bushwick on 4/29 at 9

4/25, 9:30 PM drummer Ari Hoenig does his “punkbop” thing with a good crew: Will Vinson – alto sax; Jonathan Kreisberg – guitar; Danton Boller – bass at Smalls.

4/25 sultry oldtimey stylings with Daria Grace and the Pre-War Ponies at Rodeo Bar, 10ish.

4/26 Emmylou Harris at Bowery Ballroom is sold out – good for her

4/26, 6:30 PM pianist Jenny Lin plays Federico Mompou’s “Música Callada” at le Poisson Rouge, $15

4/26, 8 PM Balkan Beat Box at Webster Hall, $20 gen. adm.

4/26, 8:30 PM eclectic new string ensemble Publiquartet play works by Don Byron, Skye Steele, Amanda Gookin, Nick Revel and others at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

4/27, 7 PM psychedelic noir instrumental machine Mojo Mancini – whose debut album was one of last year’s best – at the big room at the Rockwood, $TBA

4/27, 7 PM Mr. Wau Wa – Gina Leishman, vox, accordion, pump organ; Rinde Eckert, vox, accordion, pump organ; Doug Wieselman, clarinet, sax, guitar; Marcus Rojas, tuba and Kenny Wollesen, drums – plays Bertold Brech at Barbes followed at 9:30ish by Chicha Libre.

4/27, 7:30 PM pianist Alexandra Joan – whose remarkable emotional intelligence and fearlessness set her apart from the millions of cookie-cutter classical pianists out there – plays an all-French program of Fauré, Ravel, Enescu and Fairouz at WMP Concert Hall.

4/27, 7:30 PM Egyptian vintage film music revivalists Zikrayat plus a bellydance show at Jebon Noodle Shop, 15 St. Marks Place, $10

4/27, 7:30 PM Svetlana Tsoneva, violin and Vladimir Valjarevic, piano play Brahms, Mozart and Franck at at the Bulgarian Consulate, 121 E 62nd. St., free.

4/27 haunting, hypnotic Middle Eastern sounds with Duo Jalal feat. violist Kathryn Lockwood plus percussionist Yousif Sheronick David Krakauer and Glen Velez at Drom, 8 PM, $12 adv tix rec.

4/27, 9:30 PM the funniest man in hip-hop, Houston’s Devin the Dude at the Knitting Factory, $15 adv tix a must, this will sell out.

4/27, 10:30 PM gypsy goth rock with Yula Beeri & the Extended Family at the big room at the Rockwood

4/28, 1 PM Nancianne Parella performs an organ concert at Trinity Church, free.

4/28, 8 PM swirling, haunting psychedelic guitar soundscaper Thomas Simon at the Gershwin Hotel, $10

4/28, 8 PM wild intense Italian gypsy brass band Mucca Pazza at Santos Party House, $15 adv tix rec.

4/28, 8 PM a Benjamin Lees retrospective: the Cypress String Quartet plays Lees’ string quartets #1 and 6, plus pianist Mirian Conti & violinist Herbert Greenberg play his Odyssey No. 2 and Odyssey No. 3 for solo piano, and Landscape for solo at Christ and St. Stephen’s Church (120 W. 69th), $20.

4/28, 8:30 PM tongue-in-cheek, period-perfect early 50s style country from Susquehanna Industrial Tool & Die Co. at Otto’s

4/28, 9 PM Dollshot, who put a deliciously creepy, jazz-improv spin on classical art-song at Galapagos, $10 adv tix rec

4/28 the Newton Gang play their cd release show for their long-awaited new one at Southpaw, 9 PM followed by Gangstagrass at 11, $10 adv tix highly rec, all ticketholders get a copy of the new album.

4/28, 9 PM late golden-age hip-hop icon Talib Kweli at SOBs, $26 adv tix rec, this will sell out.

4/28, 9:30 PM the auspicious debut performance of bassoon duo (!!!) Dark & Stormy (Adrian Morejon and Rebekah Heller) at the Tank playing Gubaidulina, Stravinsky, Mignone, Andriessen and a world-premiere by NYC composer Nick DeMaison.

4/28, 10 PM fun ska-pop with Across the Aisle followed by smartly aware punk rockers the Blame at Fontana’s.

4/29, 7 PM lyrical Steve Earle-esque rocker Mark McKay at Lakeside followed at 11 PM by “the Piggies” which might be a phony name for a big-name act…or a Del Lords show

4/29, 7:30 PM a high-energy gypsy rock doublebill with Watcha Clan and Rupa & the April Fishes at le Poisson Rouge, $15.

4/29, 7:30 PM pianist Angela Pistilli plays Beethoven and Chopin at at Third St. Music School Settlement, free.

4/29, 7:30 PM tuneful chamber-pop songwriter Jann Klose with his lush, string-driven ensemble at the big room at the Rockwood, $10

4/29, 8 PM psychedelic noir rock legend Steve Wynn plays a doubleheader with his band the Miracle 3 and then with the Baseball Project, playing songs about the Red Sox, a Yankee pitcher who killed a member of the opposing Indians, and tributes to slap-hitting batting champ Ichiro Suzuki and Pawtucket Red Sox (and Tigers) legend Mark Fidrych. At the Bell House, $13 adv tix rec.

4/29, 8:15 PM Canadian goth siren NLX at Caffe Vivaldi

4/29 surfy latin garage rock with the Cuban Cowboys at BAM Cafe, 9 PM.

4/30, 5 PM the UN Singers led by the sensational Mary Lee Kortes play an eclectic program at Saint Luke’s Lutheran Church, 308 W 46th Street (between 8th and 9th Aves), $15 sugg don

4/30, 7:30 PM a monstrously fun skaragga/metal cumbia/gypsy rock doublebill with Escarioka and Skarroneros at Sullivan Hall, $10

4/30, 7:30 PM comedically talented Erin & Her Cello at the big room at the Rockwood.

4/30, 7:30/9:30/midnight a pretty phenomenal trio at the Bar Next Door: Jacam Manricks – saxophones; Jared Gold – organ and Matt Wilson- drums.

4/30 a killer bill at Don Pedros for a measy $5 starting at 8 PM with high energy noisy guitar/drum duo Eleanor, the Highway Gimps – the missing link between My Bloody Valentine and Motorhead – and the best rock band in NYC, the ferocious, tuneful, funny, indomitable, politically aware anti-gentrifiers the Brooklyn What at Don Pedro’s.

4/30, 8 PM Il Albanico at Pete’s – Colombian music with chanteuse and guitar.

4/30, 8:30 PM the Sarah Bernstein Quartet: Sarah Bernstein, violin/compositions; Kris Davis, piano; Stuart Popejoy, bass guitar; Ches Smith, drums, at I-Beam.

4/30, 9 PM Irish-American rock legends Black 47 at Paddy Reilly’s – just like the old days. Get here early because anybody who remembers how wild their shows here were back in the 90s and is still alive will be here.

4/30, 9/10:30 PM bassist John Hebert’s Rambling Confessions feat. Jen Shyu, vox; Billy Drummond, drums; David Virelles, piano at the Cornelia St Cafe, $15

4/30 latin jazz by the O’Farrill Family Band at BAM Cafe, 9 PM.

4/30, 10 PM stark, tuneful cello rockers Pearl & the Beard at Rock Shop in Gowanus, $10.

4/30 Roots Vibration play reggae at Shrine, 10 PM.

4/30, 10ish Kiwi – who play ust about every style of dub and roots reggae – at Bowery Poetry Club.

4/30, 11 PM irrepressibly filthy, sharply satirical, hilarious faux-girlgroup punks Cudzoo & the Fagettes at Trash.

5/1 an amazing free outdoor lineup at the Hoboken Arts & Music Festival (two blocks from the Path station – just follow the sound to Washington St.) – intense, smart chamber-rockers Bern & the Brights at 1 PM, Tammy Faye Starlite’s hilarious Blondie cover band the Pretty Babies at 2, Steve Wynn’s hall-of-fame caliber Baseball Project at 3 and the legendary Ian Hunter – still going strong at 72! at 4.

5/1, 4:45 PM organist Scott Foppiano plays a welcome NYC return engagement at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

5/1, 6 PM a fun, entertaing new music/third-stream jazz doublebill with cellist Jody Redhage followed by the playful Steve Hudson Chamber Ensemble at Cornelia St. Cafe, $10

5/1, 7 PM smart, edgy, lyrical indie rock songwriter Tara Jane O’Neil at the Mercury, $12.

5/1, 8 PM at Union Pool: Apocalypse Five and Dime presents We Shall Not Be Moved: The New York Five & Dime Sit Down Strikes of 1937, A One-Act Musical written by Phil Andrews starring Josh Lerner and Kate followed by the Stagger Back Brass Band – the Spinal Tap of brass band music –  plus singers Xavier, Sara Lucas, Sarah Gordon (of Yiddish Princess) and Michele Hardesty doing socialist song classics.

5/1, 8 PM psychedelic African soul duo Amadou & Mariam, free, at the Cooper Square Hotel, 25 Cooper Sq., one assumes in the lobby.

5/1, 8 PM oldschool and new rustic Cuban sounds on low-register instruments by Gato Loco at Bowery Poetry Club

5/1 the hilarious Uncle Leon & the Alibis – NYC’s answer to David Allan Coe – at Rodeo Bar, 9ish.

5/2, 7 PM at the Greene Space, free: “Even as violent crime rates in New York have dropped dramatically in the past 15 years [due to NYPD brass’ manipulation of crime stats and their refusal to investigate crimes, rather than any real drop in crime], this controversial police procedure continues to divide law enforcement and community groups. Is ‘stop-and-frisk’ an effective preemptive strategy for crime prevention or a case of racial profiling? The Greene Space presents panelists on both sides of the issue in a discussion about how ‘stop-and-frisk’ affects New Yorkers in their everyday lives.”

5/2, 7 PM eclectic trombone god Josh Roseman’s Water Surgeons feat. Josh Roseman – trombone, bass guitar; Curtis Hasselbring – trombone, guitar; Jacob Garchik – trombone, accordion and Barney McAll – keyboards at Barbes followed at about 9:30 by Chicha Libre. They’re also here on 5/9, same time.

5/2, 8 PM Gutbucket and Pitom play gypsy/klezmer/jazz-tinged noisy groove stuff at Rock Shop in Gowanus, $8 “includes snacks.”

5/2, 8/10:30 PM Jane Wiedlin of the Go Go’s joins the surviving members of the Les Paul Trio at Iridium, $30. A crazy idea that just might work – she’s fun and always had the best voice in the band.

5/2, 9 PM Gary Morgan & Pan-Americana play eclectic big band jazz at Tea Lounge in Park Slope

5/2 at the big room at the Rockwood, 10:30 PM the Chris Morrissey Group – Ben Wendel- sax, Nir Felder- guitar, Mark Guiliana- drums, Pete Rende- piano, Chris Morrissey- bass followed by Sean Hutchinson’s Still Life at 11:30 – Henry Hey- keys, Chris Tarry- bass, Sean Hutchinson- drums

5/3, 7 PM Phil Kline and an A-list of downtown indie classical types – Matt Boehler on bass, Kathleen Supove on piano, Todd Reynolds on vionlin, Ashley Bathgate on cello – play songs by Kline, David Lang, Meredith Monk, Elliott Sharp at the Baryshnikov Arts Center, 450 W 37th St. betw 9th and 10th Aves., free, res. req. to 212-868-4444.

5/3, 7:30 PM guitar orchestra Los Angeles Electric 8 play Javanese songs, Balinese kecak chants, and music by Mantle Hood and Wayne Siegel at the Tank, $10

5/3-8 7:30/9:30 PM Ron Carter, bass; Rodney Jones, guitar; Frank Kimbrough, piano; Carl Allen, drums; Ron Blake, tenor saxophone at Dizzy’s Club, $30 seats avail.

5/3, 8 PM Bulgarian accordion monster Peter Ralchev and his quartet play a very rare NYC show at Drom, $15 adv tix very highly rec.

5/3-4, 8 PM Bruce Cockburn & Jenny Scheinman at City Winery, $35 seats avail.

5/3 the completely original tuneful hip-hop-jazz marching brass band Hypnotic Brass Ensemble at SOB’s, 9:30 PM $15 adv tix highly rec.

5/3 Americana violin star Hilary Hawke & the Flipsides at Rodeo Bar, 10ish.

5/3, 10ish hypnotic, pounding dreampop/goth/psychedelic instrumental trio Big Sleep at Glasslands, $10

5/4, 7:30 PM the American String Quartet play Beethoven, Schubert and Shostakovich at the lovely old-world Fabbri Library, 7 E 95th St., $35.

5/4, 7:30 PM, free, the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism proudly presents the 4th annual concert, Korea 21: Music Here and Now at Symphony Space – it seems to be more corporate pop-oriented, but might be worth stopping in to see what the buzz is about.

5/4, 7:30 PM drummer Mike Pride’s imaginative, psychedelically tuneful From Bacteria to Boys at the Knitting Factory, $10.

5/4, 8 PM dark female-fronted dreampop/shoegaze Teletextile followed by lyrical anthemic Canadian band Wintersleep – who are a singer short of greatness – at Union Hall, $10.

5/4, 8 PM guitar funk virtuoso Askold Buk at P&G Bar on the upper west

5/4, 8 PM the Dan Weiss Trio featuring Jacob Sacks and Eivind Opsvik at Littlefield, $10.

5/4, 9 PM intense improvisational Balkan group Raya Brass Band at Radegast Hall

5/4 cutting-edge conscious Senegalese/American hip-hop with Blitz the Ambassador and his Afrobeat band playing their cd release show at SOB’s, 9 PM $12 adv tix rec.

5/5, 1 PM Isabelle Demers plays the organ at Trinity Church, free

5/5, 7:30 PM catchy jangly rock en Espanol outfit Cordero at Rock Shop in Gowanus, $10.

5/5, 8 PM retro keyboard goddess Rachelle Garniez – arguably the most cleverly amusing and charismatic accordion-wielding songwriter on the planet – followed at 10 by Matuto who are sort of an acoustic Nation Beat, mixing Brazilian and bluegrass influences.

5/5, 8 PM this year’s funnest Cinco de Mayo show with Chicha Libre and Banda de los Muertos de Quisqueya at Littlefield, $10.

5/5, 8 PM the all-female 17-piece Main Squeeze Orchestra conducted by Walter Kuehr, the self-styled “Hugh Hefner” of the accordion world plays Kurt Weill at Drom, $15 adv tix highly rec.

5/5, 8 PM the Curtis Institute of Music’s 20/21 ensemble plays a Joan Tower retrospective at the Miller Theatre at Columbia, 116th/Bwy., $20.

5/5, 8 PM devious songwriters Maria Sonevytsky and Susan Hwang (both of the Debutante Hour), and World Inferno’s Franz Nicolay among others at Goodbye Blue Monday

5/5, 8:30 PM Lebanese trumpet star Ibrahim Malouf and oud virtuoso Brahim Fribgane at the Lincoln Center Atrium at 65th and Broadway, early arrival advised. Malouf is also playing a duo show with pianist Frank Woeste at Alwan for the Arts on 5/6 at 9 PM, $20/$15 stud/srs.

5/5, 9 PM third-wave and second-wave ska with the Hub City Stompers and playful 80s ska-pop vets Bad Manners at Maxwell’s, $16 adv tix avail.

5/5, 9 PM menacing instrumental Israeli heavy metal/surf music with Eyal Maoz’ Edom at Tea Lounge in Park Slope

5/5, 9:30 PM torchy noir rock with Mad Juana at Bowery Electric.

5/5, 10 PM compelling, frequently creepy art-folk chanteuse Larkin Grimm at Union Pool.

5/5, 10 PM Roger Bartlett at P&G Bar on the upper west – is this the the guitarist who was Jimmy Buffett’s one-man road band back in the 70s?

5/5, 11:30 PM Spanglish Fly with their sultry retro 60s latin soul vibe at Southpaw for Cinco de Mayo

5/6 Tift Merritt at City Winery is sold out – good for her.

5/6, 7 PM subtle, vivid classic tango chanteuse Maria Cangiano followed by Gabriel Alegria’s Afro-Peruvian Septet’s weekly Friday gig at Tutuma Social Club on 56th St.

5/6, 7 PM Esquivel revivalists Mr. Ho’s Orchestrotica Quartet at Miles Cafe, $20 includes a drink and “snacks”

5/6, 7:30 PM the NOW Ensemble playing Judd Greenstein, Patrick Burke, Mark Dancigers, and Sean Friar followed by the Chiara String Quartet playing Jefferson Friedman quartets with electronic efx at le Poisson Rouge, $20

5/6, 7:30 PM the Cassatt String Quartet and pianist Ursula Oppens in a joint appearance tackling the Brahms Piano Quintet, the world premiere of Fang Man’s Images of Lake Erie, Joan Tower’s Dumbarton, and Gabriela Lena Frank’s Ghosts in the Dream Machine. at Symphony Space, $30.

5/6, 8 PM two reverends who have nothing to do with religion: Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band play rustic acoustic Americana followed by Rev. Horton Heat playing semi-urban electric Americana at the Bell House, $22 adv tix rec. Rev. HH is also at Highline Ballroom on 5/8.

5/6 a tres bon cajun festival at the Jalopy starting with a Leadbelly style guitar workshop at 6:30 followed at 8 by the Big Road Blues Band, Catahoula Cajun Band, Empty Bottle Ramblers, Magnolia Cajun Band and then a midnight jam, $12 adv tix rec., $25 for the workshop.

5/6  MotherMoon -a smart, tuneful, sometimes haunting soul-influenced female-fronted band, like Cat Power but less precious, or Katie Elevitch in a less amped moment, at Spike Hill, 8 PM, note that there is a $6 cover.

5/6, 8:30 PM at Coco 66 a slamming triplebill with gypsy punks Kagero followed by Raya Brass Band at 9:30 and the equally ferocious West Philadelphia Orchestra at 10:30, $10

5/6 Caithlin De Marrais – one of the most unselfconsciously riveting singers in any style of music – sings her plaintive, thoughtful, compelling songs at 8:30 PM at Littlefield, $12. Sort of like a more rocking My Brightest Diamond.

5/6, 9 PM noir-tinged 2/3 female original rockabilly/surf trio Catspaw at Otto’s

5/6, 9 PM the wry, funny uke/bass project 2 Man Gentlemen Band and the ecstatic, improvisational Infamous Stringdusters at Bowery Ballroom, $15 gen adm.

5/6, 9/10:30 PM fiery, innovative pianist Gerald Clayton leads a quintet with Dayna Stephens – saxophone, Chris Dingman – vibraphone, Joe Sanders (Fri)/Matt Brewer(Sat) – bass, Marcus Gilmore – drums at the Jazz Gallery, $20

5/6, 9 PM Doll Parts (accordion-driven Dolly Parton covers with three-girl harmonies) followed by twistedly funny all-girl country parody band Menage a Twang at Union Hall, $10

5/6, 9:30 PM chanteuse/pianist Lorrie Doriza’s noir/goth art-rock band Vespertina – like the Dresden Dolls, but genuinely menacing instead of cute – play the cd release show for their new one The Waiting Wolf at Bowery Poetry Club, $10.

5/6, 10 PM a killer dark triplebill at Banjo Jim’s with haunting, vivid Americana siren Jan Bell’s band the Maybelles followed at 11 by equally haunting, harmony-driven Nashville gothic band Bobtown and then the Just Desserts playing killer gypsy jazz at midnight. Wow.

5/6 the hellraising Jack Grace Band play classic 60s style country from their excellent most recent album Drinking Songs for Lovers at Barbes, 10 PM. They’re also at Rodeo Bar on 5/14 at 10ish.

5/6, 10 PM scorching, fun glampunk/noiserockers the K-Holes’ cd release show at Cake Shop

5/6, 10 PM Brooklyn’s own intense man in black, John Pinamonti at Sunny’s in Red Hook.

5/6 eerie electric bluespunk with the Five Points Band at Rodeo Bar 10ish.

5/6, 11 PM the wild, intense Pitch Black Brass Band at Bowery Poetry Club, $10

5/7, 4 (four) PM fearlessly lyrical pop/rock siren Elaine Romanelli at the small room at the Rockwood.

5/7, starting at 6 PM Rachael Bell and Derrick Barnicoat (frontwoman and brilliant percussionist of late great ominous psychedelic art-rockers Norden Bombsight) atat the Red brick school house on the corner of Prince and Mott providing a soundtrack to Daphane Park’s ambitious tea ceremony art/performance installation. Part of some New Museum series. Bell says “Art/Food/Drink/Music/Tea/Other, wash your feet.”

5/7, 7 PM a killer Americana quadruple bill starting with Apocalypse Five and Dime, the Roulette Sisters at 8, Roosevelt Dime at 9 and the Wiyos at 10 at Bowery Electric, $8.

5/7, 7 PM Nashville gothic maven – and indie film star – Lorraine Leckie & Her Demons at Banjo Jim’s.

5/7, 7 PM supersonic yet soulful electric blues guitarist Bobby Radcliff at Terra Blues

5/7, 7 PM the Gregorio Uribe Big Band at the Fat Cat

5/7, 8 PM Romanian gypsy siren Sanda Weigl – whose intense new album Gypsy in a Tree is one of the year’s best – at Barbes followed by faux Mexican banda Banda Sinaloense De los Muertos (a bunch of jazz luminaries having fun with banda themes) at 10ish

5/7, 8 PM up-and-coming Americana multi-instrumentalist/songwriter Sarah Jarosz’s cd release show at the big room at the Rockwood, $10.

5/7 the cajun festival at the Jalopy continues with a bunch of workshops for stringed and accordion musicians followed by Cleoma’s Ghost at 8, Jesse Lege & the Bayou Brew at 9:15 and Zydegroove at 10:45, $12 adv tix rec., $25 for the workshops.

5/7, 8 PM comedic, smart Texas songwriter Julia Nunes at Rock Shop in Gowanus $15

5/7, 8 PM repeating 5/8, 3 PM Mark Peskanov, violin, Eric Jacobsen, cello And Steven Beck, piano play Haydn – Piano Trio in C minor; Ravel Piano Trio in A minor; Schubert: Piano Trio at Bargemusic, $35.

5/7, 8 PM, repeating on 5/8, 3 PM the Chelsea Symphony plays The Whydah Returns (world premiere) by Aaron Dai; Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 4 in D and Tschaikovsky’s 5th Symphony at St. Paul’s Church, 315 West 22nd St., sugg don. $20

5/7 haunting original bluegrass/Americana band Frankenpine at the Brooklyn Museum.

5/7, 9 PM Unsteady Freddie’s monthly surf rock extravaganza at Otto’s starting with Tsunami of Sound, Jason James & the Bay State Houserockers, the Tarantinos NYC and then sometime after midnight the Spytones.

5/7, 9 PM fearlessly funny Williamsburg punk rock vets the Live Ones at at the Gutter bowling alley in Williamsburg

5/7, 9/10:30 PM Dave Liebman, saxophone; Dan Tepfer, piano; Drew Gress, bass; Rob Garcia , drums at Cornelia St. Cafe, $15.

5/7, 10 PM eclectic Selegalese flavored roots reggae with Meta & the Cornerstones at the 92YTribeca, $12 adv tix rec.

5/7, 10 PM ska trombone star Kevin Batchelor’s Grand Concourse feat. featuring members of the Skatalites, Rocksteady 7, Stingers & Westbound Train at Two Boots Brooklyn

5/7 LES rockabilly/surf/punk legend Simon & the Bar Sinisters at Lakeside, 10:15ish

5/7 crazy, virtuosic Capt. Beefheart cover band Admiral Porkbrain at Freddy’s, 11 PM.

5/7, midnight, cello metal with Stratospheerius at P&G Bar on the upper west

5/8, 3 PM the Chelsea Symphony plays Dai: The Whydah Returns; Telemann: Trumpet Concerto in D major, TWV 51; Tchaikovsky: Symphony No.5 at St. Paul’s Church, 315 West 22nd St.

5/8, 6 PM amazing, improvisational, soulful pianist Jean-Michel Pilc plays an extremely rare small club duo show with Perry Smith on guitar at Caffe Vivaldi

5/8, 6 PM eclectic Ethiopian/jazz/Middle Eastern instrumentalists Blue Moon Ensemble play Drom, $10 adv tix rec.

5/8, 6 PM the Brooklyn Salsa Orchestra at the Brooklyn Bowl; they’re also here on 5/15

5/8, 7 PM stars of the NYC free jazz underground: Andy Haas (who has an excellent new album out), Will McEvoy on bass and David Gould on drums – at Downtown Music Gallery.

5/8, 7:30/9:30 PM the Juilliard Jazz Quintet w/Ron Carter, Rodney Jones, Frank Kimbrough, Carl Allen & Ron Blake at Dizzy’s Club, $30 seats avail.

5/8, 8 PM Americana rock crew the Felice Bros at the Bell House, $20.

5/8, 10 PM hilarious, scathingly aware hip-hop parody Schaffer the Darklord at Cake Shop

5/8, 10 PM up-and-coming Americana chanteuse Cal Folger Day at Spike Hill.

5/9, 6:30 PM a screening of the powerful documentary Gasland, a terrifying look at how hydrofracking – a dangerous natural gas drilling technique whose legalization was spearheaded by Dick Cheney in 2006 – pollutes drinking water nationwide with radioactive waste including radium. At the Museum of the City of NY, tix $12/$8 stud/srs, res req to 917-492-3395

5/9-12 this year’s reliably intriguing avant/classical Mata Festival at le Poisson Rouge kicks off with ACME, Metropolis Ensemble, Florent Ghys, L’Arsenale, Cantori New York, Dither Electric Guitar Quartet, Ryan Carter, Christopher Mayo, and Angélica Negrón, 7 PM.

5/9, 7 PM Michaela Anne sings down-to-earth, smart, tuneful Americana at Banjo Jim’s. She’s also at Caffe Vivaldi on 5/17 at 7:15 PM.

5/9, 7:30/9:30 PM oldschool soul/jazz siren Catherine Russell and phenomenal band at Dizzy’s Club, $20

5/9, 8/10:30 PM Matt Guitar Murphy at the Blue Note, $10 seats avail. Octogenarian Chicago blues guitar legend who suffered a stroke onstage a few years ago and finished the song before he decided to take a break. If he’s even a fraction of his old self he’s worth seeing.

5/9, 9 PM the Anita Brown Jazz Orchestra at Tea Lounge in Park Slope

5/10, 7 PM the king of the catchy literate rock anthem, Willie Nile and his band at Joe’s Pub, $25.

5/10, 7:30 PM opening night of the Mata new music festival at le Poisson Rouge with ACME , L’Arsenale and Hu Jianbing and Bao Jian, $20

5/10 Monty Python/Bonzo Dog Band’s Neil Innes at Highline Ballroom, 8 PM.

5/10, 8 PM a solid hip-hop extravaganza feat. DP One, J Period, Boogie Blind, Jean Grae and Pharaoh Monche at the Brooklyn Bowl, $15

5/10, 11 PM the Gowanus Reggae and Ska Society aka GRASS play instrumental Marley covers at Spike Hill; 5/14 they’re at Rodeo Bar, 9ish.

5/10, 11 PM powerfully tuneful, catchy, lyrical acoustic rocker Jennifer O’Connor at Rock Shop in Gowanus, $10; she’s also at Maxwell’s on 5/15 at 6 PM for two bucks less.

5/10, 5/12, 5/14 Pharaoh Sanders leads a quartet at Birdland, $30 seats avail.

5/11 the NY Funk Exchange plays the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Half Moon, boarding at 7, leaving at 8 from the 23rd St. heliport and the East River, $20 tix available at the Highline Ballroom box ofc.

5/11, 7:30 PM day two of the Mata Festival at le Poisson Rouge continues with Angelica Negrón, Dither, Cantori NY, Chris Danforth and the Danforths, Florent Ghys, hosted by everybody’s favorite Q2 personality, Nadia Sirota.

5/11, 8:30 PM Jacam Manricks – first-rate composer and alto player – and band at Miles Cafe, $20 includes a drink and “snacks”

5/11, 9 PM third-wave NYC garage rock legends the New Dynasty Six (presumably without Johnny Chan) at Lakeside.

5/11 Mike LeDonne leads a B3 trio at the Fat Cat, 9 PM

5/11, 10 PM up-and-coming rock guitar star Rony Corcos – sort of an Israeli version of early Thalia Zedek – at Banjo Jim’s followed at 11 by Cal Folger Day.

5/11 tongue-in-cheek, period-perfect early 50s style country from Susquehanna Industrial Tool & Die Co. at Rodeo Bar, 10ish

5/12 Renee Anne Louprette at the organ at Trinity Church, 1 PM, free

5/12, 7:30 PM closing night of the Mata Festival at le Poisson Rouge features Metropolis Ensemble, $20.

5/12, 8 PM fiery, brilliantly lyrical, politically fearless Iraqi-American rocker Stephan Said and His Magic Orchestra at Drom, $10 adv tix highly rec.

5/12, 8 PM Cuarteto La Catrina play Mexican and Puerto Rican composers at Symphony Space, $30 adv tix rec.

5/12, 8:30 PM unpredictably brilliant sax titan Jon Irabagon leads a quintet with Jon Ralph Alessi, trumpet; Jacob Sacks , piano; John Hebert , bass; Mike Pride, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

5/12, 9ish olschool East Coast hardcore hip-hop with Ghostface Killah, Raekwon and Mobb Deep at the Nokia Theatre, $35 tix avail.

5/12, 10 PM noir cabaret/gypsy punk band Not Waving but Drowning at Drom playing the cd release show for their mysterious new one on a killer bill with slinky Middle Eastern/trance string band Copal, $10 adv tix rec.

5/12, 9/10:30 PM amazing Middle Eastern jazz with Hafez Modirzadeh – saxophones, Amir ElSaffar – trumpet, Vijay Iyer – piano, Ken Filiano – bass, Royal Hartigan – drums at the Jazz Gallery, $20.

5/12, 10 PM sly acoustic jamband Tall Tall Treesat the small room at the Rockwood; they’re also here on 5/26

5/12, 10 PM torchy smart bossa/jazz chanteuse Sasha Dobson plays with a trio at Barbes.

5/12, a very cool doublebill at Drom: 10:30 PM, hauntingly psychedelic violin-driven Middle Eastern/Balkan flavored dancefloor grooves with Copal and theatrical gypsy/steampunk band Not Waving But Drowning at Drom, $10 adv tix highly rec., not sure who’s playing when but they’re both good.

5/12, 10:30 PM blazing chromatic Balkan tonalities with Veveritse Brass Band at the Jalopy, $10.

5/13 Americana guitarmeister Chris Erikson & the Wayward Puritans at Lakeside, 7ish

5/13, 7 PM cello-driven world music band Deoro  feat. chanteuse Dina Fanai at the small room at the Rockwood – their show here in December was off the hook.

5/13, 7:30 PM oldtime hokum blues and hillbilly music with the Second Fiddles at Hill Country

5/13 sharply literate, often hilarious Americana charmer Robin Aigner with her band at Barbes 8 PM followed by lush “historical orchestrette” Pinataland’s cd release show

5/13, 8 PM Mara Milkis – violin; Jerzy Wujtewicz – cello; and RAfal Lewandowski – cello – play works by F.Chopin, K. Szymanowski, W. Lutoslawski, K. Penderecki, R. Twardowski, Alicja. Jonas at Bargemusic, $35, you know the Greenpoint classical posse will be out in effect for this one.

5/13, 9 PM phantasmagorical noir siren Carol Lipnik & Spookarama at Banjo Jim’s.

5/13, 9 PM amazingly period-perfect retro 60s Bakersfield country band the Dixons at the Gutter bowling alley in Williamsburg

5/13, 9 PM Kiwi play Brazilian-flavored psychedelic dub reggae at Shrine.

5/13, 9 PM Canadian goth siren NLX at Tea Lounge in Park Slope

5/13, 10:30 PM adventurous bassist Joris Teepe with his combo at the Fat Cat

5/14, 11 AM (yes, starting an hour before noon) the free Wall to Wall Sonidos festival at Symphony Space feat. Arturo O’Farrill’s Sacred Concert for his Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra based on settings of Jewish, Islamic, Gospel, and Afro-Cuban texts; a work for shakuhachi and string quartet [Colorado Quartet] from Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez; a world premiere of Roberto Sierra’s Cuarteto para cuerdas no. 2 [La Catrina Quartet]; Tania León [Harlem Quartet]; new works by Fernando Otero (with dancers); and performances by Continuum, Damocles Trio, Poulenc Trio, Ray Vega, Gabriel Alegria, and many others.

5/14, 6 (six) PM dark Americana songwriter Abbie Barrett at the small room at the Rockwood.

5/14, 7:30 PM terse, intense classical/jazz pianist Michel Reis leads a trio at Puppets Jazz Bar in Park Slope

5/14, 8 PM the Underground Horns – a “6 piece brass band that plays afro funk bhangra new orleans salsa grooves” – at Barbes followed at 10 by Smokey Hormel’s western swing thing.

5/14 dark 80s goth/art-rock influenced chanteuse Kristin Hoffmann at Caffe Vivaldi, 9:30 PM

5/14, 9 PM one of the year’s best triplebills: sultry, funny oldtimey harmony crew the Roulette Sisters at 9, ferociously literate, witty, psychedelic/new wave rockes the Larch at 10 and Pinataland’s Dave Wechsler’s solo Tyranny of Dave project at 11 at the new Freddy’s.

5/14 dark original bluegrass/Nashville gothic band Frankenpine at 9 PM at the Jalopy followed at 10:30 by M Shanghai String Band,$10.

5/14, 9/10:30 PM allstar postbop ensemble the Cookers – who absolutely tore up the Charlie Parker Festival last year – at Iridium, $30.

5/14, 9 PM percussionist Najib Bahri’s El Amal plays a musical/dance tribute to Tunisia at Alwan for the Arts, $20/$15 stud/srs.

5/14 carnivalesque Luminescent Orchestrii frontman Sxip Shirey does his solo thing Joe’s Pub, 9 PM, $15.

5/14, 9/10:30 PM Marty Ehrlich, reeds; Ray Anderson, trombone; Brad Jones, bass; Matt Wilson, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe, $15.

5/14, 9/10:30 PM the Oliver Lake Big Band at the Jazz Gallery, $20

5/14, 10 PM Fish Out of Water play ska at Shrine followed at 11 by punk dub band the Band-Droidz.

5/14, 11:30 PM clarinet monster Ismail Lumanovski and his band the NY Gypsy All-Stars at Drom, $10 adv tix rec; they’re also here on 5/19 at 10:30

5/15, 3 PM the Greenwich Village Orchestra plays Handel – Music for the Royal Fireworks; Haydn – Concerto in C major for Cello and Orchestra; Beethoven – Symphony No. 5 at Washington Irving HS Auditorium, $20 sugg don, reception to follow.

5/15, 3 PM the East of the River accordion-and-recorder ensemble play an intriguing Balkan/Middle Eastern/Appalachian/avant program at Bargemusic, $35

5/15, 6 PM Trio Caveat feat. free jazz trombone monster Steve Swell, James Ilgenfritrz and Jay Rosen followed at 7 by guitarist Xander Naylor’s fiery PinkBrown trio at Downtown Music Gallery.

5/15, 7 PM the Four Bags – Mike McGinnis: sax/clarinet Brian Drye: trombone Jacob Garchik: accordion Sean Moran: guitar at Barbes followed at 9 by Stephane Wrembel

5/15, 7:30 PM Geogian slide guitarist Ilusha Tsinadze – who blends traditional sounds from his home country with jazz and blues – doing a cd release show at Joe’s Pub, $15.

5/16, 9ish austere, smart chamber-pop band Pearl & the Beard at Littlefield, $5.

5/16, 9 PM latin/third stream big band Michael Webster’s Leading Lines at Tea Lounge in Park Slope

5/17 frontwoman/guitarist Debra of scorching powerpop/jamband Devi at Lucky 7 Tavern in Jersey City

5/17 Tariq Ali, renowned author of From Cairo to Madison: The Arab Revolution and a World in Motion discusses the ongoing revolution throughout the Arab world, 8 PM at Galapagos, free.

5/17, 8:30 PM intriguing, captivating jazz trio Minerva’s cd release show feat. JP Schlegelmilch, piano; Pascal Niggenekemper, bass; Carlo Costa, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

5/18, 7:30 PM the most intensely focused, most powerful jazz composer of the moment, tenor saxophonist JD Allen and his Trio play the cd release show for their new one Victory! following a screening of Mario Lathan’s documentary short film about the album at le Poisson Rouge, $15, adv tix necessary, this will sell out. Wish you were alive to see Coltrane in 1963? Don’t miss this one. We have heard the forthcoming album and it is amazing.

5/17, 7/9 PM the prototypical downtown NYC accordion chanteuse, Phoebe Legere with her quintet playing the cd release show for her new one Ooh La La Coq Tail at Iridium, $20

5/18 lyrical janglerock songwriter Paula Carino with her velvet voice, double entendres and wickedly catchy tunes plays with her new trio at 8 at Fontana’s.

5/18, 8 PM Kris Davis – one of the most original, emotionally vivid and lyrical pianists in jazz or anything – plays Barbes with Ingrid Laubrock -saxophone; Matt Maneri -viola; Trevor Dunn -bass, and Tom Rainey – drums, note that there is a $10 cover.

5/18 and 5/19 at 8 PM, concluding on 5/21 at 8:30 PM, violinist Aaron Berofsky and pianist Phillip Bush perform the complete Beethoven sonatas for piano and violin at Merkin Concert Hall, $18 single concert tix avail., $40 for a three-day pass

5/18 jazz guitar monster Matt Munisteri’s new band the Syncopatin’ Detonators at Hill Country, 8:30 PM.

5/18, 9 PM saxophonist Benjamin Drazen – whose latest cd Inner Flights is one of the year’s best – at the Fat Cat with his quartet

5/18 solid oldschool garage rock and soul with the Solid Set at Lakeside, 9 PM

5/18 The Devil Makes Three’s hilarious, satirical, tuneful grasscore at Maxwell’s,9 PM, $10.

5/18, 10 PM Jon Irabagon’s Outright feat. Ralph Alessi (trumpet) Jacob Sacks (piano) John Hebert (bass) Tom Rainey (drums) at the Stone, $10

5/19, 7:30 PM the Trinity Choir sings music of Elena Ruehr at Trinity Church.

5/19, 8:30 PM pianist Dan Tepfer and tenor saxophonist Noah Preminger at Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

5/19, 9 PM powerful soul/Americana chanteuse Jo Williamson at the small room at the Rockwood.

5/19, 9:30 PM clever, tongue-in-cheek faux torch-song trio the Debutante Hour followed by gypsy rocker Yula Beeri and the Extended Family at Party Xpo in Bushwick, $8

5/19, 9:30 PM alt-country chanteuse Karen Hudson with her band at Lakeside playing songs from her forthcoming Late Bloomer cd.

5/19, 10 PM this era’s finest country music voice, Laura Cantrell plays the cd release show for her new one at Hill Country, $15.

5/19, 10 PM a solid oldschool country doublebill with Alex Battles & the Whisky Rebellion followed by Hilary Hawke & the Flipsides at Southpaw, $10

5/19, 10 PM klezmer/bluegrass legend Andy Statman at Barbes.

5/20, 7 PM tuneful alto saxophonist Alexander McCabe and quartet at Miles Cafe, $20 includes a drink and “snacks”

5/20 one of the year’s best doublebills: the ever increasingly haunting, harmony-driven vintage bolero/rock band Las Rubias Del Norte at 8 followed at 10 by deliriously fun mid 60s style latin soul revivalists Spanglish Fly at Barbes.

5/20, 8 PM Frank Kimbrough – piano; Scott Robinson – reeds; Ray Drummond – bass’ Matt Wilson – drums; play a Monk-themed concert at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center at BMCC, on Chambers just east of the Highway, $25/$15 stud/srs.

5/20, 9 PM multistylistic, deliriously fun, danceable all-purpose Brazilian/country band Nation Beat at the 92YTribeca, $12 gen adm.

5/20, 9 PM adventurous Tiptons sax quartet leader Jessica Lurie with her own Ensemble at BAM Cafe.

5/20, 9:30 PM killer triplebill: oldschool latin soul revivalists Spanglish Fly, funky Afrobeat innovators Ikebe Shakedown and classic Fania era salsa stylists Bio Ritmo at Sullivan Hall, $10 gen adm.

5/20, 10 PM Black Lion & the Akinyoumba band play African roots reggae at Shrine.

5/20, 10:30 PM organist Jared Gold leads a quintet at the Fat Cat

5/20 surf music classics and obscuities with the Boss Guitars at Lakeside 11 PM

5/20, 11:30 PM NYC’s answer to Spinal Tap, Satanicide at the Mercury, $12 adv tix rec.

5/21, 7ish original gypsy punks World Inferno at Webster Hall, $21 adv tix rec.

5/21, 7:30 PM hypnotic, intense, rustic minor-key blues/klezmer/reggae jam band Hazmat Modine play the cd release for their new one Cicada at le Poisson Rouge, $12 adv tix rec

5/21, 7:15 PM killer songwriter triplebill: blue-eyed soul siren Meg Braun, lyrically intense Americana chanteuse Carolann Solebello (ex-Red Molly) at Caffe Vivaldi followed at 9:45 by sharp, often haunting countrypolitan singer Hope DeBates & North Forty.

5/21, 8 PM fearless, funny, intense anti-gentrification rockers the Brooklyn What -our pick for NYC’s best rock band right now – play their monthly show at Trash starting at 8 with No One & the Somebodies, Space Ghost Cowboys and then the Brooklyn What at around 10.

5/21, 8 PM legendary bassist Bob Cunningham and his quartet at First Acoustics Coffeehouse in Brooklyn Heights, $25 adv tix rec

5/21, 8:30 PM the latest Brooklyn County Fair starts at 8:30 with southern soul siren Dina Rudeen’s cd release show for her spectacularly good new one The Common Splendor followed eventually at 10:30 by JD Duarte’s ferocious, fun, intense country/paisley underground crew  the Newton Gang.

5/21, 8:30 PM cult favorite Bulgarian art-rockers Diana Express play Symphony Space, $30 adv tix rec.

5/21, 9 PM stark acoustic southern gothic with the Handsome Family at the 92YTribeca, $16 adv tix rec.

5/21, 9 PM the Cookers’ legendary pianist George Cables leads a trio at Puppets Jazz Bar, $20 plus $10 min.

5/21, 9/10:30 PM the Alan Ferber Big Band at the Jazz Gallery, $20.

5/21, 9 PM an intriguing quartet at the Cornelia St. Cafe with Mike Baggetta – guitar; Jason Rigby – saxes; Eivind Opsvik – bass; George Schuller – drums, $15.

5/21 Spanking Charlene – playful and clever X-inflected LES Americana rockers at Lakeside, 11 PM

5/22, 2 PM future stars of the avant garde Face the Music plays Missy Mazzoli’s masterpiece Death Valley Junction, Judd Greenstein’s hip-hop indie classical piece What They Don’t Like; Gregory Huebner’s Cuban Impressions; Jacob TV’s Syracuse Blues string quartet mashup plus gospel-tinged chamber piece by Paul Schoenfield at PS 142, 100 Attorney St., $15, all proceeds to benefit the school.

5/22, sets at 3 PM and 7 PM composer Ellen Fullman at Issue Project Room’s new digs at 110 Livingston St. in downtown Brooklyn. Accompanied by David Gamper, Theresa Wong, David Douglas, & Sean Meehan, Fullman plays her “long stringed instrument” consisting of wires extended from wall to wall for an otherworldly sound that’s sort of a cross between a harp and a church organ, $15, early arrival highly advised.

5/22, 7 PM Saints and Tzadiks – that’s Susan McKeown, Oran Etkin and Erik Della Penna – at Barbes followed at 9 by Stephane Wrembel

5/22, 8 PM NYC’s very own competitive gamelan orchestra, Gamelan Dharma Swara with the Momenta Quartet and bassist/multi-instrumentalist all-around good guy Shahzad Ismaily at le Poisson Rouge, 8 PM $15 adv tix rec.

5/22 the NYCity Slickers play soaring bluesgrass with harmonies at Rodeo Bar 9ish

5/23 chamber music ensemble Time for Three at Advent Church, 93rd and Broadway, 7:30 PM.

5/23 charming oldtimey swing and hillbilly sounds with Daria Grace & the Prewar Ponies at Rodeo Bar, 9ish.

5/23, 9 PM the playful, eclectic Joshua Shneider Easy-Bake Orchestra at Tea Lounge in Park Slope.

5/23, 11 PM smart, lyrical soul chanteuse Stephanie Rooker and guitarist Ben Tyree at the small room at the Rockwood.

5/24-29 vocal jazz vet Ernestine Anderson with Houston Person, Lafayette Harris, Lonnie Plaxico & Willie Jones III at Dizzy’s Club, 7:30/9:30 PM, $30 seats avail.

5/24, 8 PM Eliza Rickman plays her haunting hypnotic intense songs at the small room at the Rockwood. She’s also at Goodbye Blue Monday on 5/25 at 11.

5/24, 8 PM Booker T. Jones – you know who he is, right? – without the MGs at the Bell House, $25.

5/24-26, 8 PM the Keys to the Future piano festival: 14 new composers, 8 pianists – at the Abrons Arts Center, 466 Grand Street (at Pitt), $20.

5/24 hypnotic postpunk guitar legends Band of Outsiders at Lakeside, 9 PM.

5/24, 10 PM dark fearless surrealistically funny former Norden Bombsight frontwoman Raquel Bell does a solo show at Pete’s.

5/24, midnight, El Pueblo play Caribbean/Puerto Rican influenced dub reggae at Sullivan Hall, $10

5/25 consistently captivating yet completely unpredictable indie classical orchestra the Knights at Lincoln Center’s Kaplan Penthouse.

5/25, 7:15 PM lyrical, tuneful, Aimee Mann-inflected songwriter Andrea Wittgens at Caffe Vivaldi.

5/25, 7:30 PM wild gypsy punks, Kagero, Kendra Morris, YC the Cynic, Afrobeat band Zongo Junction and funk orchestra Turkuaz at the Knitting Factory, $8 tix highly rec., this may sell out.

5/25, 8 PM austere hypnotic imaginative composer/violinist Ana Milosavljevic at the Stone followed by eclectic ex-Ethel violin powerhouse Todd Reynolds, $10.

5/25-28 piano jazz titan Kenny Barron leads a quartet at Birdland, 8:30/10:30 PM, $30 seats avail.

5/25, 8:30 PM trombonist David White leads his jazz orchestra at Symphony Space, $25 adv tix rec.

5/25, 9 PM Diana Jones – Americana singer who follows in Jan Bell’s footsteps, but mining more of the traditional than the original – at Joe’s Pub $12.

5/25-26, 9:30 PM ferocious bassist Omer Avital returns to his old stomping grounds, Smalls with his band

5/26, 1 PM Yoon-Kyung Shin, viola plus others TBA, program TBA, at Trinity Church, free.

5/26, 8 PM arguably the two most vital, original new music ensembles in NYC: the swirling, psychedelic Dither guitar quartet and austere, ghostly, gorgeously atmospheric Redhooker at Merkin Concert Hall, $25.

5/26, 8 PM NYC’s most popular big band, Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society and bassist Ben Allison and band at Littlefield, $16

5/26, 8 PM playful, clever toy piano specialist Phyllis Chen at Barbes.

5/26, 10:30 PM gypsy punks the West Philadelphia Orchestra followed by haunting, hypnotic, psychedelic Turkish band Raquy & the Cavemen at Drom, $12 adv tix rec.

5/26, 11 PM Radiohead-influenced art-rockers My Pet Dragon at the big room at the Rockwood.

5/28, 8 PM roots reggae, Afrobeat, desert blues and soul with the inspiring Refugee All-Stars of Sierra Leone at the Bell House, $20

5/28, 9 PM Escarioka at Mehanata. We’ve been calling them the best live band in NYC for a couple of years, now the rest of the world is finally starting to catch on.

5/28, 9 PM exhilarating, anthemic, sweepingly majestic, socially aware Radiohead-influenced art-rockers My Pet Dragon at Bowery Electric.

5/28 sly, funky chanteuse Shayna Zaid & The Catch, 10 PM at the small room at the Rockwood

5/28, 10:30 PM ukelele player/lyricist/sultry chanteuse Kelli Rae Powell at the Jalopy, $10.

5/28 dark female-fronted noir soul band Shenandoah & the Night play their ep release show at Spike Hill, 11:30 PM, note the $7 cover.

5/30 Alan Gilbert conducts the NY Phil playing Barber: Adagio for Strings; Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 “Eroica” at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, free, time TBA (guessing 8ish), early arrival advised.

5/30, 8:30 PM eclectic, often haunting pan-Asian-tinged Jen Shyu’s Jade Tongue with Jen Shyu, compositions, vocals, piano, moon lute, erhu, lakado, dance; David Binney, alto saxophone; Thomas Morgan, bass; Dan Weiss, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe, $10

5/31, 7:30 PM Nathan Davis and International Contemporary Ensemble at le Poisson Rouge, free with rsvp

5/31, 7 PM George Clinton & the P-Funk Allstars at B.B. King’s, $37.50 adv tix rec.

5/31, 8 PM new music ensemble Tribeca Monsters! feat. music of Steward Copeland, Michael Gandolfi, Dylan Mattingly, Marc Mellits, Daniel Bernard Roumain, and Jacob TV at Galapagos, $15.

6/1, 7:30 PM dark incisive classical composer/pianist Fernando Otero and cellist Inbal Segev play Bach, Kodály, and Otero at le Poisson Rouge, $15 adv tix rec.

6/1, 8 PM delightfully fun, quirky, counterintuitive all-female indie pop band the Walking Hellos at Fontana’s.

6/1, 10 PM, powerfully tuneful 80s punk/new wave throwbacks Changing Modes – who recorded our pick for best song of 2010 – at Sullivan Hall, $10.

6/1 midnight-ish big sprawling funk band Turkuaz at Southpaw, $5.

6/2, 8 PM legendary, brilliant first-wave Irish punk rockers Stiff Little Fingers make their Brooklyn debut at Europa, $20. They’re at the Gramercy Theatre the following night for an extra $13 – that’s how much Live Nation is ripping you off for this one.

6/2, 8 PM the Da Capo Chamber Players’ 40th anniversary concert at Merkin Concert Hall feat. Pierrot lunaire, OP. 21 by Arnold Schoenberg, with guest soprano, Lucy Shelton; the world premiere performance of Gravity by George Tsontakis (written for the 40th anniversary of Da Capo); the New York premiere of Midnight Rounds by Keith Fitch (written for the 40th anniversary of Da Capo); Tres Lent as well as And…They’re Off! by Joan Tower (who was the ensemble’s founding pianist), $20 adv tix very highly rec., this should sell out.

6/2, 8:30 PM trombonist Samuel Blaser leads a quartet with Russ Lossing, piano; Eivind Opsvik, bass; Paul Motian, drums; Samuel Blaser, trombone playing the cd release show for his latest one at Cornelia St. Cafe, $15

6/2, 8:30 PM new music ensemble Sybarite5 play the Lincoln Center Atrium at 65th/Bwy, letting their ipod shuffle choose the pieces they’ll be performing, early arrival advised.

6/2, midnight, dark female-fronted soul band MotherMoon at Spike Hill.

6/3, 8 PM torchy noir Americana siren Lily & the Parlour Tricks followed by oldschool soul revivalist/crooner Eli Paperboy Reed at Southpaw, $12 gen adm.

6/3, 9/10:30 PM Ingrid Laubrock, tenor sax; Ralph Alessi, trumpet; Kris Davis, piano; Tom Rainey, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe, $15

6/3 ferocious Nashville gothic rockers Ninth House play Sathony in Astoria.

6/3 wry, literate Nashville gothic with Maynard & the Mustiesat Lakeside, 11 PM.

6/3, 11:30 PM ecstatic Brazilian funk/reggae/maracatu band Dende & Hahahaes at Joe’s Pub $12.

6/4, 6:30 PM, free, the St. Luke’s Chamber Ensemble play Gershwin: Lullaby for Strings; Barber:Adagio for Strings; Dvorak: String Quartet No. 12, “American” at Flushing Town Hall, tix req., early arrival advised.

6/4 a blast from the past – legendary oldschool Williamsburg punk/indie rockers FF (which stands for Fat Fuck) at Lakeside, 7 PM.

6/4, 8 PM sprawling acoustic Americana band the Woes at Rock Shop in Gowanus, $10; they’re at Sunny’s at 10 the following night for free

6/4, 8 PM the Silk Road Ensemble with Yo-Yo Ma at NJPAC in Newark, $25 seats avail.

6/4, 9/10:30 PM drummer Ralph Peterson’s brilliant B3 band the Unity Project plays the cd release show for their spectacularly good new one with Pat Bianchi, organ; Josh Evan, trumpet; Wayne Escoffery, tenor sax at Cornelia St. Cafe, $15

6/4, 10 PM cowpunk with the Nightmare River Band at Spike Hill.

6/5, 7:30 PM trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith’s Golden Quartet w/ Angelica Sanchez (piano), John Lindberg (bass) and Pheeroan akLaff (drums) at le Poisson Rouge, adv tix $15 rec.

6/5, 8 PM tuneful Americana harmony band the Bowmans at the small room at the Rockwood

6/5, 8 PM composer Eve Beglarian and her new band Brim at Galapagos, $15.

6/5, 8:30 PM bassist Petros Klampanis plays the cd release show for his eclectic new one feat. Megan Gould , violin; Heather Paauwe, violin; Lev “Ljova” Zhurbin, viola; Yoed Nir, cello; Gilad Hekselman, guitar; Magda giannikou, guest vocals at Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

6/6, 7:30/9:30 PM Orrin Evans & the Captain Black Big Band at Dizzy’s Club, $20, better reserve now, these guys sell out fast.

6/6 arguably the first-ever guitar jazz triplebill at the Mercury with the astonishingly smart, intense, original, bluesy Marvin Sewell at 8, Liberty Ellman at 9 and then Moroccan-inspired Dave Fiuczynski at 10, $15.

6/6-7 the Melvins at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, 9 PM, $20 adv tix avail. at the Mercury weekdays til 7 PM

6/7, 8 PM Carol Lipnik & Spookarama play the cd release show for their hypnotic, haunting new one M.O.T.H. at the big room at the Rockwood.

6/8, 9 PM James McMurtry at the Bell House, $15. He’s also at Maxwell’s on 6/17 at 7:30 for the same price.

6/9, 7:30 PM intense Balkan-influenced songwriter Alina Simone at Joe’s Pub $12.

6/9 oldschool salsa band Bio Ritmo followed by Afrobeat crew Ikebe Shakedown’s cd release show, 9 PM at Southpaw, $10 gen adm.

6/10, 8 PM assaultive hilarious Chinatown hip-hop pioneers the Notorious MSG’s cd release show at the Brooklyn Bowl, only $5.

6/10, 8 PM Lisle Atkinson & Neo Bass play bass arrangements of Ellington feat. guests pianists at Symphony Space, $25 adv tix rec.

6/10, 8 PM antique Americana harmony band Ollabelle (all original members) at City Winery, $20 standing room tix avail.

6/10 baritone country crooner/bandleader Dale Watson at Maxwell’s 10ish, $10 (note separate admission from earlier NRBQ concert).

6/10, midnight, clever fun retro 80s synth-disco duo Hank & Cupcakes at the Mercury, $10.

6/11, 6 PM singer-songwriter satirists the Lascivious Biddies at the small room at the Rockwood

6/11 haunting noir Americana crooner Mark Sinnis (of Ninth House) plays the cd release for his new one The Undertaker In My Rearview Mirror at Duff’s Bar in South Williamsburg, 9 PM.

6/11, 9/10:30 PM John McNeil, trumpet; Bill McHenry, tenor; Joe Martin, bass; Rodney Green, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe, $15

6/11, 10 PM oldtime country harmony hellraisers Those Darlins at Maxwell’s, $10.

6/12, 8:30 PM trumpeter Sarah Wilson plays the cd release for her new one with Myra Melford, piano; Ben Goldberg, clarinet; Jerome Harris, bass; Matt Wilson, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

6/12, 9 PM killer doublebill: torchy intense chanteuse April Smith & the Great Picture Show plus the phenomenally charismatic soul man/guitarist Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears at Maxwell’s, $18 adv tix highly rec., this will sell out

6/12, 9 PM wry, often brilliantly funny Chicago oldtimey/Americana/indie band Dastardly at Spike Hill.

6/12, 10:30 PM string driven smart eclectic doublebill: violinist/composer Christina Courtin and our favorite string quartet, Brooklyn Rider at le Poisson Rouge, $15 gen adm.

6/13, 10:30 PM Oran Etkin does his West African jazz thing followed by eclectic captivating Moroccan jazz/soul chanteuse Malika Zarra and her band at Joe’s Pub, $12

6/13 gypsy rocker Yula Beeri and the Extended Family at the big room at the Rockwood.

6/14-19, 7:30/9:30 PM Jamaican jazz/reggae piano legend Monty Alexander & the Harlem Kingston Express at Dizzy’s Club, $30 seats avail.

6/14 dark politically aware jazz/pan-Asian chanteuse/pianiast Jen Shyu at Korzo, 10 PM.

6/14, 10:20 PM ethereal dark art-rockers Elysian Fields play the cd release show for their new one at le Poisson Rouge, $15 gen adm.

6/15, 7 PM twangy, tuneful Texas-flavored alt-country band Two Cent Revival play. their cd release show at the Rockwood.

6/15, 7:30 PM pianist Veronique Mathieu plays works by Csickso and Shepherd followed by fearless avant ensemble Lunatics at Large performing works by Raoul Pleskow, Frederick Tillis, Elizabeth Bell, Steven Gerber and Marilyn Bliss at Symphony Space, $11.

6/16 John Brown’s Body – who absolutely slayed on 4/20 at Highline Ballroom – at Maxwell’s, $15.

6/16 dark lyrical songwriter Daniel Bernstein & the Everybody Knows at Fontana’s, 10 PM.

6/17, 9 PM potently politically aware third-wave ska/soul legends the Slackers at Bowery Ballroom, $16 adv tix highly rec.

6/18, 7 PM Metal Mountains (Helen Rush and Samara Lubelski’s ethereal project) followed by Thurston Moore’s Whiteout and then legendary 1960s psychedelic garage band Bardo Pond, no idea how many original members are left, $10 gen adm.

6/18, 7:30 PM tuneful death-obsessed indie pop pianist/songwriter Jeremy Messersmith at the Mercury, $10

6/19 this year’s free Punk Island festival at Governors Island happens two days in advance of Make Music NY as the yuppies are shitting their pants at the thought of loud, nonconformist music being played anywhere near their “luxury” apartments. Free ferries leave on the half hour from the old Staten Island Ferry terminal; here’s a public facebook page about it.

6/19, 6 PM a rare solo set by Matana Roberts at Downtown Music Gallery.

6/19, 9:30 PM rustic, lyrical Americana songwriter Andrew Vladeck’s dual cd/book release show at Joe’s Pub, $12.

6/19, 10 PM terrorist jazz with Peter Evans, Trumpet; Moppa Elliot, bass; Kassa Overall, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

6/20, 10 PM tuneful danceable funk/Afrobeat band Mamarazzi at the Mercury, $15.

6/21 is Make Music NY. We’ll cherrypick the best shows and put up a separate page once the official calendar is up.

6/25 the CCB Reggae Allstars play Marley’s Rastaman Vibration in its entirety plus other Marley hits at the Brooklyn Bowl, $5.

6/28-7/3, 7:30/9:30 PM the Kenny Garrett Quartet at Dizzy’s Club, $30 seats avail.

6/29, 7 PM cellist Marika Hughes at the small room at the Rockwood.

6/30, 8:30 PM Sara Serpa leads a quintet withAndre Matos, guitar; Pete Rende, piano; Matt Brewer, bass; Tommy Crane, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

7/2, 8 PM blistering bluegrass jamband Thy Burden’s cd release show at Union Hall, free.

7/8 dark rock chanteuse Nicole Atkins & the Sea at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, 9 PM, $12 adv tix avail. at the Mercury weekdays til 7 PM.

7/16, 10:30 PM garage rock legends the Fleshtones cd release show at the Mercury $12 adv tix rec.

7/29-30 the Eels at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, 9 PM, $30 gen adm.

8/11, 8 PM Deer Tick at Pier 54, free, seriously early arrival advised.

8/4, Bill Kirchen and Los Straitjackets at Maxwell’s $15

WEEKLY EVENTS

5/10, 5/18 and 5/26 smart, matter-of-fact, soulful Chicago blues guitarist Irving Louis Lattin plays Terra Blues at 7. He’s also at Lucille’s on 5/13 and 5/27 at 8

Sundays there’s a klezmer brunch at City Winery, show starts around 11:30 AM – 2 PM, $10 cover, no minimum, lots of good bands.

Sundays from half past noon to 3:30 PM, bluegrass cats Freshly Baked (f.k.a. Graveyard Shift), featuring excellent, incisive fiddle player Diane Stockwell play Nolita House (upstairs over Botanica at 47 E Houston). Free drink with your entree.

Sundays May 1, 8, 15 and 22 there are free classical organ concerts at St. Patrick’s Cathedral at 4:45 PM sharp

Through May of 2011, the series of free organ concerts at 5:15 PM continues most every week (holidays excepted) at St. Thomas Church, 53rd St. and 5th Ave.

Sundays in May, 6 PM, former New Familiars guitarist E-S Guthrie plays the Rockwood: tuneful lyrically driven Americana.

Sundays at 7:30 at Theatre 80 St. Marks the world’s most socially aware “reverend” and activist, Rev. Billy and his 30-piece gospel Church of Earthalujah Choir, $10 cover but “no one turned away.”

Stephane Wrembel plays Sundays at Barbes at 9. He’s something of an institution here, plan on arriving EARLY, 45 minutes early isn’t too soon since the whole bar gets packed fast. The guitarist has few if any equals as an interpreter of Django Reinhardt, but it’s where he takes the gypsy jazz influence in his own remarkably original, psychedelic writing – and what he brings to the Django stuff – that makes all the difference. One of the most interesting players in any style of music, anywhere in the world.

Every Sunday the Ear-Regulars, led by trumpeter Jon Kellso and (frequently) guitarist Matt Munisteri play NYC’s only weekly hot jazz session starting around 8 PM at the Ear Inn on Spring St.  Hard to believe, in the city that springboarded the careers of thousands of jazz legends, but true. This is by far the best value in town for marquee-caliber jazz: for the price of a drink and a tip for the band, you can see world-famous players (and brilliant obscure ones) you’d usually have to drop $100 for at some big-ticket room. The material is mostly old-time stuff from the 30s and 40s, but the players (especially Kellso and Munisteri, who have a chemistry that goes back several years) push it into some deliciously unexpected places.

Sundays in May the Arturo O’Farrill Latin Jazz Orchestra at Birdland, 9/11 PM, $30 seats avail.

Every Sunday, hip-hop MC Big Zoo hosts the long-running End of the Weak rap showcase at the Pyramid, 9 PM, admission $5 before 10, $7 afterward. This is one of the best places to discover some of the hottest under-the-radar hip-hop talent, both short cameos as well as longer sets from both newcomers and established vets.

Sundays in May at midnight Thad Debrock plays the small room at the Rockwood. The club calendar says he once played with the Jonas Bros., but if that’s true, don’t hold it against him. A highly sought-after sideman, multi-instrumentalist and film composer, he has a purist touch, a laserlike sense of melody and a deep list of good musicians to choose from.

Mondays at the Fat Cat the Choi Fairbanks String Quartet play a wide repertoire of chamber music from Bach to Shostakovich starting at 7.

Mondays starting a little after 7 PM Howard Williams leads his Jazz Orchestra from the piano at the Garage, 99 7th Ave. S at Grove St. There are also big bands here most every Tuesday at 7.

Mondays at the Jazz Standard it’s all Mingus, whether with the Mingus Orchestra, Big Band or Mingus Dynasty: you know the material and the players are all first rate. Sets 7:30/9:30 PM, $25 and worth it.

Also Monday nights Vince Giordano’s Nighthawks, a boisterous horn-driven 11-piece 1920s/early 30’s band play Sofia’s Restaurant, downstairs at the Edison Hotel, 221 West 46th Street between Broadway & 8th Ave., 3 sets from 8 to 11, surprisingly cheap $15 cover plus $15 minimum considering what you’re getting. Even before the Flying Neutrinos or the Moonlighters, multi-instrumentalist Giordano was pioneering the oldtimey sound in New York; his long-running residency at the old Cajun on lower 8th Ave. is legendary. He also gets a ton of film work (Giordano wrote the satirical number that Willie Nelson famously sang in Wag the Dog).

Mondays 5/2, 9 and 16 Gringoman (that’s Americana rock guitar legend and Lakeside honcho Eric “Roscoe” Ambel solo) at Lakeside 9 PM

Mondays at Tea Lounge in Park Slope at 9 PM trombonist/composer JC Sanford books big band jazz, an exciting, global mix of some of the edgiest large-ensemble sounds around. If you’re anybody in the world of big band jazz and you make it to New York, you end up playing here: what CBGB was to punk, this unlikely spot promises to be to the jazz world. No cover.

Mondays at the Vanguard the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra – composer Jim McNeely’s reliably good big band vehicle – plays 9/11 PM, $30 per set plus drink minimum.

Also Mondays in May the Barbes house band, Chicha Libre plays there starting around 9:30. They’ve singlehandedly resurrected an amazing subgenre, chicha, which was popular in the Peruvian Amazon in the late 60s and early 70s. With electric accordion, cuatro, surf guitar and a slinky but boisterous rhythm section, their mix of obscure classics and originals is one of the funnest, most danceable things you’ll witness this year.

Also Mondays in May Rev. Vince Anderson and his band play Union Pool in Williamsburg, two sets starting around 11 PM. The Rev. is one of the great keyboardists around, equally thrilling on organ or electric piano, an expert at Billy Preston style funk, honkytonk, gospel and blues. He writes very funny, very politically astute, sexy original songs and is one of the most charismatic, intense live performers of our time. It’s a crazy dance party til past three in the morning. Paula Henderson from Burnt Sugar is the lead soloist on baritone sax, with Dave Smith from Smoota and the Fela pit band on trombone, with frequent special guests.

The second and fourth Tuesday of the month there are free organ concerts at half past noon at Central Synagogue, 652 Lexington Ave @ 55th St. curated by celebrated organ adventurer Gail Archer, a global mix of veteran and up-and-coming talent.

Tuesdays at 7 PM from May through July it’s a classical piano series playfully titled Upright Piano Brigade, an A-list of classical talent playing the brand-new Sauter piano at Barbes. May artists include Michael Brown on May 3; Evan Shinners on May 10; Tanya Bannister on May 17; Gregg Kallor on the 24th and William McNally on the 31st.

Tuesdays in May brass maniacs Slavic Soul Party  play Barbes at 9. Get here as soon as you can as they’re very popular.

Tuesdays in May the Dred Scott Trio play astonishingly smart, dark piano jazz at the smaller room at the Rockwood at midnight.

Wednesdays at 9 PM Feral Foster’s Roots & Ruckus takes over the Jalopy, a reliably excellent weekly mix of oldtimey acts: blues, bluegrass, country and swing.

Every Thursday the Michael Arenella Quartet play 1920s hot jazz 8-11 PM at Nios, 130 W 46th St.

Thursdays and Fridays in May at Mehanata it’s Bulgarian sax powerhouse Yuri Yukanov and the Grand Masters of Gypsy Music, 10 PM, $10.

Thursdays in May hard-rocking nuevo latin soul man Rene Lopez plays Nublu. The club calendar says 9, which probably means 11.

Fridays at 8:30 PM adventurous cellist/composer Valerie Kuehne books an intriguing avant garde/classical/unclassifiable “weekly experimental cabaret” at Cafe Orwell in Bushwick, 247 Varet St. (White/Bogart), L to Morgan Ave. It’s sort of a more outside version of Small Beast, a lot of cutting-edge performers working out new ideas in casual, unstuffy surroundings. Kuehne promises “never a dull moment.”

Fridays in May at 9 Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens play the Fat Cat.

Saturdays eclectic compelling Brazilian jazz chanteuse Marianni and her excellent band at Zinc Bar, three sets starting at 10 PM

New York City Live Music Calendar for March and April 2011

We have a new calendar for April and May 2011, and it’s here.  

A few things you should know about this calendar: acts are listed here in order of appearance, NOT headliner first and supporting acts after; showtimes listed here are actual set times, not the time doors open. If a listing here says something like ”9 PM-ish,” chances are it’ll run late. Cover charges are those listed on bands’ and venues’ sites: always best to click on the band link provided or go to the venues page for confirmation since we get much of this info weeks in advance. We go easy on the superlative adjectives here: every show included on this calendar is worth checking out, if the artist or band happen to play a style you enjoy. As always, weekly events first followed by the daily listings:

Sundays there’s a klezmer brunch at City Winery, show starts around 11:30 AM – 2 PM, $10 cover, no minimum, lots of good bands.

Sundays from half past noon to 3:30 PM, bluegrass cats Freshly Baked (f.k.a. Graveyard Shift), featuring excellent, incisive fiddle player Diane Stockwell play Nolita House (upstairs over Botanica at 47 E Houston). Free drink with your entree.

Through May of 2011, the series of free organ concerts at 5:15 PM continues most every week (holidays excepted) at St. Thomas Church, 53rd St. and 5th Ave.

Sundays in March at 6 PM the Williamsburg Salsa Orchestra – not as much of an oxymoron as the immigrants from Minnesota would have you believe – at Brooklyn Bowl, free

Stephane Wrembel plays Sundays at Barbes at 9. He’s something of an institution here, plan on arriving EARLY, 45 minutes early isn’t too soon since the whole bar gets packed fast. The guitarist has few if any equals as an interpreter of Django Reinhardt, but it’s where he takes the gypsy jazz influence in his own remarkably original, psychedelic writing – and what he brings to the Django stuff – that makes all the difference. One of the most interesting players in any style of music, anywhere in the world.

Every Sunday the Ear-Regulars, led by trumpeter Jon Kellso and (frequently) guitarist Matt Munisteri play NYC’s only weekly hot jazz session starting around 8 PM at the Ear Inn on Spring St.  Hard to believe, in the city that springboarded the careers of thousands of jazz legends, but true. This is by far the best value in town for marquee-caliber jazz: for the price of a drink and a tip for the band, you can see world-famous players (and brilliant obscure ones) you’d usually have to drop $100 for at some big-ticket room. The material is mostly old-time stuff from the 30s and 40s, but the players (especially Kellso and Munisteri, who have a chemistry that goes back several years) push it into some deliciously unexpected places.

Sundays in March the Chico O’Farrill latin Jazz Orchestra at Birdland, sets 8/10:30 PM, $30 seats avail

Every Sunday, hip-hop MC Big Zoo hosts the long-running End of the Weak rap showcase at the Pyramid, 9 PM, admission $5 before 10, $7 afterward. This is one of the best places to discover some of the hottest under-the-radar hip-hop talent, both short cameos as well as longer sets from both newcomers and established vets.

Mondays at the Fat Cat the Choi Fairbanks String Quartet play a wide repertoire of chamber music from Bach to Shostakovich starting at 7.

Mondays starting a little after 7 PM Howard Williams leads his Jazz Orchestra from the piano at the Garage, 99 7th Ave. S at Grove St. There are also big bands here most every Tuesday at 7.

Mondays at the Jazz Standard it’s all Mingus, whether with the Mingus Orchestra, Big Band or Mingus Dynasty: you know the material and the players are all first rate. Sets 7:30/9:30 PM, $25 and worth it.

Also Monday nights Vince Giordano’s Nighthawks, a boisterous horn-driven 11-piece 1920s/early 30’s band play Sofia’s Restaurant, downstairs at the Edison Hotel, 221 West 46th Street between Broadway & 8th Ave., 3 sets from 8 to 11, surprisingly cheap $15 cover plus $15 minimum considering what you’re getting. Even before the Flying Neutrinos or the Moonlighters, multi-instrumentalist Giordano was pioneering the oldtimey sound in New York; his long-running residency at the old Cajun on lower 8th Ave. is legendary. He also gets a ton of film work (Giordano wrote the satirical number that Willie Nelson famously sang in Wag the Dog).

Mondays at Tea Lounge in Park Slope at 9 PM trombonist/composer JC Sanford books big band jazz, an exciting, global mix of some of the edgiest large-ensemble sounds around. If you’re anybody in the world of big band jazz and you make it to New York, you end up playing here: what CBGB was to punk, this unlikely spot promises to be to the jazz world. No cover.

Mondays at the Vanguard the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra – composer Jim McNeely’s reliably good big band vehicle – plays 9/11 PM, $30 per set plus drink minimum.

Also Mondays in March the Barbes house band, Chicha Libre plays there starting around 9:30. They’ve singlehandedly resurrected an amazing subgenre, chicha, which was popular in the Peruvian Amazon in the late 60s and early 70s. With electric accordion, cuatro, surf guitar and a slinky but boisterous rhythm section, their mix of obscure classics and originals is one of the funnest, most danceable things you’ll witness this year.

Also Mondays in March Rev. Vince Anderson and his band play Union Pool in Williamsburg, two sets starting around 11 PM. The Rev. is one of the great keyboardists around, equally thrilling on organ or electric piano, an expert at Billy Preston style funk, honkytonk, gospel and blues. He writes very funny, very politically astute, sexy original songs and is one of the most charismatic, intense live performers of our time. It’s a crazy dance party til past three in the morning. Paula Henderson from Burnt Sugar is the lead soloist on baritone sax, with Dave Smith from Smoota and the Fela pit band on trombone, with frequent special guests.

The second and fourth Tuesday of the month there are free organ concerts at half past noon at Central Synagogue, 652 Lexington Ave @ 55th St. curated by celebrated organ adventurer Gail Archer, a global mix of veteran and up-and-coming talent.

Tuesdays in March Balkan brass maniacs Slavic Soul Party  play Barbes at 9. Get here as soon as you can as they’re very popular.

Tuesdays in March the Dred Scott Trio play astonishingly smart, dark piano jazz at the smaller room at the Rockwood at midnight.

Wednesdays in April (not March), 4-5 PM, all ages, at the Atrium at Lincoln Center a series of Afrocentric song/dance performances with Q&A afterward moderated by Meklit Hadero. Highlights: Chanda Rule and Somi on 4/6; amazing Ethiopian Afrobeat group Debo Band spinoff the And Lay Duo playing traditional Ethiopian tunes on 4/27.

Wednesdays at 9 PM Feral Foster’s Roots & Ruckus takes over the Jalopy, a reliably excellent weekly mix of oldtimey acts: blues, bluegrass, country and swing.

Every Thursday the Michael Arenella Quartet play 1920s hot jazz 8-11 PM at Nios, 130 W 46th St.

Thursdays and Fridays in March at Mehanata it’s Bulgarian sax powerhouse Yuri Yukanov and the Grand Masters of Gypsy Music, 10 PM, $10.

Fridays at 8:30 PM adventurous cellist/composer Valerie Kuehne books an intriguing avant garde/classical/unclassifiable “weekly experimental cabaret” at Cafe Orwell in Bushwick, 247 Varet St. (White/Bogart), L to Morgan Ave. It’s sort of a more outside version of Small Beast, a lot of cutting-edge performers working out new ideas in casual, unstuffy surroundings. Kuehne promises “never a dull moment.”

Fridays in March at 9 Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens play the Fat Cat.

3/2 creepy, cinematic, noir instrumentalists Mojo Mancini at the big room at the Rockwood ,7 PM $10.

3/2, 7:30 PM at Banjo Jim’s NYC Americana luminaries singing classic country and country rock duets led by songstress Karen Hudson. Special guest vocalists incl. Alan Lee Backer, Steve Antonakos, Sean Kershaw, Orville Davis, Shannon Brown, Drina Seay, Lindy Loo, Deb O’Nair, Mo Russell, Charlie Quill, Doug Moody, Kelli King, Glenn Spivack and David Michael Weis; songs by Emmylou Harris and Gram Parsons, Buck Owens, the Andrews Sisters, Linda Ronstadt, John Prine, Lucinda Williams and others.

3/2, 7:30 PM energetic oldtimey Americana act the Wiyos at Rock Shop in Gowanus, $10.

3/2-6, 7:30/9:30 PM lyrical pianist Fred Hersch – whose new solo live album is a joy – at the Jazz Standard. 3/2 with singer Kate McGarry ; 3/3 with guitarist Julian Lage; 3/4-5 Noah Preminger on tenor sax (fresh off the success of his new Palmetto release Before the Rain), Ralph Alessi on trumpet, John Hebert on bass, and Billy Drummond on drums; 3/6 in a duo show with Joshua Redman. Tickets are $30.

3/2, 9 PM Marc Ribot’s “Really The Blues” with most of the Jazz Passengers – Bill Ware, Brad Jones & EJ Rodriguez – at Rose Bar in Williamsburg.

3/2, 10 PM fiery, oldtimey chanteuse April Smith & the Great Picture Show at the Mercury, $10, early arrival advised, this deserves to sell out

3/3, 7ish smart lo-fi garage duo the Fools, the Debutante Hour’s reliably entertaining, clever Susan Hwang and fearless punk cabaret songwriter Sabrina Chap among others at Goodbye Blue Monday.

3/3, 8 PM Espers cellist Helena Espvall plays a solo set and then joins hypnotic, haunting Maine chamber-Americana duo Arborea for gorgeous rustic soundscapes at Littlefield.

3/3, 8 PM clever, torchy oldtimey songwriter Jolie Holland at City Winery, $20 seats avail.

3/3, 8 PM modern roots reggae with Giant Panda Guerrilla Dub Squad and Rebelution at Irving Plaza, $20 adv tix rec.

3/3 Springsteen violinist Sam Bardfeld’s Up Jumped the Devil – a tribute to jazz violinist Stuff Smith – at Barbes at 8 followed by Red Baraat’s funky Indian marching band madness at 10 for a $10 cover.

3/3, 9 PM charismatic Americana roots singer Cal Folger Day at Banjo Jim’s; she’s also at the National Underground upstairs at 7 on 3/11

3/3 Police cover band NY’s Finest at 9 followed by Tammy Faye Starlite’s hilarious Blondie tribute/spoof band the Pretty Babies at 10 at R Bar.

3/3, 9 PM rootsy Sweetheart of the Rodeo style country rock with Whisperado at Hank’s.

3/3 eclectic, danceable Brazilian maracatu and country sounds with Nation Beat at Rodeo Bar 10ish

3/3, 10:30 PM Whiting Tennis – the former Scholars frontman and arguably the finest practitioner of Pacific Northwest gothic rock – at Pete’s.

3/4, 6:30 PM Marc Cary’s Indigenous People plus Sameer Gupta’s Namaskar at le Poisson Rouge, $15. Cary is our favorite pianist right now – no disrespect to anybody else, but nobody else we know can switch from rivetingly intense majestic third-stream grandeur to playful, fun Rhodes funk grooves so effortlessly and intuitively as this guy. He’s doing both with probably both bands, the kind of workout that brings out his best. Gupta is his Focus Trio drummer and leads a hypnotic Bollywood flavored outfit.

3/4 the Snow’s wry, brilliantly lyrical frontman Pierre de Gaillande plays his own hilarious translations of French songwriting icon Georges Brassens’s songs at Drom, 7:30 PM, $10 gen adm.

3/4, 8 PM at Otto’s, a rare Friday surf music night put together by Unsteady Freddie: this one’s a real good one: the Octomen at 9, garage rockers Preston Wayne 4 at 10, then entertaining, intense Boston horror-surf rockers Beware The Dangers Of A Ghost Scorpion at 11; BTDOAGS are also at Spike Hill on 3/27.

3/4, 8 PM, deviously fun, low-register oldschool Cuban vamps and originals with Gato Loco – baritone guitar, sax, bass and tuba – at Barbes. They’re also at Bowery Poetry Club at 8 on 3/6.

3/4, 8 PM, the psychobilly Memphis Morticians at the smaller downstairs space at Webster Hall, $12 adv tix rec.

3/4-6, 8/10 PM the Larry Coryell “power trio” with Victor Bailey on bass and Lenny White on drums at Iridium, $30 cover. Iconic jazz guitarist from the 70s whose fusions associations transcend any involvement with the style (he got into Rachmaninoff in a big way back in the 80s), somebody you ought to see at least once

3/4-5, 8 PM at the Kitchen: “Inspired by her immigrant grandfather, a junk dealer in the Lower East Side who recycled scrap metal and other byproducts of the industrial age, Annie Gosfield will sample the sounds of metal, machines, and factories, and transform these raw materials into something new. Featuring two ensembles: the Annie Gosfield Ensemble, with Gosfield on sampling keyboard, Roger Kleier on electric guitar, and Ches Smith on drums and percussion; and Real Quiet with Felix Fan on cello, piano by Andrew Russo, and guest percussionist Alex Lipowski. Also pianist Stephen Gosling performs a selection of Gosfield solos.”

3/4, 8 PM pianist David Kalhous – who has an intuitive, laserlike feel for this sort of thing – plays the complete solo piano works of Leos Janacek at Bargemusic, $35/$30 srs/$15 stud.

3/4, 9ish swirling hypnotic tuneful postrock with cellist/composer Julia Kent at Littlefield, $8.

3/4, 9 PM: newschool and oldschool edginess: Raya Brass Band followed by The Scene Is Now at Matchless in Williamsburg

3/4, 9 PM hot Boston buzz band Mic Raygun, who mine a noirish, cinematic vein, at Tea Lounge in Park Slope.

3/4, 9 PM edgy British postpunk dance-rockers Deluka at 9 at the downstairs studio space at Webster Hall.

3/4, 9 PM the reliably cinematic Morricone Youth at Hank’s.

3/4, 9:30 PMat I-Beam Sean Moran’s “Small Elephant” – Mike McGinnis – clarinets; Reuben Radding – bass; Chris Dingman – vibraphone; Sean Moran – nylon string guitar; Harris Eisenstadt – drums.

3/4, 9:30 PM Americana siren Julia Haltigan at BAM Cafe.

3/4, 10 PM retro 60s latin soul sounds with the Brooklyn Boogaloo Blowout at 55 Bar.

3/5, 5 PM Elliott Sharp’s Orchestra Carbon play an open rehearsal of his Flexagons at Issue Project Room followed by a $35 ticketed show at 7 (it’s his birthday gig) featuring a marathon of solo and ensemble works for noiserock guitar.

3/5, 7 PM a cool dark Americana triplebill at Banjo Jim’s with Lorraine Leckie & Her Demons at 7, Carol Lipnik & Spookarama at 8 and fiddler Melody Allegra’s bluegrass jam at 9.

3/5, 8 PM richly arranged, sometimes rustic, sometimes cinematic Balkan noir band Kotorino at Barbes followed at 10 by Brooklyn’s own Banda Sinaloense de los Muertos; Kotorino are also at Sycamore Bar on 3/12 at 9.

3/5, 9 PM  luminary drummer Ben Perowsky’s MSO followed at 10 by cleverly lyrical, sultry, theatrical torch song satirists the Debutante Hour’s cd release show at Bowery Electric.

3/5, 8 PM utterly original cantorial riff-rockers Sway Machinery open for Malian psychedelic desert blues goddess Khaira Arby at the Bell House, 8 PM, $15 adv tix rec.

3/5, 8 PM, repeating on 3/6, 3 PM the Chelsea Symphony plays Sibelius’ lush, lyrical Fifth Symphony and other works at St. Paul’s Church, 315 W 22nd St.

3/5, 9 PM star ska trumpeter Kevin Batchelor and then eclectic Senegalese-American roots reggae band Meta & the Cornerstones at the 92YTribeca, $12 adv tix rec.

3/5 cowpunk with I’ll Be John Brown at Hank’s, 9 PM followed by the ferocious, psychedelic, dark paisley underground Newton Gang at 10 and the Judge Roy Bean Band at midnight or so. The Newton Gang are also upstairs at the National Underground on 3/29 at 9.

3/5, 9 PM ageless Irish acoustic punk band Box of Crayons at the new Freddy’s

3/5, 9 PM hypnotic carnatic vocal music of south India with Roopa Mahadadevan at Alwan for the Arts, $20/$15 stud/srs.

3/5 gypsy punk with Bad Buka (FKA Panonian Wave) at Mehanata, 10 PM

3/5, 10 PM Koony plays darkly intense, lyrical African Francophone roots reggae at Shrine.

3/5, 10 PM the satirical, fearlessly amusing Reformed Whores at Pete’s at 10.

3/5, 11 PM the Hate My Day Jobs at Lit doing their energetic fifth-generation Stooges thing.

3/6, 3 PM intense playful all-female klezmer supergroup Isle of Klezbos at the Queens Central Library, 89-11 Merrick Blvd, Jamaica Queens, F to 169th St, or E/J trains to Jamaica Center/Parsons-Archer; they’re also at the Westbeth Theatre on 3/9 at 8:30 for $15/$10 srs.

3/6, 6 PM gypsy jazz power trio Ameranouche at Puppets Jazz Bar

3/6, 6 and 9:30 PM cellist Zoe Keating and Ethel co-founder/violinist Todd Reynolds do their separate things with their instruments and every effects pedal ever manufactured, $15 adv tix rec.

3/6, 9 PM ageless, swirling, psychedelic punk pioneers Band of Outsiders at Lakeside. They beat Brian Jonestown Massacre to it by 20 years and still kick their ass.

3/6, 10 PM smartly lyrical retro theatrical rockers Balthrop Alabama at the big room at the Rockwood

3/6 Keeping Toward Sky: Tim Keiper, nguni and drums; Chris Dingman, vibraphone; Skye Steele, violin; Chris Tordini, bass play all kinds of crazy, captivating eclectic stuff at 10 PM at Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

3/6, 11 PM lyrical noir songwriter Adam Masterson at the small room at the Rockwood; 3/9 he’s at Lakeside at 9.

3/7 the uncommonly imaginative Christine Jensen Jazz Orchestra at Dizzy’s Club 7:30/9:30 PM, $20.

3/7, 9 PM cutting-edge big band jazz with the Russ Flynn Large Ensemble at Tea Lounge in Park Slope.

3/7 Dina Rudeen – whose long-awaited, forthcoming retro soul/rock album is a strong contender for best of 2010 – at Small Beast at the Delancey, 11 PM.

3/8, 8/10:30 PM tuneful postbop jazz pianist George Cables – whose work with the Cookers this past year was nothing short of transcendent – plays a trio gig with James Genus and Jeff “Tain” Watts at the Blue Note, $15 seats avail

3/8, 8 PM Ice Cube – yeah, the guy from the Friday movies, doing his rap thing (back in the day he was one of the great ones) at B.B. King’s, $27 adv tix rec.

3/8, 9 PM Jen Shyu plays a rare solo set of her smart, socially aware, historically-imbued pan-Asian vocal jazz at Korzo.

3/8, 9:30 PM eclectic, captivating pianist Mika Pohjola with Steve Doyle on bass and Kyle Struve on drums at Miles Cafe, 9:30 PM, $20 cover includes a drink and “snacks” but sushi is extra.

3/8, 10 PM alto saxophonist David Binney leads a quartet with Jacob Sacks on piano, Thomas Morgan on bass and Dan Weiss on drums at 55 Bar. They’re back here on 3/22 as well.

3/8, guessing sometime around 11ish, Raekwon plays a cd release show at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, $15 adv tix rec., for some reason this doesn’t appear to be sold out yet.

3/8-12, 11 PM bassist Jennifer Leitham leads a trio with Sherrie Maricle on drums and Tomoko Ohno (not to be confused with the former Red Sox pitcher) on piano at Dizzy’s Club, $10 tix avail.

3/8 garage-punk with Sister Anne (andtheir two bass players) followed by retro soul star Eli “Paperboy” Reed at the Knitting Factory, 11 PM, $15, all ages.

3/9 Mos Def at the Blue Note is sold out – just so you know.

3/9 adventurous string quartet Brooklyn Rider with Iranian spike fiddle virtuoso/composer Kayhan Kalhor playing a Philip Glass premiere and more at Alice Tully Hall, 7:30 PM, $20.

3/9, 7:30 PM cello-driven world music band Deoro plays the big room at the Rockwood.

3/9, 9ish one of the great wits in rock, Marcellus Hall plays the cd release show for his career-best new one at Bowery Electric.

3/9, 9 PM at the Jalopy: Lunas Atlas – “beautiful and ancient songs of the Sephardic diaspora, sung in Ladino, Turkish and Greek. It features Chris Rael on sitar, 12-string guitar, Portugese lute and voice, Rima Fand on violin and voice, Bulgarian chanteuse Vlada Tomova, reed man extraordinaire Greg Squared and flamenco percussion star Nacho Arimany” – followed by Raya Brass Band.

3/9, 9ish cleverly theatrical, lyrical, satirical all-girl trio the Debutante Hour at Culturefix on Clinton St.

3/9, 10ish tongue-in-cheek, period-perfect early 50s style country from Susquehanna Industrial Tool & Die Co. at Rodeo Bar.

3/9, 10 PM bassist Chris Tordini leads a quartet with the always fascinating Kris Davis on piano plus Jeremy Viner, tenor sax, clarinet; Jim Black, drums at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

3/10, Maksim Shtrykov and Alina Kiryayeva, clarinet and piano, program TBA, 1 PM at Trinity Church, free.

3/10-13 saloon jazz piano legend Mose Allison at the Jazz Standard, 7:30/9:30 PM, $30. Without this guy, Tom Waits wouldn’t exist, maybe not Dr. John either. Now in his 80s, he’s absolutely undiminished.

3/10, 8 PM fiery psychedelic rock/honkytonk band the Newton Gang at Banjo Jim’s

3/10 NYC indie/janglerock legends Scout 8 PM at the small room at the Rockwood.

3/10, 8 PM The Escape Artist, a haunting Caravaggio-themed theatrical piece by legendary singer John Kelly with music by Carol Lipnik at the Park Ave. Armory on the upper east, $25, reception to follow concert. They’re also doing this at PS 122 from 4/15 through 4/22.

3/10 Stephan Said’s Magic Orchestra, 8 PM at Drom, $10 – fiery, socially aware rock, hip-hop, Balkan and reggae tunes.

3/10, 8:30 PM the most unpredictably amusing guy in country music, the Jack Grace Band at Hill Country

3/10 Burnt Sugar play Bowie at the Atrium at Lincoln Center, 8:30 PM.

3/10 saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock plays the cd release for her new one Anti-House with Mary Halvorson , guitar; John Hébert , bass; Tom Rainey , drums, 8:30 PM at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $10

3/10, 9 PM two of the funniest and most period-perfect songwriters in oldtimey Americana, Al Duvall and Robin Aigner at Rest Au Rant, 30-01 35th Ave., Long Island City.

3/10 noir rockabilly/blues showman Reid Paley at Rodeo Bar 10ish “laughing in the face of life’s unrelenting ugliness.”

3/10, 10 PM reggae and ska with the Hard Times and then Royal City Riot at 11 at Otto’s.

3/10, 10 PM oldschool Colombian cumbia band Cumbiagra at Barbes.

3/10-11 at Smalls, 10 PM Seamus Blake – tenor sax; Lage Lund – guitar; Dave Kikoski – piano; Matt Clohesy – bass; Bill Stewart – drums.

3/10, 11ish smart, tuneful powerpop with the Brooklyn What spinoff John-Severin & the Quiet 1s at Union Hall.

3/11, 6 PM at Alwan for the Arts, free and open to the public, “a conversation moderated by Amy Goodman between Ahdaf Soueif and her son Omar Robert Hamilton, both of whom were in Tahrir Square, Cairo, participating throughout, filming and disseminating information, and have since been writing about it all, but have never had the opportunity between themselves for a reflective encounter.”

3/11, 7:30 PM oldtime hokum blues and hillbilly music with the Second Fiddles at Hill Country.

3/11, 7:30 PM tuneful, energetic, original postbop saxophonist Benny Sharoni leads a quartet at Miles Cafe, $20 cover includes a drink and “snacks”

3/11, 7:30 PM avant garde multi-reed legend JD Parran plays Menon Dwarka; the solo version of You Have a Right To Remain Silent by Anthony Davis; “…vikings, unless…” by Douglas Anderson at Greenwich House Music School, 46 Barrow St. between Bedford St. & 7th Ave. S, $15

3/11-12, 8 PM the long-awaited debut of The Songs of Buelah Rowley, by the brilliantly eclectic Mary Lee Kortes at the Cell Theatre, 338 W. 23rd St. (8th and 9th Aves.): “A song cycle with narration and projections based on the biography of Beulah Rowley, a regionally-known depression-era singer and songwriter from the Midwest,” $20 adv tix rec.

3/11, 8 PM a cool punk-oriented quadruple bill at Ace of Clubs starting at 8 with Box of Crayons, goth-punks Eleventh Hour (whose new album is called Coney Island Death March), the entertaining Hymen Holocaust and Irish band Paranoid Visions, who do a pretty good DKs facsimile.

3/11, 8 PM latin string quartet Sweet Plantain and equally cutting-edge, considerably more brooding Argentinian pianist/composer Fernando Otero at the 92YTribeca, $12 adv tix highly rec

3/11, 8 PM improvisational Afrobeat vibes with the Budos Band at the Bell House, $15.

3/11, 8 PM edgy trumpeter Nate Wooley plays his improvisational suite The Seven Storey Mountain at Issue Project Room.

3/11 a characteristically eclectic night at Barbes: reedman Petr Cancura leads a septet at 8 followed at 10 by Dominican folk music chanteuse Irka Mateo.

3/11, 8 PM whispery/sultry, original retro jazz/Americana chanteuse Brooke Campbell at the cafe at the 92YTribeca, free.

3/11, 8:30 PM at I-Beam, violinist Tom Swafford brings a huge, interesting band: Sally Wall, oboe; Mike McGinnis, clarinet; Jen Baker, trombone; Nathan Koci, accordion; Cory Bracken, log drum; Leanne Darling, viola; Brian Sanders, cello; Reuben Radding, bass

3/11 noir rocker Nicole Atkins at Maxwell’s at 8:30 PM, $16 adv tix rec; note that there is separate admission ($15) for the Blasters show at 11.

3/11 Bogs Visionary Orchestra’s Jose Delhart plays terse, pensive Americana nocturnes followed by the wry yet haunting Elisa Flynn, whose upcoming album features songs about William Tecumseh Sherman, the 1893 Chicago Exposition, and the Donner Party (yup, that’s me, she says) at Sugar Lounge, 147 Columbia St., Red Hook, 9 PM

3/11, 9 PM powerpop/oldschool R&B with the Brilliant Mistakes at the small room at the Rockwood.

3/11, 9 PM ageless reggae-rock band Faith at BAM Cafe.

3/11, 9 PM virtuoso oldschool country guitar duo the Plunk Bros. at Freddy’s.

3/11, 9/10:30 PM pianist Ben Waltzer with the JD Allen trio rhythm section, Gregg August on bass and Rudy Royston on drums at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $15

3/11-12 Wess Anderson, Charles McPherson and others play music from Charlie Parker’s Bird with Strings at Rose Theatre at Lincoln Center, $30 tix avail.

3/11, 10 PM Zion Judah plays roots reggae at Shrine.

3/11, 10 PM a good dark Americana/Nashville gothic doublebill with Fist of Kindness followed at 11 by Maynard & the Musties at Desmond’s

3/12, 1 PM a free concert at Bargemusic, early arrival advised, most likely piano music.

3/12, 6:30 PM Turn Down the Sun play pretty good Dead Kennedys style punk at Ace of Clubs.

3/12, 7 PM charismatic blue-eyed soul siren Meg Braun and intense, smart multi-instrumentalist Americana songwriter Carolann Solebello (ex-Red Molly) at Caffe Vivaldi

3/12, 7:30 PM psychedelic Middle Eastern/Balkan/Asian jamband Tribecastan at Joe’s Pub, $15 adv tix rec.

3/12 a killer ska/rocksteady triplebill with the Hard Times on more of a reggae tip, then the oldschool Bluebeats and the latin-flavored King Django at Shrine, 8 PM

3/12, 8 PM lush, clever, quirky art-rockers the Universal Thump – in the midst of a brilliant new album – at Barbes.

3/12, 8 PM Poor Baby Bree presents Historic Songs of the Lower East Side at Bowery Poetry Club with an all-star oldtimey ragtime band featuring Karen Waltuch of the Roulette Sisters on viola.

3/12 intense, surprising, lyrical pianist Kris Davis leads a trio with Tony Malaby, saxophone; Eivind Opsvik, bass; Tom Rainey, drums, 9/10:30 PM at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $15.

3/12, 9 PM an all-star evening of hypnotic, haunting sufi music at Alwan for the Arts with Taoufiq Ben Amor – vocals, oud and percussion; Ramzi El-Edlibi – percussion; and Zafer Tawil – violin, pud and percussion; George Ziadeh – oud and vocals , $20/$15 stud.srs.

3/12, 9ish garage rock fun with faux-French band les Sans Culottes and then another reunion show by 80s/90s legends Johnny Chan & the New Dynasty 6 at Bowery Electric.

3/12 Magges – the Greek Gogol Bordello – at Mehanata, 10:30 PM – free before 10

3/12, 10:30 PM LES punk/surf/rockabilly guitar legend Simon & the Bar Sinisters at Lakeside.

3/12 “Brooklyn’s #1 regressive rock act,” stoner metal parodists Mighty High at Trash, midnight.

3/13, 3 PM organist Gail Archer plays Liszt at West End Collegiate Church, West End Ave. at 77th St..

3/13 a killer doublebill at 55 Bar starting at 6 with noir guitarist Jim Campilongo leading an jam quartet followed by tenor saxophonist Noah Preminger with guitarist Ben Monder, bassist John Hebert and drummer Matt Wilson at 9:30

3/13, 7 PM, hot modern klezmer with the Klez Dispensers at Drom, $10.

3/13 a cool duo show with Dan Tepfer on piano plus Becca Stevens on vocals and charango, 8:30 PM at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $10

3/13, 9 PM a wild cerebral exuberant intense psychedelic doublebill at Joe’s Pub with the incomparable Rachelle Garniez opening for Electric Junkyard Gamelan. The former topped our best albums list in 2007; the latter played arguably the best concert we saw all year long in 2010.

3/13, 11 PM the Hsu-Nami play Taiwanese art-rock/metal instrumentals with electrified er-hu violin at Arlene’s – this band is unbelievably intense and a lot of fun.

3/13, midnight, multi-instrumentalist Thad Debrock plays the small room at the Rockwood. He’s played brilliantly on so many Americana and singer-songwriter albums it’s not funny; it’ll be interesting to hear him do his own stuff.

3/14 the Italian Surf Academy feat. Marco Cappelli – guitar; Luca Lo Bianco, bass and Francesco Cusa, drums at 7:30ish at Barbes playing 1960s style spaghetti western and Italian surf music (!?!) followed at 9:30 by another devious surfy band, Chicha Libre. They’re also at Shrine at 6 (six) PM on 3/15.

3/14, 9 PM Godspeed You Black Emperor at Terminal 5, $25 all ages. 3/15-16, 8 PM they’re at the Brooklyn Masonic Temple, $TBA, this may sell out, no word on adv tix.

3/14, 9 PM the eclectic Javier Arrau Jazz Orchestra at Tea Lounge in Park Slope.

3/15, 7 PM Musette Explosion play darkly smoldering oldtime Belgian barroom music at Barbes followed at 9 by Slavic Soul Party.

3/15, 7:30 PM at le Poisson Rouge: the Jasper String Quartet, Sospiro Winds, violinist Miranda Cuckson, pianists Jacob Greenberg and Aaron Wunsch, cellist Julia Bruskin, and hornist Angela Cordell Bilger play György Ligeti: Music for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, $15 adv tix rec.

3/15 pianist Jeremy Denk with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center plays Dvorak: Slavonic Dances (with pianist Wu Han), String Sextet and Piano Quintet in A plus works by Smetana at Alice Tully Hall, 7:30 PM, $25 tix avail.

3/15, 8 PM Cadillac Moon Ensemble plays works by Shawn Allison , Angélica Negrón, David Claman, Amy Beth Kirsten, Andre Brégégère, Ed RosenBerg III, and Anna Mikhailova at St. Peter’s Church, at 631 Lexington Ave. off 54th St., $10 sugg don.

3/15, 9 PM Iviorien roots reggae star Tiken Jah Fakoly at SOB’s, $25 adv tix rec.

3/16, 7 PM a deliciously fun if completely bizarre doublebill: banjo virtuoso Jayme Stone, who’s recently moved from desert blues to Bach, opens for the increasingly sepulchral, mesmerizing retro latin harmony band Las Rubias del Norte at le Poisson Rouge, $15.

3/16, 7 PM at Alwan for the Arts, free and open to the public, a lecture by Stuart Schaar (Prof. Emeritus, Brooklyn College/Rabat, Morocco and editor of the Grove Press Middle East and Islamic World Reader) on the topic of Generational Change and the Future of Hope in the Arab World.

3/16, 7:30 PM Shara Worden and Ymusic play a Worden world premiere plus pieces from Sarah Kirkland Snider’s hypnotic antiwar suite Penelope at Merkin Concert Hall, $25 tix highly rec. I’ll also be simulcast live on q2.

3/16, 8 PM Ethel violinist/composer Todd Reynolds plays the cd release show for his lively, entertaining, strikingly accessible new cd Outerborough at Issue Project Room, $20 cover includes a copy of the double cd – good value!

3/16 the Solid Set play garage rock at Lakeside, 9 PM.

3/16 janglerocker Sam Sherwin – who’s mining a tuneful, soulful Wallflowers vibe these days – at the Parkside, 9 PM.

3/16, 9:30 PM the JD Allen Trio with Gregg August on bass and Rudy Royston on drums at Zinc Bar, 9:30 PM. This will sell out, get there at least a half-hour early: the most explosively interesting trio in jazz right now warp tenor player Allen’s wickedly melodic, intense compositions into some crazy and unexpected shapes

3/16, 9:30 PM Joris Teepe – bass; Don Braden – tenor sax; Alex Norris – trumpet, Jon Davis – piano; Gerry Gibbs – drums, at Smalls.

3/16 dark gypsy rock bandleader/bassist Yula Beeri and her band at the big room at the Rockwood 10 PM.

3/17 lyrical jazz pianist Deanna Witkowski at Trinity Church, 1 PM, free.

3/17, 7 PM the Lia Fail Pipe Band open for Black 47 playing their annual St. Paddy’s Day show at B.B. King’s, $25 adv tix rec. Black 47 actually draw a much cooler crowd than you’d expect at one of these St. Paddy’s Days shows.

3/17, 8 PM Iranian oud virtuoso Negar Booban plays a celebration of the Nowruz, the Persian New Year/equinox festival at Alwan for the Arts, $20/$15stud/srs. Her debut here two years ago sold out quickly, advance tix rec

3/17, fun and funky stuff starting at 8 PM with Sex Mob followed by Tuarata tenor saxophonist Skerik’s punk jazz trio the Dead Kenny G’s at Brooklyn Bowl, $5.

3/17, 9 PM brilliantly lyrical, sly, torchy oldtimey songwriter/siren Kelli Rae Powell with “soulful songwriting monster” Yolanda Batts at Bar 4 in Park Slope

3/18, 7 PM pianist Simone Dinnerstein PS 142, 100 Attorney St. (Rivington/Delancey), $15, program TBA, possibly Bach from her ridiculously popular new cd.

3/17, 8 PM watch fortysomething moms dodge drunken amateurs in the Meatpacking District as they make their way to see Karla Bonoff at Highline Ballroom. $25 advance tix available in case you want to pick up a fortysomething mom.

3/17, 8:30 PM escape the drunken hordes with the Escher String Quartet playing Beethoven: Quartet in F minor, Op. 95, “Serioso” plus Mendelssohn: Quartet in D major, Op. 44, No. 1 at the Atrium at Lincoln Center, free, early arrival advised.

3/17, 10 PM yet another a chance to get away from the amateurs with Azizah & the Tribal Council playing roots reggae at Shrine

3/18, 7:30 PM the NYC debut of big band arrangements of Esquivel “compositions” by Mr. Ho’s Orchestrotica at le Poisson Rouge, $20 adv tix rec

3/18, 8 PM, repeating 3/19/11 at 9 PM at Symphony Space, legendary Lebanese expat oud icon/composer Marcel Khalife in the US premiere of his Concerto Al Andalus for oud and orchestra; Armenia’s most renowned kanun (zither) virtuoso, Karine Hovhannisyan, performing the concerto for kanun and orchestra by Khachatur Avetisyan; and clarinetist David Krakauer playing the NY premiere of the Klezmer Concerto by Ofer Ben-Amots for strings, harp, percussion and clarinet; plus the eclectic Orchestra Celebrate, conducted by Laurine Celeste Fox, $25 adv tix avail. at the World Music Institute box office and highly rec.

3/18, 8 PM Richard Thompson at NJPAC in Newark – $35 tix still available according to their website.

3/18, 8 PM eclectic vocalist Suzanne Langille and multi-instrumentalist Neel Murgai plus adventurous avant guitarist Chris Forsyth’s Paranoid Cat at Issue Project Room, $10.

3/18, 8 PM adventurous jazz guitarist Mary Halvorson leads a quintet at Barbes: Jon Irabagon (alto saxophone), Kirk Knuffke (cornet), Mary Halvorson (guitar), John Hébert (bass) & Ches Smith (drums), followed by Smokey Hormel’s Roundup playing western swing at 10.

3/18, 8 PM new music ensemble Detour at Galapagos, program TBA, $10.

3/18, 9 PM smart lyrical indie rocker Jennifer O’Connor opens for the Red House Painters’ Mark Kozelek at Bowery Ballroom, $25 gen adm.

3/18 bassist Carlo De Rosa leads a quartet with Mark Shim – saxophones, Vijay Iyer – piano, Justin Brown – drums to celebrate his new cd release, 9/10:30 PM, at the Jazz Gallery, $20

3/18, 9 PM charismatic Brazilian chanteuse Liliana Araujo – of Nation Beat – at BAM Cafe.

3/18, 9:30 PM sophisticated, counterintuitive Americana chanteuse Hope DeBates & North Forty at Caffe Vivaldi.

3/18, 10 PM a funk doublebill with Afroskull and Buzz Universe at Bowery Poetry Club, $10.

3/18 the Boss Guitars play surf classics and obscurities Lakeside, 11 PM.

3/19, 6 PM clarinetist Tom Piercy plays Piazzolla and other fascinating eclectic stuff at Caffe Vivaldi, supporting cast TBA.

3/19, 7 PM Ensemble Pi play a potent program of socially aware new music: George Crumb’s whale-song piece Vox Balaenae for Three Masked Players; Kristin Norderval’s Echo Systems (2011), composed in response to both the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the 1989 sinking of the Exxon Valdez tanker in Alaska; Pete Seeger’s classic song, Rainbow Race, in a new arrangement by Karl Kramer (2011); and Christopher Kaufman’s Hudson Valley (2010), capturing the world of the Hudson River Valley through music and film footage, including the dangers of natural gas drilling, at the great hall at Cooper Union, $15/$10 stud/srs

3/19, 7 PM latin jazz with the Gregorio Uribe Big Band at the Fat Cat.

3/19, 8 PM the high point of the month for rock music is at Trash with Thinktankok, the Highway Gimps (the missing link between My Bloody Valentine and Motorhead), the ferocious, anthemic, hilarious Brooklyn What, entertainingly ghoulish Space Ghost Cowboys and Fatty Acid around midnight. Oh yeah, open bar with PBRs and wells 8-9 PM with paid admission.

3/19, 8 PM wry lyrical janglemeister Jay Banerjee – creator of Hipster Demolition Night – is back with a wall-to-wall good evening of retro rock and soul starting with Zap & the Naturals, Toys in Trouble, Mighty Fine, Shakedown at the Majestic and his own band the Heartthrobs at midnight.

3/19, 8 PM irrepressible folk/Americana harmony trio Red Molly with Pat Wictor on guitar at the First Acoustics Coffeehouse in downtown Brooklyn, $30 adv tix rec.

3/19, 8 PM Sistermonk play Shrine – if you haven’t seen their gypsy funk thing at Grand Central (upstairs from the N/R platform) now’s your chance.

3/19, 8 PM retro jazz/bossa chanteuse Sasha Dobson – who excels at avoiding the schlock factor – at Barbes followed by the Baby Soda Jazz Band at 10 playing oldtime swing.

3/19, 8:30 PM sound sculptor Lesley Flanigan – whose creations using homemade speakers and feedback are absolutely hypnotic – plays a duet with Dither axeman James Moore at Roulette followed by string ensemble Till by Turning doing new compositions by Erica Dicker, Matt Marble, and Katherine Young.

3/19, 9 PM swirling hypnotic Radiohead-influenced art-rockers My Pet Dragon at Cake Shop; they’re also at the Mercury at 11:30 on 4/1, no joke

3/19, 9 PM Forever Her Nightmare play tuneful female-fronted punk/metal at Ace of Clubs, $10.

3/19, 10:30 PM big oldtime Americana outfit M Shanghai String Band at the Jalopy.

3/19 fearlessly funny, oldschool East Village style punk/Americana rockers Spanking Charlene play Lakeside,  11 PM.

3/20, 7 PM La Camerata Washington Heights plays “sacred and profane” music by Grandjany, Bach, Saint-Saens, Satie, Debussy, Villa-lobos and Beethoven at Culturefix on Clinton St., 8 PM

3/20, 7 PM the Four Bags – who blend jazz, classical and the Beatles with deadpan wit – at Barbes followed at 9 by Stephane Wrembel.

3/20, 8:15 smart, original 2/3 female rockabilly/surf trio Catspaw at Otto’s

3/20, 8:30 PM guitarist Scott DuBois leads a quartet featuring; Jon Irabagon, tenor, soprano sax; Thomas Morgan, bass; Kresten Osgood, drums at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

3/20 Uncle Leon & the Alibis at Rodeo Bar 10ish: “Roller Derby saved his soul as he rode the Beer Train, hating his job whilst noticing that baby’s got back.”

3/21 new music ensemble Lunatics at Large debuts their Sanctuary Project featuring works by Andre Bregegere, Mohammed Fairouz, Raphael Fusco, Laura Koplewitz, Alex Shapiro at Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall

3/21, 8 PM sharp, cumbia stars Chico Trujillo at Barbes – their only Brooklyn appearance this year – followed at 9:30ish by Chicha Libre. Chico Trujillo are at SOB’s on 3/22 at 11ish for $12 in advance if you can’t make it to Barbes.

3/21, 9 PM third-stream big band jazz with with Joseph C. Phillips and Numinous at Tea Lounge in Park Slope.

3/21 Israeli Jam/Buzzcocks ripoff Electra at Bruar Falls.

3/22 the Gowanus Reggae and Ska Society a.k.a. GRASS plays the cd release show for their new one GRASS on Fire (a jazzy instrumental remake of the Wailers’ Catch a Fire) at the Apple Store, 103 Prince St., 7 PM, free

3/22 trumpeter Steven Bernstein’s genre-defying Millennial Territory Orchestra, 7:30/9:30 PM at the Jazz Standard, $20.

3/22, 8 PM Japanese salsa stars Sonodaband play a benefit for Japanese meltdown survivors at SOB’s, $12 adv tix very highly rec., followed at 10 by  Spanglish Fly with their sultry retro 60s latin soul vibe for $10 (separate admission).

3/22-27 trumpet luminary Dave Douglas & Brass Ecstasy at the Vanguard, sets 9/11 PM.

3/23, 7 PM, free, this year’s edition of avant piano titan Kathy Supove’s Music with a View festival is underway at the Flea Theatre (41 White St. between Church/Bwy). On the bill tonight: Preston Stahly, Emily Manzo and bagpiper Matthew Welch, Paul Crowley, Kevin Bourisquot and his large musical/theatrical/dancing troupe and Aled Roberts.

3/23, 8 PM powerpop guitar genius/songwriter Pete Galub at LIC Bar.

3/23-24, 8 PM Mariachi El Bronx open for dark gypsyish rockers Devotchka at Highline Ballroom, $26.50 adv tix rec.

3/23, 7:30 PM, new music ensemble Le Train Bleu plays their debut performance of Stravinsky’s Histoire du Soldat at Galapagos, $20/$10 stud.

3/23, 7:30 PM Pedro Diaz, oboe; Milan Milisavljevic, viola; Anna Stoytcheva, piano play Schumann, Brahms, Saint-Saens and Loeffler at the Bulgarian Consulate, 121 E 62nd. St., free.

3/23-24 eclectic retro Mexican bandleader Lila Downs at City Winery, 8 PM, $35 seats avail.

3/23, 9 PM Richard Ashcroft, late of the Verve at Bowery Ballroom, $25 gen adm. Go see the show, help save him from having to do car commercials for a living!

3/24 from Turkey to Tuva and all points in between, a Nevruz (Persian new year) celebration at the UN General Assembly Hall (bring ID and remember you have to go through a metal detector), 6 PM; 3/26 it’s at Town Hall at 8 PM, free admission to each w/rsvp to www.serdarilhan.com

3/24 dark, fiery bluegrass innovators Frankenpine plays the cd release show for their phenomenal new album upstairs at the National Underground, 8 PM.

3/24, 8 PM the Talea Ensemble play new works by Evan Ziporyn, Rand Steiger, Fred Lerdahl, David Fulmer, Elizabeth Hoffman, and Aaron Cassidy: “a highlight on the program will be a world premiere by Rand Steiger entitled A Menacing Plume (2011) which is a musical response to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.” At Merkin Concert Hall, $20.

3/24 Pauline Kim-Harris (S.E.M Ensemble) and Christine Kim (principal cellist, Metro Chamber Orchestra) with Dan Joseph on hammered dulcimer play Xenakis, Ravel and others at Culturefix on Clinton St., 8 PM.

3/24 Palestinian-Canadian pianist and composer John Kameel Farah plays Middle Eastern-flavored electroacoustic works at Alwan for the Arts, 8 PM, $15 gen adm.

3/24 amusing toy piano specialist Phyllis Chen at Barbes at 8 followed by Nation Beat bandleader/drummer Scott Kettner’s Forro Brass Band at 10.

3/24 making their US debut, Australian/Korean jazz group Daorum offer a new spin on traditional Korean pansori art-song at the Atrium at Lincoln Center, 8:30 PM, early arrival highly advised.

3/24, 9/10:30 PM powerful, intense Middle Eastern jazz improvisation with Hafez Modirzadeh on saxes and Amir ElSaffar on trumpet at the Jazz Gallery, $15 first set, $10 for the second.

3/24, 9 PM Mike Baggetta – guitar; Jason Rigby – saxophones;Eivind Opsvik – bass; George Schuller – drums at Tea Lounge in Park Slope.

3/24 oldschool soul revivalists the One and Nines – like a more Memphis equivalent of Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings – at Maxwell’s, 9:30 PM

3/24, 9:30 PM the cd release show for alto saxophonist Mike DiRubbo’s excellent new Chronos album with Brian Charette on organ and Darrell Green on drums at Smalls.

3/25, 7 PM, free, this year’s edition of avant piano titan Kathy Supove’s Music with a View festival continues at the Flea Theatre (41 White St. between Church/Bwy) with Robert Rowe, Martha Mooke, Agatha Kasprzyk and Vision Fugitive (Audio/Video Collective from NYU) and Coppice (Noé Cuellar and Joseph Kramer)

3/25, 7 PM New York’s most diverse, engagingly virtuosic klezmer hellraisers Metropolitan Klezmer at Cooper Union as part of a commemoration of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire (where’s Rasputina, who did a song about it?)

3/25, 7:15 PM, Americana hellraiser/singer Carolyn Mark at Hill Country. Is she gonna let the hordes of yuppies bellow at each other through her set? Doubtful. Could be great fun even without the music.

3/25, 7:30 PM powerful, eclectic singer Mellissa Hughes (of Newspeak) and pianist Timo Andres play songs about “death, sexuality, and Craigslist, by Jacob Cooper, Corey Dargel (a song utilizing condemned convicts’ last words), Ted Hearne, Gabriel Kahane, Matt Marks, and Eric Shanfield”  followed by Victoire keyboadist Lorna Krier and her bandmate Eleonore Oppenheim plus Peter Pearson and Derek Muro (of Love Like Deloreans) along with Stephen Greisgraber of Redhooker on guitar at First Presbyterian Church (Brooklyn Heights), 124 Henry St, 2/3 to Clark St.; A/C to High St.; R/4/5 to Borough Hall, $10.

3/25, 8 PM the O’Farrill Brothers Band – Livio Almeida – saxophones; Adam Kromelow – piano; Adam O’Farril – trumpet and Zach O’Farrill – drums – play latin jazz at Barbes followed at 10 by the ageless Jug Addicts.

3/25 the Brilliant Coroners play Monk (fans will get the joke) at Fontana’s, 8 PM.

3/25, 8:15 PM Box Five play quirky female-fronted chamber pop followed by hypnotic marimba/cello duo Goli at Caffe Vivaldi.

3/25, 8:30 PM an amazing duo doublebill at I-Beam: the Charlie Evans/Neil Shah duo (bari sax and piano) and the Charlie Rauh/Sam Kulik Duo (guitar/trombone).

3/25, 9 PM hypnotic, intense gypsy-tinged Balkan instrumental rock band Barbez – who were sort of the prototype for Ansambl Mastika – at BAM Cafe “debuting new material from a forthcoming recording for John Zorn’s Tzadik label of radical reinterpretations of ancient melodies from Roman-Jewish community, the oldest Jewish community in Europe. The group will also present new works from a forthcoming album concerning the wars in the Middle East since 9/11.”

3/25, 9 PM charming, sultry French chanson revivalists les Chauds Lapins play the cd release show for their long awaited second album Amourettes at the 92YTribeca, $12.

3/25, 9 PM bassist Michael Feinberg plays the cd release show for his brash, smart new one at Smalls with saxophonist Noah Preminger, pianist Julian Shore, guitarist Alex Wintz, and drummer Daniel Platzman.

3/25, 9/10:30 PM alto sax hellraiser Jon Irabagon leads a trio with John Hebert on bass and Mike Pride on drums at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $15.

3/25-26, 9:30 PM oldtime country harmonies with Those Darlins and then Austin retro funk/soul star Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears – who puts all these new jack wannabes to shame – at Bowery Ballroom, $16 adv tix rec.

3/25, 11 PM 90s style melodic  Britrock with the Royal Chains at Spike Hill, $7.

3/26, 3 PM at ABC No Rio hardcore with Loto Ball, Boston’s Furiosity, Belgian band Baby Fire and Brooklyn band Wojcik.

3/26, 3 PM, free, this year’s edition of avant piano titan Kathy Supove’s Music with a View festival continues at the Flea Theatre (41 White St. between Church/Bwy) with a demo by Dafna Naphtali & “musical robots” Lemur Bots followed at 7 PM by performances by Dafna Naphtali & Lemur Bots, Ted Hearne & Philip White and Jonathan Chen.

3/26, 6:30 PM violinist Erik Sato, violist Naomi Rooks, pianist Ruth Alperson, clarinetist Daniel Spitzer , cellist Michael Finckel play Beethoven, Schickele and Dvorak at the lounge at Hudson View Gardens, 116 Pinehurst Ave. and 183rd St., $10.

3/26 oud genius Mavrothi Kontanis’ amazing band Maeandros – featuring saxophone powerhouse Lefteris Bournias – at Barbes at 8 followed at 10 by retro latin soul band Spanglish Fly.

3/26 Connecticut surf rock monsters Commercial Interruption at 8 followed eventually at 10 by the Tarantinos NYC at Coco 66, free

3/26, 8 PM this month’s Brooklyn County Fair at the Jalopy features a reliably good C&W lineup with Ramblin’ Andy & the See Ya Laters, Spuyten Duyvil, Citizens Band Radio, Sam Otis Hill and Co. and at midnight the ferocious Newton Gang, $10.

3/26, 8 PM Roosevelt Dime play tongue-in-cheek oldtimey Americana originals followed eventually at 11 by funk/soul powerhouse Sister Sparrow and the Dirty Birds at Pete’s.

3/26, 8 PM, a mind-warping all ages metal show with Disma, Mutant Supremacy and death metal legends Nunslaughter (first NYC show in 10 years) at the Acheron in Bushwick.

3/26, 8 PM Juan de Marcos’ Afro-Cuban All Stars at the NY Society for Ethical Culture, 2 W 64th St., $45 seats avail (super expensive, but they’re mostly Buena Vista Social Club type legends).

3/26 the John Sharples Band- who play all covers by brilliant obscure rock songwriters at 9 at the Parkside followed at 10 by charismatic keyboardist/noir songwriter Tom Warnick & the World’s Fair.

3/26, 9 PM 80s style goth-pop pianist/chanteuse Kristin Hoffmann at Caffe Vivaldi.

3/26 lush, jangly Americana band Alana Amram & the Rough Gems at Matchless, time TBA. They’re also at the Gutter bowling alley in Williamsburg on 4/1 at 11ish.

3/26, 9:30 PM renowned sufi/Middle Eastern multi-instrumentalist/singer Amir Vahab plus a screening of Like A Phoenix From The Ashes documentary film focusing on Iran in the 1960s and 70s; part of this year’s Persian Arts Festival.

3/26 legendary East Coast Balkan brass juggernaut Zlatne Uste at Drom, 10:30 PM, $10 adv tix rec.

3/26 midnight-ish Exit Clov plays captivating psychedelic pop in the vein of the Zombies at the big room at the Rockwood.

3/27, 3 PM, free, Dither guitarist James Moore and Cornelius Duffalo co-host an “open salon” featuring literally dozens of emerging cutting-edge composers (too many to list here) to wrap up this year’s edition of avant piano titan Kathy Supove’s Music with a View festival at the Flea Theatre (41 White St. between Church/Bwy)

3/27 John Zorn’s benefit for Japan at the Miller Theatre with Sonic Youth et al. is sold out. There are others coming up at benefits at the Abrons Arts Center on April 8 with Norah Jones, Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth), Ikue Mori, John Zorn, Vinicius Cantuaria, Masada String Trio, among others., and the Japan Society on April 9

3/27, 7 PM Pierre de Gaillande sings George Brassens at Barbes followed at 9 by Stephane Wrembel.

3/27, 7:30 PM the Jack Quartet plays György Ligeti, Steve Lehman, and Horatiu Radulescu at le Poisson Rouge, $15.

3/27 the Felice Bros. show at Maxwell’s is sold out but there are still $20 tix avail. for the 3/28 show.

3/28, 7 PM the pretty amazing Kamikaze Ground Crew – Gina Leishman, saxophones, bass clarinet, accordion, vocals; Doug Wieselman, clarinets, saxophones, guitar; Steven Bernstein, trumpet and slide trumpet; Marcus Rojas, tuba; Peter Apfelbaum, tenor saxophone, Art Baron, trombone, Kenny Wollesen, drums – at Barbes followed at 9:30ish by Chicha Libre

3/28, 7 PM the titanic Bobby Sanabria Big Band at the Museum of the City of NY, $5 cover

3/28 the Jasper Quartet at Advent Church, 93rd and Broadway, 7:30 PM, free.

3/28 the JC Sanford Orchestra at Tea Lounge in Park Slope, 9 PM. Their trombonist leader – who books the Monday night series here – and his adventurous crew absolutely slayed last time they played here.

3/28, 9 PM wry Americana multistylist guitarist/songwriter Steve Antonakos plays a solo show at Banjo Jim’s; he’s also at Local 269 at 7 on 3/31.

3/28 charming oldtime 20s swing jazz with Daria Grace and the Pre-War Ponies at Rodeo Bar, 10ish.

3/29, 8 PM, free at the Bell House (not a joke): “Due to a legal settlement that we’re not allowed to discuss TV Party is giving back with some community service. For one night only we’ll be providing drug awareness education to keep you from making terrible life choices! Join TV Party for a special showing of 90’s drug awareness episodes. We’ll see Zack Morris, Steve Urkel, Stephanie Tanner, Carlton Banks [besides Urkel, WTF are these people?!?], and more try to overcome the temptation of drugs while still looking cool. Including Just Say No & TV commercials from 90’s TV past! Test your drug use prevention knowledge with the D.A.R.E challenge! Winner gets a free D.A.R.E. t-shirt! Take away your dry mouth with drinks! No peer pressure… but seriously, have a drink. Prizes including tickets to upcoming Bell House shows & more!”

3/29, 8 PM art-metal Mars Volta spinoff Zechs Marquise play Highline Ballroom, followed by one of the guys from the MV, $20 adv tix onsale now.

3/29, 9:30 PM Bosnian singer Natasa Mirkovic and hurdy-gurdy virtuoso Matthias Loibner putting a new spin on traditional Balkan stuff at Joe’s Pub, $15.

3/30, 2 PM Suzanne Vega performs songs from her forthcoming play Carson McCullers Talks About Love at the Green Space. Also on the bill and talking with WNYC host John Schaefer: the Mountain Goats. Adv tix $20 very highly rec., events here always sell out.

3/30, 8 PM a killer gypsy punk triplebill at the downstairs studio space at Webster Hall with Bad Buka, Slavic Soul Party and Kultur Shock, $10 adv tix rec.

3/30, 8 PM a John Zorn Masada Marathon including just about every good rock, jazz and classical artist who’s ever played the Stone doing selections from the Book of Angels at the NY City Opera, $12 adv tix. very highly rec., this will sell out.

3/30, 9 PM all-female Canadian punk-pop trio Hunter Valentine at Bowery Electric, $12

3/30 austere, smart chamber-pop band Pearl & the Beard at Rock Shop in Gowanus, 10 PM, $10; 4/1 at 9:30 PM (no joke) they’re at the Knitting Factory for $10 in advance.

3/31, 7 PM pianist Anna Levy plays classic Bulgarian art-songs by Pancho Vladigerov, Ditimar Nenov, Veselin Stoyanov, Ivan Spassov, Vasil Kazandzhiev, Georgi Anaourdov and Mikhail Goleminov at the Bulgarian Consulate, 121 E 62nd St., free

3/31, 7 PM noir/garage chanteuse Peg Simone at Bowery Poetry Club.

3/31, 7:30 PM the Vinca String Quartet play Mozart, Janácek, Bartók and Beethoven at WMP Concert Hall, $25

3/31, 8 PM smartly multistylistic retro keyboardist/singer and Jack White collaborator Rachelle Garniez (whose most recent album we named best of the year) at Barbes.

3/31 a good night for voices: fearlessly lyrical pop/rock siren Elaine Romanelli at Banjo Jim’s 8 PM followed by country chanteuse Drina & the Deep Blue Sea at 9 and then Boo and Elena from Demolition String Band at 10.

3/31, 8 PM world-renowned Amsterdam-based jazz troublemakers Instant Composers Pool (ICP) Orchestra with the legendary Misha Mengelberg on piano at le Poisson Rouge, adv tix $15 highly rec.

3/31, 8 PM the Chiara String Quartet’s latest Creator/Curator concert features Lutoslawski’s String Quartet (with improvisations) and Daniel Ott’s String Quartet No. 2 at Galapagos, $10 adv tix rec.

3/31, 8 PM Irish art-rock crooner Pierce Turner at Paddy Reilly’s, $15.

3/31, 8 PM pianist Jenny Lin plays ten of György Ligeti’s Études pour piano (1985-2001), as well as his Continuum for Harpsichord (1968), and Musica ricercata (1951-3) Greenwich House Music School, 46 Barrow St. between Bedford St. & 7th Ave. S, $15.

3/31, 8:30 PM the ferocious Balkan/Middle Eastern psychedelic jams and amped-up, haunting old folk songs of Ansambl Mastika at the Atrium at Lincoln Center, 8:30 PM, early arrival very highly advised.

3/31-4/2, 8 PM Wynton Marsalis leads a quintet at Rose Theatre at Jazz at Lincoln Center, $30 seats avail., reserve now if you’re going.

3/31, 9 PM amazingly period-perfect retro 60s Bakersfield country band the Dixons at Union Pool $TBA.

3/31, 10 PM Jane says she’s only going to be at Pete’s Candy Store: Oh Liza Jane play bluegrass and retro Americana followed by the infectious, all-female oldtimey Calamity Janes at 11.

3/31, 10:15ish chamber rock band Build plays the cd release show for their new one at Joe’s Pub $12. Note that the 9:30 PM opening act is nauseatingly self-indulgent.

3/31 retro soul/noir chanteuse Shendandoah & the Night at the Rockwood, midnight.

4/1 clever garage rock duo the Fools at 5 PM (no joke – makes sense, right?) at Goodbye Blue Monday.

4/1, 6 PM (no joke) country night with the Melody Allegra Band, Alex Battles & the Whisky Rebellion and Serena Jean and her band at Spike Hill, $6.

4/1 lyrical jazz piano titan Fred Hersch solo, 7 PM at the Rubin Museum of Art in Chelsea, $18 adv tix highly rec.

4/1, 7:30 PM Piedmont fingerstyle blues guitar virtuoso Mary Flower at the Good Coffeehouse, 53 Prospect Park W, $15

4/1, 8:30ish (no joke), Her Vanished Grace (playing the cd release show for their new one) and Religious to Damn do a goth-tinged doublebill at Union Hall, $8.

4/1 for real, ghoulabilly and noir retro rock with the Dead Sextons at Europa in Greenpoint, 8ish, $10

4/1, 9 PM (seriously) Charles Bradley & the Menahan Street Band and Lee Fields & the Expressions at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, $17 adv tix at the Mercury rec.

4/1, 9 PM an amazing purist rock triplebill, no joke – wickedly catchy, jangly Rickenbacker guitar rockers Jay Banerjee & the Heartthrobs, garage-rock purists the Above and then garage legends the Fleshtones at Maxwell’s.

4/1, 9 PM, no joke, tuneful yet noisy new jazz with Kretzmer/Syversen/Niggenkemper/Peskoff at 1012 Willoughby in Brooklyn, sugg don.; they’re at Local 269 on 4/4/ at 9 for $10

4/1 haunting, twangy southwestern gothic band And the Wiremen play the Bell House at 9ish opening for the Waco Bros., $12 adv tic rec.

4/1, 9 PM Providence doom/metal duo The Body followed by a rare rare NYC appearance by Australian metal blunderbuss Whitehorse at the Acheron in Greenpoint – maybe your only chance to see them, don’t miss it if metal is your thing.

4/1 no joke – Brooklyn’s funnest band, Chicha Libre plays a rare Friday show at their home base, Barbes, at 10 before heading off on South American tour.

4/1, no joke, the New Cookers – not the Billy Hart/George Cables crew but guys inspired by the original Freddie Hubbard album – at BAM Cafe, 10 PM

4/1, 10 PM (no joke) goth legend Peter Murphy plays Highline Ballroom, adv tix $35 rec.

4/1, 11 PM (no joke – when this guy’s involved you know he means business) the snarling retro Americana noir sounds of the Reid Paley Trio at Cafe Orwell in Bushwick

4/1, 11 PM roots rock powerhouse Tom Clark & the High Action Boys play Lakeside 11 PM – not a joke.

4/1, no joke, intense Greek traditional party band Magges – sort of the Greek Gogol Bordello -at Lafayette Grill & Bar downtown, 11 PM

4/1 midnight (no joke) lush, atmospheric, socially aware Radiohead-influenced rockers My Pet Dragon at the Mercury, $10 adv tix at the box office highly rec.

4/1 (no joke) the Fleshtones at Maxwell’s.

4/1-2 the Prisoners of 2nd Ave. – who do a decent oldschool NY Dolls facsimile – at Bowery Electric. And they want $20 for it. No joke.

4/1, 2 PM Broadway Musicals of 1864 at the Town Hall featuring such popular songs as “Let’s Round Up Some Irishmen,” “I Need Some Mercury (Because Down Below Is Killing Me),” “We Won’t Call It Slavery Anymore” and the John Wilkes Booth version of “Dixie.”

4/1, 3 PM the New York Stock Exchange presents a concert to celebrate the successful prevention of the Fukushima nuclear explosions – as we all know by now, there was no meltdown, nor any emission of deadly plutonium or uranium isotopes – with vintage Elvis footage accompanied by a live band at the World Financial Center.

4/1, 6 PM brand-new social networking site narciss.us presents Shallow Is What We Aim For, We Are Pampered Children, Poser Dumb and My Eyelashes Are Longer Than Yours at Glasslands; celebrity dj Fella Tio spins blo-fi between sets.

4/1, 6 PM Steve Brotherdale’s Joy Division plays the Warsaw ep cover to cover followed by Melvin Seals’ Jerry Garcia Band at B.B. King’s.

4/1, 7 PM How to Stuff Your Trousers: A Panel Discussion with the Pros at Galapagos. What works best? A roll of quarters? A veggie hot dog? String cheese? Six of the best in the business, including Tom Jones, Engelbert Humperdinck, David Lee Roth, Keith Urban and our favorite perennial mayoral candidate, Murray Hill share the secrets of their craft.

4/1, 7 PM It’s Inarticulate Night at the Bell House. Ever wonder…um…why you can’t….um…talk to…you know…um…people? Now’s your chance to meet a whole club full of others just like you who will spend the whole night staring at their shoes or trying to figure something coherent enough to say to get the bartender to bring them a beer. $15 cover includes a year’s subscription to New York Magazine.

4/1, 4 PM Taurus & Libra present Payday: The Traveling Party. Ever wonder what it’s like to have to get up and go to work all week long instead of sleeping til 5 PM and living off mommy’s credit card? Join your group leaders Emily and Faden as they take you on an “ironical” voyage around New York. You’ll see the inside of a real check cashing place, meet a real-life bill collector, dodge undercover cops as you drink cheap beer from a paper bag outside a bodega, use real scissors to cut grocery coupons from the newspaper and go on a dollar-store crawl for cheap toilet paper without GPS or an iphone app. Authentic working-class attire is a must: trucker hat, overalls, 1970s sneakers for the guys; moth-eaten polyester, uneven bangs, torn corduroys for the girls.

4/1, 8 PM at Crash Mansion, it’s Eurethra, the world’s #1 Eurythmics cover band. Relive the golden days of the day-glo decade that you fetishize even if you never experienced it with unforgettable hits like Aqua, Plus Something Else and The First Cut! If you get tired of the band, women can join the free wet t-shirt contest in the men’s room.

4/1, 8:30 PM it’s a John Zorn-a-thon at the Stone with John Zorn’s Are You Itchy?, John Zorn’s Don’t Sit on That Chair, John Zorn’s Call the Exterminator, John Zorn’s Call the Exterminator Again and finally John Zorn’s Sidewalk Sale.

4/1, 10 PM the Central Park Conservancy presents a special VIP concert with Kenny G for Platinum Circle members in the new private Great Meadow in Central Park. Enjoy the new golf driving range (please be aware that frisbee is no longer allowed). The line to the brand-new Shake Shack starts at the Battery. Helicopter shuttles to the Hamptons will be running all evening from where the zoo used to be.

4/1 the New York Times exclusive interview with Justin Bieber, conducted by Bono at the Bloomberg Society at 5th Ave. and 42nd St. Get the scoop on both performers’ opposition to abortion, and after struggling to down his first Guinness, hear Justin confess how he thinks that Ryan Secrest is cute.

4/1 it’s the battle of the kiddie bands at Southpaw. This year’s first round pits tiny terror two-year-old William Slomowitz-Park and his avant garde percussion troupe The Isaagnys against the Borough Park death-metal of Siobhan Satmarowitz’ Mitzvah Tank. Meanwhile, the snotty punk-pop of Park Slope’s Germ Bombs pairs off against Turtle Bay newcomer Asanitansamarama Patel and Dowry Large Extra. And Williamsburg contender Yeast DuPont’s laptop project Trite Is goes up against Long Island City’s The Overprotected. All proceeds to benefit the Crusade Against Suicide, in memory of last year’s winner, Hayes Bessemer of the Kaplan Klass Killers (KKK).

4/1, 10 PM Flavorpill and Khloe Kardashian present the first annual Buttcrack Awards at Public Assembly. Do your pants hang low? Do they wobble to and fro especially when you bend over? First prize winner gets a year’s subscription to New York Magazine.

4/1, 11 PM the drummer from the Strokes is dj’ing at a “celebrity party” on the roof of the empty “luxury” condo building behind the Mercury Lounge that nobody wants to move into, free admission with condo tour and $50 credit check.

4/1 Whitney Houston plays the Recoup Lounge way over by the projects, 11:30 ish – she might be running a little late for this one – with the guy you see hanging out in Tompkins Square Park with the broken Casio.

4/1 it’s the first annual Foursquare New York City Marathon, brought to you by the new green BP Oil. You get 26 hours to do as many Foursquare checkins as you can. See who can become the new mayor of the Prada store: in the door, out the door, in the door, out the door! Breakfast, lunch AND dinner at Fette Sau! Bring a sleeping bag to Freeman’s!

4/1, 7-10 PM the NY School of Autotune celebrates with a recital at Arlene Grocery followed by the Body Shots Olympics sponsored by MTV.

4/2, 6 PM pianist Aysegul Durakoglu plays the cd release show for her new one featuring works by Chopin and Debussy at Drom, $10 adv tix rec.

4/2, 7 PM Marc Ribot and a hall of fame of downtown jazz peeps play noir soundtrack stuff including new arrangements of Henry Mancini (Touch of Evil), Andre Previn (Scene of the Crime), Roy Budd (Get Carter) and also Lounge Lizards, Rootless Cosmopolitans, and new noir by the guitarist himself at the Tishman Auditorium at the New School, 66 W 12th St., free.

4/2, 7 PM Nashville/Toronto gothic rock with Lorraine Leckie & Her Demons at Banjo Jim’s.

4/2, 7:30/9:30/midnight Jared Gold plays the cd release to his groovy new B3 organ jazz album at the Bar Next Door with his trio.

4/2, 8 PM rustic, haunting, sprawling Balkan/jazz/Americana band Kotorino at Barbes

4/2, 8:30 PM a triplebill put together by Brooklyn Jazz starting with the Rob Garcia 4: Noah Preminger – tenor sax, Jacob Sacks – piano, Joe Martin – bass, Rob Garcia – drums followed at 9:45 by the Anne Mette Iversen Quartet: John Ellis – sax; Danny Grissett – piano; Anne Mette Iversen – bass; Mark Ferber – drums and then at 11 the Adam Kolker Trio plus woodwinds: Adam Kolker – reeds; Jeremy Stratton – bass; Billy Mintz – drums plus a wind section, all this for $15 at the Cornelia St. Cafe.

4/2, 9 PM a classic Syrian music extravaganza celebrating centuries of music in the city of Aleppo featuring a historical lecture by Mohamed A. Alsiadi at Alwan for the Arts followed by a show by a 10-piece allstar Syrian/Middle Eastern orchestra, $20/$15 stud/srs.

4/2, 9 PM haunting Appalachian/Balkan vocal duo AE followed at 10:30 PM by bluesman Blind Boy Paxton at the Jalopy.

4/2 new wave literate rock legend Graham Parker at City Winery, 9 PM, $25 seats avail.

4/2, 9:30 PM Mr. Ho’s Orchestrotica Quartet playing Esquivel at Caffe Vivaldi

4/2, 10 PM snarling Syd Barrett/Stooges style garage rock with Obits at the Bell House, $13 adv tix rec.

4/2, 10 PM Sonny Rollins band trombone vet Clifton Anderson at BAM Cafe.

4/2, 10 PM anthemic 80s-tinged keyboard-driven art-rock band Overlord at Fontana’s

4/2 jangly, lyrical southwestern gothic rocker Tom Shaner plays Lakeside, 11 PM.

4/3, 1 and 3 PM the Baltimore Consort play eclectic 16th century Spanish compositions at the Cloisters, $35 gen adm.

4/3, 2 (two) PM the Parker String Quartet – who for what it’s worth just won a Grammy – free at Flushing Town Hall.

4/3, 3 PM the Greenwich Village Orchestra plays Ives – Variations on America; “American Songbook Selections,” and Howard Hanson’s sweeping, cinematic Symphony No. 2 at Washington Irving HS Auditorium, $20 sugg don. reception to follow.

4/3, 6 PM: Nico Soffiato on guitar, Nick Vedeen on alto sax, Giacomo Merege on bass and Zach Mangan on drums at Downtown Music Gallery.

4/3, 7 PM delightfully irreverent “unconventional oboe trio” the Threeds play Caffe Vivaldi joined by Eleanor Dubinsky who follows at 8 PM, playing new arrangements of Bjork, Mingus, the Doors, Carmichael and Dubinsky as well

4/3, 7 PM Stephanie Rooker & the Search Engine play wickedly smart, socially aware, psychedelic funk and downtempo grooves at the little room at the Rockwood.

4/3 tuneful British/Canadian janglepop band Early Winters (Carina Round’s latest project) at Public Assembly, time/$ TBA.

4/3 glammy, punkish, entertainingly funny Justice of the Unicorns at Bruar Falls at 8 followed at 9 PM rustic lyrical psychedelic Portland songwriter Shelley Short at Bruar Falls

4/3 popular Ethiopian-American chanteuse Meklit Hadero at the Skirball Center, 8 PM, $20.

4/3, 10 PM tuneful, sly, literate Americana band the Sometime Boys – the acoustic side project of ferocious art-rockers System Noise – at Banjo Jim’s

4/4 Colombian chanteuse Lucia Pulido at 7:30 followed by low-register oldschool Cuban band Gato Loco at 9:30 at Barbes. Gato Loco are also here on 4/18 at 10.

4/4, 7 PM the Ebene Quartet performs the Debussy String Quartet and arrangements of pieces by Miles Davis and Astor Piazzolla, plus “Misirlou,” at the Greene Space, $20.

4/4, 7:30 PM paint-peeling noiserock intensity with the Sediment Club at Bowery Electric, $10.

4/4, 7:30 PM new music ensemble Sequitur plays Robert Sirota’s A Sinner’s Diary; the NY premiere of Victoria Bond’s Frescoes and Ash; the world premiere of Catullus Dreams by David Glaser; the NY premiere of Mix Tape by Armando Bayolo; and the world premiere of Noemi by Daniel Godfrey. at Symphony Space, $20 adv tix rec.

4/4, 8/10:30 PM veteran Chicago blues guitarist Joe Louis Walker at the Blue Note, $10 “bar seating” avail.

4/4, 8:30 PM the Becca Stevens Band’s cd release show at the big room at the Rockwood.

4/5, noon, Members of the Chamber Music Society Lincoln Center play Brahms’ Piano Quartet in G minor at the Greene Space, free.

4/5, 7 PM members of Ensemble ACJW perform Ravel’s Sonata for Violin and Cello, as well as David Bruce’s octet Steampunk at the Greene Space, $20.

4/5, 8 PM Third World at Highline Ballroom $30 adv tix onsale now – don’t know how much, or how many original members, they have left (they were old when they started the band in the early 70s) – ostensibly they have a new album out. 196 Degrees in the Shade?

4/5, 8:30 PM adventurous mostly-female klezmer hellfaisers Isle of Klezbos at the Sixth St. Synagogue, 325 East 6th St (betw First & Second Aves), $15 includes a drink (in temple – yay!)

4/5, 9 PM Dina Rudeen plays the cd release for her brilliant new one at the little room at the Rockwood; dark psychedelic jazz pianist/composer Dred Scott plays at midnight with his trio.

4/5, 9 PM noisy distantly Balkan tinged guitar/trumpet madness with Ben Syversen’s Cracked Vessel at Local 269

4/5, 10 PM UK indie rock pioneers Wire at the Music Hall of Williamsburg; 4/6 they’re at Bowery Ballroom, $20 adv tix rec.

4/5, 11 PM lush atmospheric cinematic art-rockers the Quavers at Cake Shop

4/6, 8 PM Alison Leyton-Brown’s oldtime piano blues gand House of Stride at Barbes followed at 10 by the provocative, gorgeously harmony-driven oldtimey Roulette Sisters.

4/6, 7 PM string quartet Ethel play Julia Wolfe’s Early That Summer; Dohee Lee’s HonBiBaekSan; Jacob TV’s Syracuse Blues; Pamela Z’s ETHEL Dreams of Temporal Disturbances; Huang Ruo’s The Flag Project (excerpt) and Anna Clyne’s Roulette at the Greene Space, $20

4/6, 9:30 PM an amazing chromatically-charged, minor-key doublebill with haunting Appalachian/Balkan vocal duo AE and multistylistic Russian/tango/cinematic string band Ljova and the Kontraband at Joe’s Pub, $15.

4/7, noon, new music trio Janus play Debussy, Treuting, and Negron at the Greene Space, free.

4/7, 8 PM the Jack Quartet play Tetras by Iannis Xenaxis and Death Valley Junction by Missy Mazzoli, as well as Ari Streisfeld’s arrangements of pieces by haunted Renaissance composer Gesualdo.at the Greene Space, $20.

4/7, 8 PM Norwegian pianist Leif Ove Andsnes plays a darkly pensive, thematic program of two Beethoven Sonatas, No. 21, “Waldstein,” and No. 32, Op. 111, bookended by Brahms (Four Ballades, Op. 10) and Schoenberg (Sechs kleine Klavierstucke, Op. 19) at Carnegie Hall

4/7 Rebirth Brass Band at the Brooklyn Bowl; 4/10 they’re at Maxwell’s

4/7, 10 PM chanteuse Marta Topferova – who never met a latin style she couldn’t make her own, and make it compelling – at Barbes.

4/7, eclectic Brazilian/country/New Orleans band Nation Beat at Rodeo Bar 10ish

4/8, noon, free, the Escher Sting Quartet performs Zemlinsky and Brahms at the Greene Space.

4/8, 3 PM organ adventurer Gail Archer wraps up her latest tour through a composer’s repertoire with an all Liszt concert at the Church of the Heavenly Rest, 5th Ave. at 90th St., 6 train to 86th St., free.

4/8, 7 PM at the Greene Space – let’s cross our fingers and hope they’re ok – the Tokyo String Quartet performs on its “Paganini Quartet” of matched Stradivarius instruments Haydn’s String Quartet in F major Op. 77 No. 2, the fourth movement of Bartók’s String Quartet No. 4, and Beethoven’s “Grosse Fugue” Op. 133. at the Greene Space, $20.

4/8, 7:30 PM adventurous new compositions with the Janus Trio and Mantra Percussion at First Presbyterian Church (Brooklyn Heights), 124 Henry St, Brooklyn, NY, 2/3 to Clark St.; A/C to High St.; R/4/5 to Borough Hall.

4/8, 8 PM torchy catchy compelling soul/trip-hop band Mattison in the back room at the Gutter bowling alley in Williamsburg.

4/8-9, 8 PM NYU performers play NYU composers at the Black Box Theatre, 82 Washington Square East adv tix free but required for the show.

4/8, 9 PM PinkBrown feat. Cracked Vessel guitar arsonist Xander Naylor with Max Jaffe on drums and Johan Andersson on saxophones at 1012 Willoughby.

4/8, 9 PM long-running garage rockers the Greenhornes at the Bell House.

4/8, 9 PM a hall of fame cast of West Coast Middle Eastern musicians led by percussionist Souhail Kaspar play music of Umm Kulthum, Mohamed Abdel Wahab, Farid al-Atrash and Abdel Halim Hafez at Alwan for the Arts, $20/$15 stud/srs.

4/8, 9ish cleverly eerie new music improvisers Dollshot at Galapagos, $10.

4/8, 9 PM it’s the Lakeside 15 year anniversary party – amazing how such a friendly, unpretentious place could survive under siege from yuppies and tourists for so long. And whoever’s behind the bar by 9 is bound to be cool. We may be there.

4/8, 9/10:30 PM south Asian and Middle Eastern new jazz sounds with Rudresh Mahanthappa’s Gamak feat. Dave Fiuczynski on guitar at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $15

4/8, 9:30 PM eclectic acoustic Americana roots/zydeco/country band Blue Sky Mission Club at Hill Country

4/8, 10 PM the Black Angels at Bowery Ballroom; 4/9 they’re at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, $20 adv tix. at the Mercury highly rec., this will sell out.

4/8, 10 PM second wave garage rock vets the Greenhornes at the Bell House, $15

4/9, 8 PM up-and-coming southwestern gothic star Kerry Kennedy – part noir femme fatale, part fiery bandleader – at Union Hall, $12 adv tix highly rec.

4/9 a killer triplebill at the Postcrypt Coffeehouse – back uptown again after a brief stay in the East Village – with Alyson Greenfield at 8:30, Carol Lipnik at 9:30 and Lorraine Leckie at 10:30.

4/9, 8:30 PM hypnotic Mississippi hill country blues guitarist Will Scott at 68 Jay St. Bar.

4/9, 8:30/11 PM Jamaican jazz piano titan Monty Alexander at Birdland, $30 seats avail.

4/9, 9 PM a killer doublebill at Bowery Electric with ferociously lyrical songwriters, Linda Draper and Matt Keating.

4/10, 6 (six) PM Sara Lewis – simmering jazzy chanteuse who veers between dark cabaret-based piano songs and Beatlesque pop – at Caffe Vivaldi.

4/10, 6 PM Ras Moshe & the Music Now Ensemble feat. Kyoko Jitamura and Shayna Dulberger and Andrew Drury, followed at 7 by Belgian duo Olivier Stalon on bass and Pablo Masis on trumpet at Downtown Music Gallery

4/10, 7 PM cellist Sebastian Baversteam plays a solo show at Barbes followed at 9 by Stephane Wrembel.

4/10 hilarious, diverse satirical cowpunk rockers Uncle Leon & the Alibis at Rodeo Bar 10ish

4/11, 7 PM Gina Leishman, vox, baritone ukulele; Charlie Burnham, violin; Matt Munisteri, guitar and Brad Jones, bass at Barbes followed at 9:30ish by Chicha Libre.

4/11, 8ish adventurous new music string quartet Ethel play two world premieres including Dohee Lee’s HonBiBaekSan (The Ritual of White Mountain) and Hafez Modirzadeh’s A Hot Time in the Ol’ Town; as well as performances of Terry Riley’s Sunrise of the Planetary Dream Collector, and Pamela Z’s ETHEL Dreams of Temporal Disturbances at le Poisson Rouge, $20

4/11 oldtime Americana with the Builders & the Butchers at the Mercury, 10 PM, $10.

4/11 fiery charismatic art-rock/goth-punk siren Vera Beren books the night at Small Beast at the Delancey, including a set with her band at 10ish

4/12 catchy tuneful brilliantly melodic jazz from Terry Dame’s Monkey on a Rail in just their third concert since the early zeros, at Barbes at 7 followed by Slavic Soul Party at 9.

4/12 bassist Lauren Falls leads a quintet with Seamus Blake, tenor sax; Mike Moreno, guitar; Can Olgun, piano; Trevor Falls, drums, 8:30 PM at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

4/12-17, 8/10:30 PM the Crusaders – who reputedly have returned to their roots as a late 60s style funk/groove band – at the Blue Note, $30 “seats” avail ($35 on the weekend)

4/13, 7:30 PM The Orchestra of the S.E.M. Ensemble with Ostravská Banda conducted by Petr Kotik play John Cage: Concert for Piano and Orchestra with Joseph Kubera, piano; Carolyn Chen – Wilder Shores of Love (world premiere); György Ligeti – Concerto for Piano and Orchestra with Daan Vandewalle, piano; Alex Mincek – Pendulum #7 for saxophone and ensemble (world premiere) at Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, $15 tix avail.

4/13, 10ish indie classical composer Emily Wells – whose latest stuff has the playful, accessible feel of Todd Reynolds’ recent work – at Glasslands, $10 adv tix onsale now.

4/14 retro soul/noir chanteuse Shendandoah & the Night at Spike Hill

4/14, 7:30 PM pyrotechnic violinist Gil Morgenstern’s reliably fascinating, thematic Reflections Series concludes its 2010-2011 season with a program titled Transfigured Nights with pianist Donald Berman and cellist Ole Akahoshi including Arnold Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht and Shostakovich’s Trio in E Minor, at WMP Concert Hall, $25.

4/14, 8 PM Shelby Lynne at City Winery, $30 seats avail.

4/14, 8 PM provocative, smart Palestinian-American world music songwriter Stephan Said at Drom, $10 adv tix rec

4/15-22 two of the most exhilarating singers on the planet, John Kelly and Carol Lipnik perform their suite The Escape Artist, which “traces the experience of a performer who has a catastrophic trapeze accident. While stranded on a gurney with a broken neck in a hospital emergency room, he escapes and finds refuge in the images that flood his mind: the sinners and saints, prostitutes and gods that populate Caravaggio’s paintings.” With music by Lipnik and Kelly plus selections by Monteverdi and John Barry, at PS 122, 8 PM, $25/15 stud/srs.

4/15, 8 PM Niger’s desert blues legends Etran Finatawa – who played one of the 20 best shows we saw last year – at Symphony Space, $35.

4/15, 8 PM a cool reggae triplebill at the smaller studio space downstairs at Webster Hall with Echo Movement, Maui Waui and the Green (whose blend of vintage Hawaiian and roots reggae is totally original), $10 adv tix rec.

4/15, 9 PM Joe Pug at Rock Shop in Gowanus, $10; 4/16 he’s at the Mercury at 11:30 PM for $2 more.

4/15, 10 PM wild jazzy gypsy rock/jaz with Jay Vilnai’s Vampire Suit at Barbes

4/15, 11 PM O’Death at the Knitting Factory – this will probably sell out – $10 adv tix rec.

4/16-17, 5-7 PM free at Issue Project Room, some ideas close to our hearts: “Yolande Harris’s installation Tropical Storm, developed in a residency with Alvin Lucier at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in Florida, is a shot of a Florida storm, with the sound of rainfall as the only audio. In The Pink Noise of Pleasure Yachts in Turquoise Sea, Harris explores the place of sound in the underwater animals, and the effects of the sound of recreational boating on the smallest sea creatures.”

4/16, 7 PM Eleventh Dream Day opens for the recently reunited Come at the Bell House adv tix $20 rec.

4/16, 7:30 PM, repeating 4 PM on 4/17, Lisa Bielawa’s Synopses: Synopsis #2: In the Eye of the Beholder for percussion performed by Aaron Trant, Synopsis #4: I’m Not That Kind of Lawyer for solo double bass performed by Doug Balliet, Synopsis #6: Why Did You Lie to Me? for solo cello performed by Eric Jacobsen, Synopsis #9: I Don’t Even Play the Bassoon for solo viola performed by Miranda Sielaff, and Synopsis #10: I Know This Room So Well for solo English horn will be performed live, with new choreography by Catherine Gallant at NY City Center, 130 West 56th St., $15 tix avail.

4/16, 8 PM Central Asian troupe Turku play ancient Silk Road repertoire at Drom, $10 adv tix highly rec., this will sell out

4/16 psychedelic roots reggae monsters Dub Is a Weapon play their cd release show at Sullivan Hall, 9ish, $10 adv tix rec.

4/16, 11ish Bogs Visionary Orchestra at Goodbye Blue Monday; they’re also here late on 4/27.

4/16, midnight ecstatically fun Afrobeat band Elikeh plays Joe’s Pub, $14.

4/17, 1 and 3 PM all-male choral sextet Lionheart sing Thomas Tallis’s “masterful and heart-wrenching settings of the Lamentations of Jeremiah, performed in alternation with their traditional Latin chant responsories—as they might have been heard in the chapel of Elizabeth I” at the Cloisters, $35 gen adm.

4/17, 4 PM hilarious retro Weimar bandleader/crooner Max Raabe & Palast Orchester at NJPAC in Newark, $21 tix avail.

4/17, 6 PM reedman Daniel Carter with bassist Pascal Niggenkemper at Downtown Music Gallery.

4/17, 9 PM  dark lyrical rock siren/guitar goddess Randi Russo plays the cd release show for her career-best new one Fragile Animal at the Mercury, followed by another equally fiery, lyrical band the Oxygen Ponies.

4/17, 9 PM pianist Bobby Avey leads a quartet with Miguel Zenon, alto saxophone; Thomson Kneeland, bass; Jordan Perlson, drums at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

4/18-19 powerful jazz vibraphonist Mark Sherman and his Quintet with Jim Ridl, Dean Johnson, Tim Horner and special guest Randy Brecker at the Kitano, $25 plus $15 min at tables

4/18, 8 PM the irresistible Pipettes – snarling cockney girls playing oldschool Motown and soul – at Rock Shop in Gowanus; 4/20 they’re at the Mercury at 7:30 PM, $15.

4/19 Moroccan-American chanteuse Malika Zarra plays the cd release show for her new one Berber Taxi with her band at the Jazz Standard, sets 7:30/9:30 PM

4/19-24 and 4/26-5/1 Bill Frisell plays the Vanguard: first with Eyvind Kang on violin and Rudy Royston on drums, then with Ron Miles on trumpet, Tony Scherr on bass and Kenny Wollesen on drums.

4/20, 10 PM psychedelic dub reggae with John Brown’s Body followed by the Easy Star All-Stars at Highline Ballroom, $20 adv tix highly rec. Note that some loser from a reality tv show – who’s decided to switch from corporate rock to reggae – opens the show at 9.

4/21, three excellent, separate-admission shows at Joe’s Pub. 7 PM Pharaoh’s Daughter is $15; Spottiswoode’s cd release show at 9 is $15; Afrobeat band Emefe’s show at 11:30 is $TBA.

4/21-22, 7ish Mogwai at Webster Hall, adv tix $28.50 rec.

4/21, 7:30 PM adventurous new music ensemble Lunatics at Large play five brand-new commissioned works by Ryan Fusco, Andre Bregegere, Laura Koplewitz, Alex Shapiro and Mohammed Fairouz as part of their Sanctuary Project at WMP Concert Hall, $25

4/21, 8 PM in “Scuttling around in the shallows, Jane Winderen continues her investigation into the sound of shrimp, exploring how the smallest creatures of the ocean use sound for communication, orientation, and feeding. Hydrophones—originally a military development—are repurposed, inadvertently producing unexpected qualities not informed by their original design. Winderen uses these hydrophones to create immersive sonic environments, something far from the original intention of these surveillance devices.” At Issue Project Room, $12

4/21, 8:30 PM Susie Ibarra’s Electric Kulintang – sort of the Filipino counterpart to Electric Junkyard Gamelan – at the Atrium at Lincoln Center, 8:30 PM, early arrival highly advised

4/21, 8:30 PM oldtimey Americana with Margaret Glaspy, Miss Tess & the Bon Ton Parade and the Woes at Southpaw, $10 adv tix rec.

4/22 sprawling acoustic Americana with Jones St. Station at le Poisson Rouge, 7:30 PM, $10 adv tix rec.

4/22, 8 PM pianist Jenny Q Chai and Iktus Percussion Quartet play the world premiere of Five Pieces by Nils Vigeland, as well as works by Gérard Grisey, Lukas Ligeti, Vivian Fung, and two world premieres from emerging composers Inhyun Kim and Dillon Kondor downstairs in the Thalia Theatre at Symphony Space, $15/$10 stud.

4/22, 9 PM gypsy chanteuse Sanda Weigl’s cd release show for her intense, excellent new one Gypsy in a Tree at the 92YTribeca, $15 adv tix highly rec.

4/22, 9 PM oldschool plena and bomba sounds with Quimbombo at BAM Cafe.

4/22, 11 PM Hayes Carll at Bowery Ballroom $15 adv tix rec.

4/23, 1 PM a free concert at Bargemusic, early arrival advised, most likely piano music; there’s another on 5/7.

4/23, 1 and 3 PM, early music ensemble Pomerium sings works by Lassus, Monteverdi, Gesualdo, and Byrd at the Cloisters, $35 gen adm.

4/23, 8:30 PM ferocious noisy punk/glam rockers the K-Holes at Glasslands adv tix $10 rec.

4/25 charismatic intense somewhat scary cellist/vocalist Audrey Chen plays Roulette, 8:30 PM. One of the crew here insists that her set – “music” might not be an accurate word for it – at Issue Project Room last year was the best show of 2010. Your life will not be complete until you’ve survived an hour or so of her sonic assault.

4/26, 8 PM Balkan Beat Box at Webster Hall, $20 gen adm.

4/27, 7 PM Mr. Wau Wa – Gina Leishman, vox, accordion, pump organ; Rinde Eckert, vox, accordion, pump organ; Doug Wieselman, clarinet, sax, guitar; Marcus Rojas, tuba and Kenny Wollesen, drums – plays Bertold Brech at Barbes followed at 9:30ish by Chicha Libre.

4/27, 7:30 PM pianist Alexandra Joan – whose remarkable emotional intelligence and fearlessness set her apart from the millions of cookie-cutter classical pianists out there – plays an all-French program of Fauré, Ravel, Enescu and Fairouz at WMP Concert Hall

4/27 haunting, hypnotic Middle Eastern sounds with Duo Jalal feat. violist Kathryn Lockwood plus percussionist Yousif Sheronick David Krakauer and Glen Velez at Drom, 8 PM, $12 adv tix rec

4/28 the Newton Gang play their cd release show for their long-awaited new one at Southpaw, 9 PM followed by Gangstagrass at 11, $10 adv tix highly rec, all ticketholders get a copy of the new album.

4/29, 7:30 PM a high-energy gypsy rock doublebill with Watcha Clan and Rupa & the April Fishes at le Poisson Rouge, $15.

4/29 surfy latin garage rock with the Cuban Cowboys at BAM Cafe, 9 PM.

4/30 latin jazz by the O’Farrill Family Band at BAM Cafe, 9 PM.

5/3-4, 8 PM Bruce Cockburn & Jenny Scheinman at City Winery, $35 seats avail.

5/6, 9 PM the 2 Man Gentlemen Band and the Infamous Stringdusters at Bowery Ballroom $15 gen adm.

5/7 haunting original bluegrass/Americana band Frankenpine at the Brooklyn Museum

5/8 Rev. Horton Heat at Highline Ballroom.

5/9-12 the Mata Festival at le Poisson Rouge feat. ACME, Metropolis Ensemble, Florent Ghys, L’Arsenale, Cantori New York, Dither Electric Guitar Quartet, Ryan Carter, Christopher Mayo, and Angélica Negrón

5/9, 8/10:30 PM Matt Guitar Murphy at the Blue Note, $10 seats avail. Octogenarian Chicago blues guitar legend who suffered a stroke onstage a few years ago and finished the song before he decided to take a break. If he’s even a fraction of his old self he’s worth seeing.

5/10 Monty Python/Bonzo Dog Band’s Neil Innes at Highline Ballroom

5/14, 11 AM Wall to Wall Sonidos at Symphony Space, free, Arturo O’Farrill’s Sacred Concert for his Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra based on settings of Jewish, Islamic, Gospel, and Afro-Cuban texts; a work for shakuhachi and string quartet [Colorado Quartet] from Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez; a world premiere of Roberto Sierra’s Cuarteto para cuerdas no. 2 [La Catrina Quartet]; Tania León [Harlem Quartet]; new works by Fernando Otero (with dancers); and performances by Continuum, Damocles Trio, Poulenc Trio, Ray Vega, Gabriel Alegria, and many others.

5/19, 7:30 PM the Trinity Choir sings music of Elena Ruehr at Trinity Church.

5/19, 9:30 PM Karen Hudson with her band at Lakeside playing songs from her forthcoming Late Bloomer cd.

5/26, 10:30 PM gypsy punks the West Philadelphia Orchestra followed by haunting, hypnotic, psychedelic Turkish band Raquy & the Cavemen at Drom, $12 adv tix rec.

6/4 the Silk Road Ensemble with Yo-Yo Ma at NJPAC in Newark, $25 seats avail.

6/19 this year’s free Punk Island festival at Governors Island happens two days in advance of Make Music NY as the yuppies are shitting their pants at the thought of loud, nonconformist music being played anywhere near their “luxury” apartments. Free ferries leave on the half hour from the old Staten Island Ferry terminal; here’s a public facebook page about it.

NYC Live Music Calendar for June-July 2010 Plus Other Events

We have a brand new calendar for July and August here. 

If you don’t recognize the place where a particular act is playing, check our venues page. If you didn’t see anything that tickled you this time around, you can always check back later since we constantly get news about new shows and then add them here.  

 A few things you should know about this calendar: acts are listed here in order of appearance, NOT headliner first and supporting acts after; showtimes listed here are actual set times, not the time doors open. If a listing here says something like ”9 PM-ish,” chances are it’ll run late. Cover charges are those listed on bands’ and venues’ sites: always best to click on the band link provided or go to the venues page for confirmation since we get much of this info weeks in advance. As always, weekly events first followed by the daily listings:

Sundays there’s a klezmer brunch at City Winery, show starts round 11:30 AM – 2 PM, $10 cover, no minimum, lots of good bands.

Sundays from half past noon to 3:30 PM, bluegrass cats Freshly Baked (f.k.a. Graveyard Shift), featuring excellent, incisive fiddle player Diane Stockwell play Nolita House (upstairs over Botanica at 47 E Houston). Free drink with your entree.

Stephane Wrembel plays Sundays at Barbes at 9. He’s something of an institution here, plan on arriving EARLY, 45 minutes early isn’t too soon since the whole bar gets packed fast. The guitarist has few if any equals as an interpreter of Django Reinhardt, but it’s where he takes the gypsy jazz influence in his own remarkably original, psychedelic writing – and what he brings to the Django stuff – that makes all the difference. One of the most interesting players in any style of music, anywhere in the world.

Every Sunday the Ear-Regulars, led by trumpeter Jon Kellso and (frequently) guitarist Matt Munisteri play NYC’s only weekly hot jazz session starting around 8 PM at the Ear Inn on Spring St.  Hard to believe, in the city that springboarded the careers of thousands of jazz legends, but true. This is by far the best value in town for marquee-caliber jazz: for the price of a drink and a tip for the band, you can see world-famous players (and brilliant obscure ones) you’d usually have to drop $100 for at some big-ticket room. The material is mostly old-time stuff from the 30s and 40s, but the players (especially Kellso and Munisteri, who have a chemistry that goes back several years) push it into some deliciously unexpected places.

Sundays in July Matty Charles plays Pete’s at 9:30 PM. For those who missed his years playing  here back in the zeros, he writes a classy acoustic melody and a wryly understated lyric to go with it, in a John Prine sort of way.

Every Sunday, hip-hop MC Big Zoo hosts the long-running End of the Weak rap showcase at the Pyramid, 9 PM, admission $5 before 10, $7 afterward. This is one of the best places to discover some of the hottest under-the-radar hip-hop talent, both short cameos as well as longer sets from both newcomers and established vets.

Mondays at the Fat Cat the Choi Fairbanks String Quartet play a wide repertoire of chamber music from Bach to Shostakovich starting at 7

Mondays at the Jazz Standard it’s all Mingus, whether with the Mingus Orchestra, Big Band or Mingus Dynasty: you know the material and the players are all first rate. Sets 7:30/9:30 PM, $25 and worth it. July 19 is an especially cool date because the Big Band has Rudy Royston on drums.

Mondays at the Delancey on the main floor, 8:30 PMish Botanica frontman and master of menace Paul Wallfisch presents the edgiest weekly music series in town, playfully called Small Beast, an international mix of some of the most intelligent (and frequently darkest) performers passing through town. It’s free and there’s always some kind of drink special or freebee. If you wish Tonic was still open, Wallfisch is keeping the flame alive. He typically plays a solo set on piano around 10 PM, reason enough to put this on your calendar. July artists include haunting baritone crooner and Ninth House frontman Mark Sinnis, fiery cello rock band Blues in Space and others.

Also Monday nights Vince Giordano’s Nighthawks, a boisterous horn-driven 11-piece 1920s/early 30’s band play Sofia’s Restaurant, downstairs at the Edison Hotel, 221 West 46th Street between Broadway & 8th Ave., 3 sets from 8 to 11, surprisingly cheap $15 cover plus $15 minimum considering what you’re getting. Even before the Flying Neutrinos or the Moonlighters, multi-instrumentalist Giordano was pioneering the oldtimey sound in New York; his long-running residency at the old Cajun on lower 8th Ave. is legendary. He also gets a ton of film work (Giordano wrote the satirical number that Willie Nelson famously sang in Wag the Dog).

Mondays at the Vanguard the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra – composer Jim McNeely’s reliably good big band vehicle – plays 9/11 PM, $30 per set plus drink minimum.

Also Mondays in July the Barbes house band, Chicha Libre plays there starting around 9:30. They’ve singlehandedly resurrected an amazing subgenre, chicha, which was popular in the Peruvian Amazon in the late 60s and early 70s. With electric accordion, cuatro, surf guitar and a boisterous rhythm section, their mix of obscure classics and originals is one of the funnest, most danceable and possibly eeriest shows you’ll witness this year.

Also Mondays in July Rev. Vince Anderson and his band play Union Pool in Williamsburg, two sets starting around 11 PM. The Rev. is one of the great keyboardists around, equally thrilling on organ or electric piano, an expert at Billy Preston style funk, honkytonk, gospel and blues. He writes very funny, very politically astute, frequently salacious original gospel songs and is one of the most charismatic, intense live performers of our time. Paula Henderson from Burnt Sugar is the lead soloist on baritone sax.

Tuesdays in June the Dred Scott Trio play astonishingly smart, dark piano jazz at the Rockwood at midnight.

Every Thursday the Michael Arenella Quartet play 1920s hot jazz 8-11 PM at Nios, 130 W 46th St.

Every Friday in July at 8:30 PM at the Fat Cat Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens bring an authentic here-and-now Brooklyn church vibe, no slick theatrics, just soul.

Fridays there’s live Mediterranean music – Greek- Arabic, Turkish Armenian, Israeli fusion with Mike Stoupakis, Christos Zavolas, Sofia on on vocals, Elias Sarkar-oud/vocals, Kostas Konstantinou – drums,  plus bellydancers at Lafayette Grill & Bar, 54 Franklin St., downtown,$20 cover, 10ish, free after 1 AM.

6/2 Jeremy Udden’s Plainville play pensive, thoughtful Americana jazz at Bryant Park, 6 PM, free

6/2, 7:30ish jazz vibraphone legend (and Guru collaborator) Roy Ayers at Betsy Head Park, Herzl at Livonia Ave., Brownsville, Brooklyn, 3 train to Livonia Ave.

6/2 fearless, kinda noir Costello/Parker style rock songwriter Mike Rimbaud at Sidewalk, 8 PM

6/2 Toots & the Maytals at B.B. King’s, 8 PM – their new album Flip & Twist is available in special package with a “a joint-shaped USB drive loaded with Flip & Twist, a Toots Stash Box, the physical CD of the album, and a variety of other gifts.” Other gifts, hmmm…..

6/2 Robbie Krieger and Ray Manzarek at the Nokia Theatre, 8:30 PM, $30 tix available.

6/2, 9 PM soulful, pensive, artsy, distantly Wilco-ish Americana rockers the Smooth Maria at LIC Bar

6/2-3 Gillian Welch’s virtuoso guitar sidekick David Rawlings at Bowery Ballroom, 9 PM, $25.

6/2 catchy propulsive female-fronted powerpop with the Mikal Evans Band at Spike Hill, 10 PM.

6/3, 6:30 PM a benefit for Music Crossing Borders with an eclectic bill featuring West African percussion ensemble Bedstuy Ewe, amazing gypsy rockers Bad Buka (FKA Panonian Wave), darkly slinky tango nuevo innovators Importango and others at Bohemian Hall, 321 E 73rd St. (1st/2nd Aves), $30 incl. open beer/wine bar, munchies

6/3 Trombone Shorty and Michael Franti and Spearhead on Governor’s Island, 7 PM $35 adv tix avail. at the B.B. King’s box office – note that youtube losers-du-jour One Eskimo are opening so tix will go fast, get them while they last. Ferry fare is $5/ roundtrip, leaving from the old Shaolin Ferry terminal on South St.

6/3, 7 PM Inna Faliks plays Chopin, Schoenberg, Schumann, Beethoven and Pasternak at the Yamaha Piano Salon, $15.

6/3 oldschool soul/funk crooner/shouter Eli Paperboy Reed at the Mercury, 7:30 PM, $15. He’s also at the Bell House on 6/9 at 9ish for three dollars less.

6/3 a killer doublebill at Barbes starting at 8 with the rustic, gypsy-flavored, darkly atmospheric Kotorino followed by NYC’s best blues band, Bliss Blood’s Delta Dreambox at 10.

6/3, 8 PM a killer triplebill at Banjo Jim’s: Sabrina Chap, who “sounds exactly like a drunken fistfight between Scott Joplin and Phyllis Diller,” followed by sharply literate, often hilarious Americana charmer Robin Aigner at 9 and then the ferociously smart, energetically punkish, intensely charismatic banjo rocker Curtis Eller at 10.

6/3 a good country/roots triplebill with crooner Jesse Lenat, the Lonesome Heroes and Maybelles frontwoman and extraordinary singer Jan Bell – with an equally amazing band: Rima Fand on violin, Megan Palmer on piano, Brian Geltner on percussion and Tim Luntzel on upright bass – at Union Pool, 8 PM $8.

6/3 richly lyrical, fearless rocker Matt Keating at the Rockwood (on the second stage – we’re still trying to figure out where they hide it in that small space) at 8 PM

6/3, 8 PM the New Amsterdam Symphony plays Prokofiev – Romeo and Juliet Suite #2 and Brahms – Violin Concerto in D at Symphony Space, tix $18/$12 stud/srs, kids $10.

6/3, 8:30 PM Paul Shapiro’s bustling, boisterous, often amusing Ribs & Brisket Revue at Cornelia St. Cafe, 8:30 PM, $10.They played here New Year’s Eve – that’s what you can expect.

6/3, 8:30 PM a musical seance of sorts at Roulette: “Using ultrasonic microphones and voicemail, Speaking with the Dead will search the ether for the unhearable present while invoking voices from the past.” Audience members should be prepared to make a small “offering,” in 3 minutes or less, i.e. an activity for the audience. Performer Brenda Hutchinson suggests something of a stretch, i.e. if you’re a singer, draw a picture; if you’re a painter, sing something.

6/3 devious, hilarious steampunk songwriter/banjoist Al Duvall and the perennially witty oldtimey 2 Man Gentlemen Band at the Jalopy, 9 PM.

6/3 fearless garage rocker Anna Anabolic and her band the Anabolics at Spike Hill, 9 PM.

6/3 L’il Kim – out of jail, bless her heart – at Irving Plaza, 9 PMish adv tix $35 rec.

6/3 adventurous, rousing, totally original bluegrass band Frankenpine at Lakeside, 9:15ish.

6/3,9:30 PM snarling LES glam-noir rockers Doppelganger followed by the similar Dead Sparrows at Glasslands, only $7

6/3 punkish southpaw guitar god Sam Sherwin with his all-girl band at R Bar 9:30 PM

6/3 imaginatively crosspollinating Brazilian/country/New Orleans band Nation Beat at Rodeo Bar, 10:30 PM.

6/4-8 Members of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s performing an all-Mozart program, free: Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, String Quintet No. 1 in B-flat Major, K. 174; and depending on the date, the Flute Quartet in D Major, K. 285; the Oboe Quartet in F Major, K. 370 or the Horn Quintet in E-flat Major, K. 407. Venues vary throughout the boroughs: click this link and scroll down for venues and times.

6/4 Tris McCall and band outside the Grove St. Path station in Jersey City, 8 PM. If songwriting is important to you, this guy’s important, dammit. You would have gone to this if it was 1977 and it was Elvis Costello. Well it’s 2010 and this is Tris McCall. $2 on the Path train and Dosa Hut (world’s yummiest Indian pancake place) is just down the block. As a bonus, energetic 60s soul revivalists the One and Nines – something of a more Memphis-oriented Sharon Jones – wrap up the evening at 9

6/4, 9 PM an A-list Middle Eastern supergroup – Souren Baronian – G-clarinet, saxophone, kaval, duduk, riq with Haig Manoukian – oud, Lee Baronian – darbukkeh, Mal Stein – drums, percussion, Sprocket Royer – double bass at Alwan for the Arts.

6/4 lyrical rock monster night with the 60s flavored psychedelic pop of McGinty & White at 9 followed at 10 by new wave legend/raconteur Wreckless Eric with his fierily amusing wife Amy Rigby at Bowery Electric.

6/4 catchy indie powerpopsters Elk City at the Bell House, 9 PM, $8 adv tix rec.

6/4, 10 PM the ever-increasingly more ghostly, more psychedelic oldschool latin ballad rockers las Rubias del Norte – whose new album is one of the year’s best – at Barbes.

6/4, 10 PM Zion Judah play roots reggae at Shrine.

6/4, 10 PM the Reid Paley Trio at Cafe Orwell, 247 Varet St. between Bogart & White, Bushwick, Brooklyn, L to Morgan Ave. This will be fun – see how the trendoids react to some real oldschool no-BS noir. “OOOH, I spilled PBR on my baby blue Prada!”

6/4-5 Texas honkytonkers Heybale feat. Redd Volkaert, Merle Haggard’s original lead guitarist at Hill Country, 10 PM.

6/4 early 70s NYC proto-new wave legends Tish & Snooky (Debbie Harry’s old bandmates in the Stillettos and Manic Panic founders) at Kenny’s Castaways, 10 PM

6/4, 10:30 PM ferocious avant-garde/rock string quintet Sybarite5 – Radiohead meets Bartok – at Galapagos, 10:30 PM, $15, adv tix highly rec

6/4, 10:30ish, 80s noir/goth legends the Psychedelic Furs at Irving Plaza, adv tix $36.50 avail.

6/4 ferocious, funny, fearless electrified bluegrass rockers Demolition String Band at Rodeo Bar, 10:30 PM

6/4 high-energy ska-flavored Argentinian rock legends Los Autenticos Decadentes at B.B.King’s 11 PM.

6/4, midnight, Mississippi hill country blues with R.L. Burnside’s kid, Kent Burnside and the New Generation at Banjo Jim’s. Pork Chop Willie gets things off on the good foot at 11.

6/5, noon, Balkan brass punks What Cheer Brigade at McCarren Park.Their latest album is called We Blow, You Suck. Hungry March Band are here in the park at 2 on 6/6.

6/5, 7 PM intense, lightning fast but incisive Chicago style blues guitarist Bobby Radcliff at Terra Blues. He’s also at Lucille’s on 6/19 at 8.

6/5, 7:30 PM at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine a Benefit Concert for the Congregation of Saint Saviour: Victoria Sirota, organ & Robert Sirota, piano play his Letters Abroad and Celestial Wind plus music by Bach, & Fanny & Felix Mendelssohn, $20 tix available.

6/5 a ska fest with Hub City Stompers, Rudie Crew,Moon Invaders, Caroloregians, Royal City Riot, 7:30 PM at the Knitting Factory, $10 adv tix highly rec., this may sell out.

6/5, 7 PM dark garage songwriter Lorraine Leckie and Her Demons at Banjo Jim’s.

6/5, 8 PM our favorite minimalist creepy avant garde improv rockers Dollshot play Ibeam in Gowanus, Brooklyn, F or R train to 4th Ave & 9th Street. Walk down 4th Ave to 7th St., make a left on 7th St. and walk past 3rd Ave. The place is located on the ground floor, the grey doors to the right of the stairs of #168.

6/5-9 The New York Art Ensemble moves its Ninth Annual Tribeca New Music Festival, a 4-concert series of cutting-edge new music to Merkin Concert Hall, shows each night at 8 PM. Performers include the New York Art Ensemble Monsters (pianists Geoffrey Burleson and Kathleen Supové, and violinist Mary Rowell), the JACK Quartet, Ted Hearne Band, Pamela Z and more, adv tix $20 per concert at the box ofc highly recommended.

6/5, 8 PM the Chelsea Symphony plays Gross: Suite for Strings (world premiere); Haydn: Sinfonia Concertante; Mendelssohn: Midsummer Night’s Dream at St. Paul’s Church, 315 West 22nd St., repeating on 6/6 at 3 PM.

6/5, 8:30 pm the Festival Chamber Orchestra with Lutz Rath, cello; Steven D. Hartman, clarinet; David Taylor, trombone; David Oei, piano play Beethoven – Trio for piano, clarinet and cello; David Taylor – world premiere of Too Suite for bass trombone, voice, and winds; Stravinsky – Concerto for piano and 24 winds at St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church, 371 6th Ave. (W 4th/Waverly Pl.), free.

6/5, 9 PM Unsteady Freddie’s monthly surf music extravaganza at Otto’s starting at 9 with Aaron and the Burrs – “the only surf-punk electric kazoo band that matters” – the North Shore Troubadours, the surf/spy Sharkskins and what’s left of Brooklyn surf legends the Sea Devils around midnight

6/5, sets at 9/10:30 PM the John McNeil/Bill McHenry Group – John McNeil, trumpet; Bill McHenry, tenor saxophone; Neal Mine, bass; Jochen Rueckert, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe. McNeil is a ham, a first-class composer and McHenry is a great sideman in this kind of context.

6/5, 9 PM dark, edgy, violin-and-guitar-driven indie band Bern & the Brights at Spike Hill.

6/5 Greek traditional party music monsters Magges at Mehanata, 10 PM free before 10:30

6/5 Brian Jonestown Massacre at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, 10 PM, $22 adv tix. rec.

6/5, midnight, Joy Ryder – sort of the white Sharon Jones – at Kenny’s Castaways

6/5 the fun, sardonic punk pop of the Homewreckers at quarter to one in the morning (actually morning of 6/6) followed by the insatiable, filthy, hilarious punk/girlgroup Cudzoo & the Fagettes at half past one at Cake Shop.

6/6, 2 PM the Scandia String Quartet play Foerster – Traditional Finnish Dances (arr.), the delightfully devious Summer in Ft. Tryon Park; Poul Schierbeck – Largo; Greig – Wedding Music from Troldhaugren; Sibelius – Intimate Voices at Ft. Tryon Park, A to 186th St., enter at 193rd St.

6/6 fun, devious, paradigm-shifting klezmerites Metropolitan Klezmer play 2 PM at Freedom Square Park, 75th Road & Main St., Kew Gardens Hills, Queens (you’ll have to take a bus – doesn’t seem to be any subway service out there). They’re also playing at half past noon at St. Mark’s Park, 9th St. and 2nd Ave. on 6/17 and doing two sets at Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop, 174 5th Ave (22nd St), 7 PM, $15/$10 seats avail.

6/6, 3 PM the Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra plays Weill – Threepenny Opera Suite; Schoenberg – Chamber Symphony #1; Rachmaninoff – Symphonic Dances at St. Ann’s Church, 157 Montague St. (Clinton/Henry), downtown Brooklyn, 2/3/4 to Borough Hall or F to Jay St. or A/C to High St., dirt cheap, only a $15 donation

6/6, 3 PM doors, latin music new jack  Jose Conde followed by Cuban pianist/bandleader César Pedroso, taking the place of the recently cancelled Los Van Van at Central Park Summerstage.

6/6, 3 PM the season finale of Kathleen Supove’s reliably entertaining avant garde series at the Flea Theatre, 41 White St. (Church/Broadway), in Tribeca, free – Michael Evans and Susan Hefner doing a percussion/dance piece, adventurously atmospheric guitarist Nick Didkovsky and then Eylan Vital doing electronic stuff plus a lively after-show discussion with the audience.

6/6, 5 PM up-and-coming avant titans Ensemble ACJW at Our Savior’s Atonement, 178 Bennett Avenue, A train to 175th St., program TBA, sugg. don. $15

6/6 the NYCity Slickers play soaring bluesgrass with harmonies at Bar Nine on 9th Ave. betw. 53/54th Sts., 6 PM

6/6 fiery janglerock/indie rockers Cementhead at the Mercury 9 PM.

6/6, 10 PM diverse, artsy, lyrically dazzling 90s Britrock throwbacks Special Patrol Group play Trash Bar. One of our favorite rock bands right now.

6/7-11 Microscopic Septet pianist and Fresh Air theme composer Joel Forrester plays outdoors on the terrace at Bryant Park, half past noon, free

6/7 the Imani Winds at Bryant Park, 6 PM, free, program TBA

6/7, an amazing Small Beast 8:30ish at the Delancey with Botanica frontman Paul Wallfisch, playful Kate Bush-style avant/cabaret chanteuse Adrienne Anemone, the eerie four-octave range of phantasmagorical Carol Lipnik and Spookarama, and the intense, dark southwestern gothic twang of And the Wiremen.

6/7, 8:30 PM guitarist to the stars of the underground (Love Camp 7, Drina Seay, Magges ad infinitum) Homeboy Steve Antonakos at Banjo Jim’s.

6/7, 9ish the Wailers – feat. original Marley guitarist Al Anderson and “Police and Thieves” crooner Junior Marvin at B.B. King’s, $25 adv tix rec.

6/8, 7 PM latin song multistylist Marta Topferova and excellent understated band at 55 Bar.

6/8 first-class Irish folk instrumental/dance quartet New Time Ensemble (flute, guitar, fiddle and cello) play the Irish seisun at Dempsey’s, 8 PM; 6/10 they’re at the SoHo Gallery for Digital Art, 138 Sullivan St. at 8 PM, $15

6/8-13, 7 PM Evelyn Evelyn AKA Amanda Palmer of the Dresden Dolls and Jason Webley do their conjoined-twin ukelele comedy/rock thing at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, $25 adv tix ostensibly not sold out yet and very highly rec.

6/8 the Museum Mile Festival just gets shorter and shorter.This year the following museums are open for free 6-9 PM with Fifth Ave. turned into a pedestrian mall: El Museo del Barrio; The Museum of the City of New York; The Jewish Museum; Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, Smithsonian Institution; National Academy Museum & School of Fine Arts; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; Neue Galerie New York; Goethe-Institut New York/German Cultural Center; and The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

6/8 captivating Americana songwriter/chanteuse Julia Haltigan at the second stage of the Rockwood (still trying to find out exactly where they hide it), 7 PM. The wonderful furry-suited ragtimish Xylopholks play at 10 in the main space

6/8 Changing Modes – a really amazing, catchy, smart blend of Siouxsie-esque new wave, and oldschool art-rock – downstairs at Ella, 9 Ave. A. (the latin disco with the scary-looking bouncers outside), 9 PM, $9. They’re also at Cafe Bar, 32-90 36th St in Astoria for Make Music NY on 6/21 at 8.

6/8, 9:30 PM Stateless: A Hip-Hop Vaudeville by Dan Wolf and Tommy Shepherd with Keith Pinto, music by Felonious and One Ring Zero at Joe’s Pub. Dan Wolf of Felonious discovered that his great-grandfather and great-uncle were Jewish vaudevillians in pre-WWII Germany, took some of their old songs and brought them forward about eighty years. Our Balkan music maven raves about it. Adv tix $15 highly suggested.

6/9, 7 PM “before the era of theme bars there was the neighborhood bar.” Director Vicente Rodriguez Ortega has an acclaimed new documentary out, “Freddy’s Bar & Backroom” about the legendary Brooklyn bar which, like CBGB, created a vital scene and fought courageously against greedy developers who wanted to tear it down. At Brooklyn Heights Cinema, 70 Henry St.; also screening 6/11, 6 (six) PM at IndieScreen, 285 Kent Ave., Williamsburg, early arrival advised for each.

6/9 the Easy Star All-Stars – the crazy reggae crew responsible for Radiodread, Dub Side of the Moon and the reggae version of Sgt. Pepper – at Hiro Ballroom, adv tix $16 at the Highline Ballroom box office (note box office different from venue).

6/9, 8 PM at the Stone it’s the Sylvie Courvoisier Trio with Sylvie Courvoisier (piano), Ben Perowsky (drums), Thomas Morgan (bass) followed at 10 by Perowsky’s own quartet with Chris Speed (tenor,clarinet), Ted Reichman (accordion), Trevor Dunn (bass). Also see 6/18 for more Courvoisier.

6/9, 8 PM Norah Jones at Prospect Park Bandshell, free – suggest you go in the back entrance, to the right of the main gate, past the bathrooms – or linger beyond the fence in back, this will be packed to capacity very fast.

6/9, 9 PM the Tarantinos NYC play smart, original, diverse surf and soundtrack instrumentals at the Brooklyn Bowl, free.

6/9, 9 PM the Andy Statman Trio doing his bluegrass thing at the Jalopy, $10

6/9, 9:30 PM Second Dan play melodic Oasis-esque powerpop on that mysterious second stage at the Rockwood.

6/9, 9:30 PM Jessica Lurie’s popular, multistylistic Tiptons sax quartet at the Tank, $10.

6/9, 10 PM Jeremy Messersmith at Littlefield, $8. Don’t let the bedhead or the ridiculous Sufjahn Stevens comparisons spook you off – the guy can play, and write, like a more artsy Carl Newman, looking back to the Kinks during their chamber pop era – or Elliott Smith.

6/9, 10:30 PM at Rodeo Bar there’s tongue-in-cheek, period-perfect early 50s style country from Susquehanna Industrial Tool & Die Co.

6/10, legendary P-Funk organ player Bernie Worrell’s SociaLybrium at noon at Metrotech Park in downtown Brooklyn, F to Jay St.

6/10, half past noon pianist Arturo O’Farrill leads a probably scaled-down version of his latin jazz orchestra outside St. Mark’s Church, 2nd Ave. and Stuyvesant St..

6/10 an absolutely sick triplebill at Union Hall: hillbilly chick satirists Menage a Twang at 8:30, the Debutante Hour lending some badly needed seriousness to the event and then the fearless, hilarious, sex-crazed faux girl-group punk-pop of Cudzoo & the Fagettes, $8, get there early because this will sell out.

6/10, sets 8/10 PM delta blues legend – hey, he wasn’t in 1967 but he is now – Jorma Kaukonen at Iridium, $35

6/10, 9 PM the ultimate retro 20s songwriter, Bliss Blood of the Moonlighters plays a rare solo followed by fiery punk banjo rocker/songwriter Curtis Eller at Rest Au Rant, 30-01 35th Ave. @ 30th St., Long Island City, N/W train to 36th Ave.

6/10, 9 PM the Alan Ferber Nonet play innovative, tuneful big band jazz at Smalls

6/10 pensive, atmospheric, often rustically haunting loop-driven art-rockers the Quavers at Barbes, 10 PM

6/11, 6 PM at Barbes violinist Marandi Hostetter, violist/violinist Pedro Vizzarro-Vallejos,  cellist Eric Cooper and mezzo-soprano Sara Dougherty play works by Jay Vilnai: Pisces for string trio; selections from his Shakespeare Songs for string trio and mezzo; selections from Visual Percussion, a collaboration with artist Elizabeth Hamby of short pieces for live music and video; a setting of a text by Wyatt for mezzo and chamber quintet plus Whitney George’s Seven Sins for string trio.

6/11 saxophonist Marcus Strickland 7:30/9:30/11:30 at the Bar Next Door.

6/11 Greek rebetika oud genius Mavrothi Kontanis at Barbes 8 PM followed by the self-explanatory Cumbiagra at 10.

6/11-12, 9/10:30 PM Two Miles a Day – Jacob Sacks, piano; Eivind Opsvik, bass; Mat Manieri, viola, violin; Paul Motian, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe, early arrival advised

6/11, 9:30 PM at Smalls the Scott Reeves Band: Scott Reeves – trombone , Rich Perry – tenor sax , Mike Holober – piano , Mike McGuirk – bass , Andy Watson – drums. Reeves’ most recent album is an absolutely gorgeous, lyrical throwback to the golden age of the 50s, highly recommended.

6/11 Quintron & Miss Pussycat – playful synthpoppers – at Glasslands 10ish

6/11 psychedelic Afro-funk instrumentalists the Budos Band play the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Temptress boarding at 6:30 and leaving from 41st St. and the river, adv tix $25 at the Highline box office highly recommended.

6/11, 11:45 PM ferocious metalish cello art-rock instrumentalists Blues in Space at the Delancey

6/12 the Hetrick-Martin Institute’s benefit dance party at the Grey Gardens mansion in the Hamptons is SOLD OUT – no great surprise!

6/12, 6 (six) PM the Oren Neiman Group play guitar jazz with deep klezmer, Middle Eastern and Balkan influences, at Cornelia St. Cafe, $7 cover includes a drink!

6/12, all ages, a bunch of hardcore bands and a ska band bill with hardcore vets , smart original ska rockers Hub City Stompers, hardore with Inhuman, the hip-hop flavored Billy Club Sandwich, Underdog and Staring Problem, 6 PM at Santos Party House, $16 adv tix highly rec.

6/12, 7 PM edgy, melodic modern jazz with the Tim Kuhl Group at the Fat Cat followed by their guitarist Nir Felder leading his own combo at 8.

6/12, 7 PM psychedelic, hypnotic avant garde guitar quartet Dither’s cd release show at the Invisible Dog Art Center, 51 Bergen St., Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, F/G to Bergen St., “Highlights include Elliott Sharp performing selections from Octal for eight-string guitarbass, a solo bagpipe performance from progressive piper Matthew Welch, a collaboration between pianist Kathleen Supové and composer/guitarist Nick Didkovsky, and the Deprivation Orchestra of NY’s rendition of Eric km Clark’s Deprivation Music #1 for a large ensemble of hearing-deprived musicians! Dither will perform selections from their album, as well as the the world premiere of Eve Beglarian’s The Garden of Cyrus, Fred Frith’s Stick Figures performed by two players on six table-top guitars, and James Tenney’s rarely heard Septet for six guitars and electric bass” plus performances by Loud Objects, the extraordinary ambient chamber group Redhooker, Mantra Percussion and Florent Ghys, ridiculously cheap at $6.

6/12, 7 PM incorrigible extrovert and powerhouse soul singer Meg Braun – sort of the white Bettye LaVette – at Caffe Vivaldi.

6/12 the Snow’s frontman Pierre de Gaillande’s fearless, frequently filthy Georges Brassens English-language cover band Bad Reputation plays their cd release show 7:30 PM at the Bell House.

6/12, 7:30 PM charming, harmony-driven Hawaiian swing/oldtimey Moonlighters at Indian Road Cafe, 600 W 218th St. in Inwood, 1 train to 215th St. They’re also at Glen Oaks Oval Park, 260th Street and 74th Avenue in Queens on 6/18 at 6:30 PM.

6/12, 8 PM at Issue Project Room, $10 “four specialists in the experimental tradition: Michael Century, Stephen Gosling, Emily Manzo, and Kathleen Supové. Solo repertoire by Terry Riley, Alvin Curran, Yan Maresz, and more will culminate in a rare performance of Pauline Oliveros’s Gathering Together for eight hands, one piano.”

6/12 imaginative, captivating, atmospheric alto player and big band jazz composer Jacam Manricks plays the Bar Next Door, 3 sets starting 8-ish.

6/12, 8 PM oldschool Cuban son done gorgeously low-register style with bass, baritone sax, tuba and baritone guitar by Gato Loco at Barbes.

6/12, 8:15 PM the darkly bluesy Sister Sparrow & the Dirty Birds at the Rockwood on the second stage

6/12, 8:30 PM New Orleans soul legend Allen Toussaint at Prospect Park Bandshell.

6/12, 9 PM a phenomenal night at Alwan for the Arts with multistylistic expat Syrian chanteuse Gaida and the amazing band that plays on her album: Zafer Tawil – kanun; George Dulin- piano; Amir ElSaffar – trumpet; Jennifer Vincent – bass; Tony de Vivo – percussion.

6/12, 9 PM at Lucky 7 Tavern in Jersey City Devi and members of Any Day Parade. Good doublebill: both are psychedelic despite divergent backgrounds (punk and blues vs. country and paisley underground), both have good recent albums out.

6/12-13 the Undead Jazzfest at le Poisson Rouge, Kenny’s Castaways and Sullivan Hall: an unbelievable lineup of A-list, adventurous jazz groups for an unbeatable price. The two-day pass for $30 – roughly a third of what you’d spend at the Blue Note for a single act – is your best bet. Acts include the Alan Ferber Nonet, Ben Perowsky’s Moodswing Orchestra, Burnt Sugar The Arkestra Chamber, John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble, Matthew Shipp, Roswell Rudd & Lafayette Harris and many more, the complete list is here.

6/12 a string jazz doublebill at Rose Bar in Williamsburg, 9ish with the hip-hop flavored Nuttin but Strings followed by French violinist/composer Scott Tixier.

6/12, 10 PM fiery, psychedelic Mississippi hill country blues guitar genius Will Scott at 68 Jay St. Bar

6/12, 10:15ish LES rockabilly/surf/punk legends Simon & the Bar Sinisters at Lakeside.

6/12 haunting noir Americana crooner Mark Sinnis (of Ninth House) at midnight at Otto’s.

6/13, 7 PM Canadian goth keyboardist/chanteuse NLX at Caffe Vivaldi on a bill with the similar, more creepily down-to-earth Annelise Noronha, along with a Lilith Fair-style folkie and a nasal 70s style folkie from Rhode Island.

6/13 Chilean cumbia superstars Chico Trujillo play their cd release show at 8 PM at La Oveja Negra, 3438 38th St. in Astoria, 4th. fl of the Astoria Sports Complex on 38th St. between 34th and 35 Ave. right by the Kaufman Studios, right next to pizzeria uno, R/G/V to Steinway St. They’re also at Barbes on 6/14 at 8 PM (early arrival a must) opening for Chicha Libre!

6/13, 9 PM captivatingly dark Americana chanteuse Jessie Kilguss at Lakeside

6/13 Franco-Algerian punk/rai-rock legend Rachid Taha at Highline Ballroom, 9ish, adv tix very highly rec.

6/13 the NYCity Slickers play tight, soaring harmony-driven bluegrass at Rodeo Bar, 10:30 PM.

6/13, 11ish the self-explanatory Bato the Yugo & Gypsie Boogie at Nublu

6/14 latin jazz guitar genius Juancho Herrera at the Bar Next Door, 8:30 PM

6/14 dark guitar atmospherics with Thomas Simon and dark keyboard surprises from Botanica bandleader Paul Wallfisch at Small Beast at the Delancey, 9ish.

6/14, 10 PM at Otto’s – NYC free jazz stalwart Dikko Faust – who puts a brush on his trombone slide and paints –  followed by the Mighty Alpacas feat. Iranian sax sensation Sohrab Saadat, Jesse Dulman of Stumblebum Brass Band on tuba and trumpeter Lex Samu.

6/15 powerful slinky joyous haunting all-female virtuoso klezmer group Isle of Klezbos play a free outdoor show in the community garden on 12th St. between Ave A/B, 7 PM.

6/15, 7 PM a craftbrewing competition at Union Hall, free, open to the public 21+ with tasting of home and craft brews from top microbreweries. First prize: your recipe will be made into a kit marketed by Brooklyn Brew Shop and you get a day observing at Sixpoint Brewery; second prize is a $50 gift certificate to the shop. “Union Hall will then host two additional homebrewing competitions in August and October. June, August and October winners will compete in a holiday competition in December, which will determine who will get to brew their own winning recipe on Sixpoint’s pilot brewing system alongside the brewers. The resulting keg will then be transferred to Union Hall, where it will be served to all your friends and family during a private party.”

6/15, one of the best shows of the entire year in NYC: 8 PM ferocious New Orleans art-rock pianist Lady Baby Miss (ex-A Particularly Vicious Rumor), 8:45 PM deviously charming torch song revivalists the Debutante Hour, ferociously literate and side-splittingly funny ukelele siren Kelli Rae Powell at 9:30 at the Jalopy.

6/15, 8 PM a killer triplebill at the Cameo Gallery with the bass-driven low-register Cuban son stylings of Gato Loco, rambunctiously groovalicious bugalu revivalists Spanglish Fly and the Williamsburg Salsa Orchestra, who do salsafied covers of trendoid pop hits – too funny.

6/15, 8 PM at the Stone Erik Friedlander’s Broken Arm Trio: Erik Friedlander (cello) Trevor Dunn (bass), Mike Sarin (drums). “The band was inspired by Oscar Pettiford who in 1949 broke his arm playing baseball.He could still move his fingers even though his arm was in a sling, so he began experimenting with a cello a friend had lent to him. He tuned the cello like a bass only an octave higher and later made history recording a series of cello-led projects including the great, under-recognized 1964 Fantasy release, “My Little Cello” featuring a photo of his newborn son whom he named Cello.”

6/15 Nashville gothic with the Handsome Family at the Mercury, 9:30 PM, $15.

6/15 ferocious Taiwanese-American art-rock/metal instrumentalists the Hsu-Nami – whose lead instrument is a sizzling Chinese erhu fiddle – play Don Hill’s, 11 PM, and since they don’t have vocals they won’t have to deal with the club’s awful sound system.

6/16, 6:30 PM one of the new music highlights of the year: Frederic Rzewski plays Frederic Rzewski at le Poisson Rouge $20, adv tix highly rec. this will sell out.

6/16, 7 PM the Manhattan Valley Ramblers duo play oldtimey and bluegrass tune at the Orchard House Cafe, 58th St./1st Ave., two forty five minute sets, sugg. don. $15/$10 srs/stud.

6/16 darkly yet amusingly literate Nashville gothic types Maynard and the Musties play Matchless, 8 PM; 6/29 they’re at Sidewalk at 9.

6/16, 8ish oldschool hip-hop vet Big Daddy Kane at Von King Park in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, corner of Marcy and Lafayette Ave., G to Bedford-Nostrand.

6/16 no-nonsense, torchy contralto chanteuse/pianist Jeanne Marie Boes’ birthday show at LIC Bar, 8 PM

6/16-19 the Vijay Iyer Trio at Birdland sets 8:30/11 PM, $30 seating avail.

6/16 British vintage funk/soul revivalists the Heavy with Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings at Bowery Ballroom.

6/16 one of NYC’s funniest songwriters, 19th century throwback banjoist/ribald lyricist Al Duvall at Pete’s, 10 PM

6/16, 10ish dark Brazilian country music with Forro in the Dark at Nublu

6/16 fiery, original, occasionally noir rockabilly/surf trio Catspaw at P&G Bar, 380 Columbus Ave (at 78th St.), 11 PM

6/16, midnight-ish noir chanteuse Marissa Nadler at the Knitting Factory, adv tix $10 highly rec.

6/17 the NYC Jazz Festival starts; too many acts to list here. The complete schedule is here; choice acts listed below.

6/17, 6 PM at Puppets Jazz Bar Ralph Hamperian’s Tuba D’Amour followed at 9 by the Bill Ware Group and then the John McNeil Quartet at midnight.

6/17, 7 PM Tift Merritt – who if you haven’t been paying attention has sort of become New York’s answer to Shelby Lynne – at the Hiro Ballroom

6/17 at Zebulon, 9 PM guitarist/banjoist Brandon Seabrook’s Seabrook Power Plant (gotta love that name!) and ruthless jazz satirists Mostly Other People Do the Killing.

6/17, 9 PM string quartet Cadillac Moon Ensemble plays brand-new works by Andre Bregegere, Nicholas Chase, Anna Mikhailova, Edward Rosenberg, David Saperstein, and Matthew Welch at Issue Project Room, $10.

6/17, 10 PM fiery, terse Chicago style blues guitarist/crooner Johnny Allen at Terra Blues

6/17, 10 PM tuneful, propulsive, intense janglerock songwriter Jennifer O’Connor at the Knitting Factory, $10.

6/17, 10 PM first-class oldschool honkytonk band the Dixons and then oldschool piano-based 60s R&B revivalists the Brilliant Mistakes at 11 at the Rockwood.

6/17 funny, eerie bluespunks the Five Points Band at Rodeo Bar, 10:30 PM.

6/18, 6 PM adventurous avant vocal jazz with the Becca Stevens Band at 55 Bar

6/18, 7:30 PM organ jazz guru Dr. Lonnie Smith at Prospect Park Bandshell.

6/18, 8 PM alto sax innovator Jacam Manricks and his combo followed at 9 by Finotee and their upbeat roots reggae/ska at Shrine

6/18, 8 PM, Bio Ritmo spinoff Miramar – masterful, often haunting mid-50s style bolero specialists – followed by smartly literate, often funny Americana rockers Kill Henry Sugar at 10 at Barbes.

6/18 pianist Sylvia Courvoisier does double duty at the Stone with her trio (Thomas Morgan and Tyshawn Sorey are the rhythm section, with Peter Evans added on trumpet for the 10 PM set) and then on 6/19 at 8 it’s Sylvie Courvoisier’s Lonelyville: Sylvie Courvoisier (piano), Ikue Mori (electronics), Erik Friedlander (cello), Mark Feldman (violin), Gerald Cleaver (drums).

6/18, 8 PM the Jazz Gallery Allstars: Claudia Acuña, Ambrose Akinmusire, Lage Lund, Gerald Clayton, Kendrick Scott, Ben Williams, Pedro Martinez, Miguel Zenón at Symphony Space $15.

6/18, 8:15 PM Leigh-Ra play “orchestral folk” i.e upbeat and more pensive indie classical and soul music-influenced originals with piano, bass and cello at Caffe Vivaldi.

6/18 Shmaptain Shmeefheart feat. members of Plastic Beef, the Actual Facts and Love Camp 7 play Capt. Beefheart at the National Underground, 9 PM

6/18, 9ish a cool ska/rocksteady doublebill with the Hard Times and also Slackers frontman Vic Ruggiero at Death By Audio

6/18, sets at 9/10:30 PM the Mark Helias Trio – Mark Helias, bass; Orrin Evans, piano; Nasheet Waits, drums at Cornelia St. Cafe – well-liked bass player gets two killer players to do his stuff.

6/18, 9:30 PM sultry noir rock legends Elysian Fields at Joe’s Pub, $15 adv tix highly rec.

6/18 the rustic, gypsy-flavored, darkly atmospheric Kotorino at Pete’s 10 PM

6/18, 10 PM, a killer reggae doublebill: oldschool style Meta & the Cornerstones and then French reggae/dub/hiphop crew Dub Inc. at the 92YTribeca, $12.

6/18 the boisterous, completely unpredictable Jack Grace Band – whose hilarious new album Drinking Songs for Lovers is their best – at Rodeo Bar, 10:30 PM

6/18, 10:30 PM a rare Manhattan small club show by amazing Balkan brass band Slavic Soul Party at the Fat Cat

6/18 the Boss Guitars play surf music classics and obscurities at Lakeside, 11 PM

6/19 the NY Brewfest goes 3:30 until 8 PM on Governors Island, tix $55 all you can drink micros and gourmet beer (300+ vendors!) plus free music plus water taxi to/from the island , tix available at Heartland Brewery locations.

6/19, 7 PM Adrian Younge & the six-piece Black Dynamite Sound Orchestra play their original vintage 70s style soul/funk score to Scott Sanders’ recent, amusing blaxploitation film homage Black Dynamite at the Ars Nova Theatre, 511 W 54th St., just west of 10th Ave., adv tix $20 highly rec.

6/19 ferociously literate New York noir rocker LJ Murphy plays at Banjo Jim’s backed by New Orleans pianist Willie Davis, 7 PM

6/19 sprawling psychedelic gypsyish jam band Hazmat Modine and Slavic Soul Party at Barbes 8 PM, $15.

6/19, 8:15 PM, the Thomas Piercy Trio – expertly passionate interpreters of the Astor Piazzolla canon – play the cd release show for their new one at Caffe Vivaldi.

6/19, 8 PM, sprawling, exciting NYC honkytonk band the Newton Gang at the Jalopy, 9 PM followed by the Jug Addicts at 10:30 PM, $10

6/19, 9 PM at Alwan for the Arts Turkish piano innovator Hakan Ali Toker who like Steve Nieve will play an improvisation based on dubious audience suggestions and make them brilliant, $15

6/19, 9 PM retro soul star Eli Paperboy Reed at the Bell House, $12 adv tix rec.

6/19 clever, tongue-in-cheek early 50s hillbilly parodists Susquehanna Industrial Tool and Die Co. followed by ferocious Nashville gothic rockers Ninth House at Hank’s, 10 PM.

6/19, 9 PM playful Danish female avant jazz duo Little Red Suitcase: “broken smelly accordeon, the cat stepping on pianokeys, mum frying eggs in the evening, playing a horn from the Alps on a balcony, screaming at the beach” at 9 PM at at Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

6/19, 10 PM East Village Pharmacy play dub reggae at Shrine

6/19 wild Irish party band Shilelagh Law at Connolly’s, 10 PM

6/19, 10 PM indie pop heroes the New Pornographers at Terminal 5, adv tix $30 at the Mercury box office highly rec.

6/19 smart, funny Brooklyn country band Miller’s Farm 10 PM at Hill Country

6/19 ferocious, often funny Americana punk with Spanking Charlene at Lakeside, 11 PM.

6/20 starting at 10 AM (yawn) it’s Punk Island 2010 – the annual Make Music NY punk show on Governors Island takes place on a Sunday this year. Free ferries leave from the old Shaolin Ferry terminal every 30 minutes on the half hour, note that security will be intense – since Goldman Sachs pays no taxes, they’re looking to bust anybody carrying booze or similar contraband, watch your back. Tons of good bands on several stages including DOA, Blanks 77 and the Hub City Stompers.

6/20, 2 PM the Scandia Brass Quintet play possibly brilliant new and obscure compositions by Scandinavian composers: William Brade – Pavane; Vagn Holmboe – Quintet for Brass; Grieg – Homage March; Anders Koppel – Brass Quintet (US premiere); plus Norwegian folk tunes at Ft. Tryon Park, A to 186th St., enter at 193rd St.

6/20, 7 PM Mundoclave plays Machito-style latin jazz at Gantry Plaza State Park in Long Island City, 7 PM, free

6/20, 8 PM Talib Kweli plus Jean Grae at the Brooklyn Bowl, $5 (yup – five bucks!) get in line and get there early.

6/20, 10 PM reliably adventurous pianist Myra Melford’s Be Bread at le Poisson Rouge, adv tix $16 highly rec.

6/20, 11 PM awe-inspiring oldschool country singer/writer Greg Garing – as charismatic a rockabilly pianist as he is a bluegrass guitarist – at the Rockwood

6/21 it’s Make Music New York – free street performances all day by all kinds of absurdly good bands and artists. Too many to list here, so we put up a Make Music New York page with highlights. The cube at Astor Place is the place to be this year.

6/21, 7:30/9:30 PM Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society at Dizzy’s Club $20/$10 stud.

6/21, 8 PM Carol Lipnik & Spookarama in the community garden at Houston and Ave. C – a perfect stop on the way down to the Delancey if you’re going to Small Beast.

6/21 the ferociously charismatic gypsy-punk Vera Beren’s Gothic Chamber Blues Ensemble , noir accordionist Marni Rice and big indie buzz band the Walking Hellos at at Small Beast at the Delancey, 9ish

6/21 the Jentsch Group Large plays a rare performance at Tea Lounge in Park Slope – they’ll be doing the entire lush, lavish, Pink Floyd meets Ellington-style Cycles Suite album starting with movements one through three at 9 PM and then the final three at 10:30 PM.

6/22 chamber music with the exceedingly popular Eroica Trio at the World Financial Ctr., 7 PM, free, early arrival advised

6/22, 7 PM latin jazz legend Eddie Palmieri y la Perfecta II at Soundview Park in the Bronx, 6 train to Soundview Ave. and a ten-minute walk down Morrison Ave.

6/22 Custard Wally – unsung oldschool heroes of obscene, sexually charged, hilarious Brooklyn punk and garage rock – at Trash Bar, 9 PM.

6/22, 9 PM low-register classic Cuban son and similar originals with Gato Loco at the Jalopy, $10.

6/22 a cool Francophone reggae bill starting at 9ish with Noble Society and then the French Dub Inc. at Littlefield, $12

6/23, 7 PM ex-Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett followed by Annie Haslam’s theatrical art-rock legends Renaissance at Rockefeller Park, free.

6/23, 7 PM at Central Park Summerstage the McCoy Tyner Quartet feat. Ravi Colrane, Esperanza Spalding and Francisco Mela plus Stanley Clarke’s band opening, which you’ll have to stand/suffer through if you want to see the headliner.

6/23, 8 PM soulful Balkan trumpet music with the Ben Holmes Trio at 68 Jay St. Bar

6/23, 8 PMish Chicago downtempo/trip-hop band Tortoise at le Poisson Rouge $22 adv tix rec.

6/23, 9/10:30 PM, cellist Catherine Bent’s innovative Brazilian jazz group Choros com Chocolate at Tea Lounge in Park Slope, free.

6/23 clever, fun 80s style synth-pop with Hank & Cupcakes 9 PM at the Brooklyn Bowl, free.

6/23, 10 PM ex-Railroad Jerk lead guitarist Alec Stephen, now leading a dark, almost minimalist, tersely electric power trio at Pete’s

6/23 Sister Sparrow & the Dirty Birds play tastefully bluesy, funky stuff at Sullivan Hall, 10ish.

6/23, 11 PM edgy atmospheric dreampop band Susu at Cake Shop

6/24, 7 PM the aptly named Conjunto Clasico at St. Mary’s Park in the Bronx, free, 6 train to 144th St., looks like the stage is at Crimins Ave. where it deadends into the park.

6/24 the Northside Festival starts in Williamsburg. Last year’s was overhyped to the max; hopefully this year’s will be better. Too many acts to list here – the main schedule page is here; as dates and venues are announced we’ll list anything good we see (Polvo is playing!).

6/24 Jason Moran and the Bandwagon with Mary Halvorson and Ron Miles at the Jazz Standard, 7:30/9:30 PM, $15

6/24, 7:30 PM Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club (what’s left of the original crew) featuring ageless cantante Omara Portuondo and Nelida Tirado at Prospect Park Bandshell.

6/24, 9 PM fiery rockabilly/country/Americana guitarist Jimmy Nations – sort of NYC’s answer to Wayne Hancock – leads his trio at Hill Country.

6/24, 10ish Groove Collective bassist Jonathan Maron – one of the most tuneful, interesting four-string guys around – makes a rare appearance as bandleader at Rose Bar in Williamsburg

6/24 boisterious (ok, thunderous) Bahian dance band Dende & Hahahaes at Barbes, 10 PM.

6/24, 10 PM at the Stone bassist Thomas Morgan with pianist Jacob Sacks – two thoughtful, incisive, uncommonly melodic jazz guys who don’t waste notes.

6/25, 8 PM richly tuneful, brooding, 6/8 time aficionado and haunting indie rock siren Elisa Flynn followed eventually at 10 by a rare “semi-acoustic” show by the ferocious noir rockabillyish Reid Paley Trio at Picasso Machinery, 45 Broadway south of Wythe, S Williamsburg, J/M to Marcy Ave.

6/25 a cool latin doublebill at Barbes, 8 PM: Marta Topferova, who writes rustically tinged originals in innumerable vintage styles, followed by Spanglish Fly, who play deliriously danceable oldschool latin soul and bugalu at 10

6/25 downtempo jazz/ambient grooves with Soul Cycle at BAM Cafe 9 PM.

6/25 latin piano monster Jason Lindner & Breeding Ground feat. Pangeotis Andreou, Mazz Swift and others 9/10:30 PM at the Jazz Gallery, $20.

6/25 blazing Bay area gypsy jazz band Gaucho at Pete’s 10 PM

6/26 desert blues titans  Tinariwen at Central Park Summerstage, 3 PM d00rs. They’re also at the Bell House on 6/27 at 9ish if air conditioning is worth the price to you  – or if you can’t make it during the day.

6/26, 7 PM, haunting chamber-pop/art rockers the Snow – whose new album I Die Every Night is one of the year’s best – play a special intimate show at the Rockwood, get there early.

6/26, 7 PM Rev. Al and the Sharptones play purist Nick Lowe style guitar-driven roots rock/pop at R Bar.

6/26, sets 7:30/9:30 PM at the Jazz Standard clarinetist Anat Cohen leads an allstar band with Kevin Hays – piano; Peter Washington – bass; Lewis Nash – drums, $25.

6/26, 8 PM the ecstatically powerful soul/new wave/Americana rockers the Disclaimers at Spike Hill; retro soul group the Nouvellas play at 10. Note that there is a $10 cover.

6/26, 8 PM second-wave punk with the New Bomb Turks’ reunion show at the Bell House, $12.

6/26 Just Another Folksinger AKA Mystie Chamberlin plays the Recoup Lounge, 210 Rivington St, 8 PM, $10. Self-effacing name for somebody who’s actually funny, nonchalantly smart and can write a catchy tune. Folkie stuff that will win over people who hate it.

6/26 the Okbari Middle Eastern Ensemble play “Ottoman classical instrumental and vocal music, along with Turkish folk and Arabic contemporary compositions, including original works by their late teacher, oud master and composer Udi Alan Shavarsh Bardezbanian” at 9 PM at Alwan for the Arts, $15.

6/26 fiery guitar-and-horn-driven Balkan rockers Ansambl Mastika at Mehanata 9 PM, $10, but nobody turned away at the door (be nice to the door girl and you’ll get in).

6/26 East Village Pharmacy play imaginative, psychedelic dub and reggae at Shrine, 9 PM followed by the “Junior and Unity Band” doing the same thing.

6/26 artsy 80s goth inflected art-pop pianist/singer Kristin Hoffmann at Caffe Vivaldi, 9 PM

6/26, 10 PM charismatic, noir rock/soul/punk keyboardist Tom Warnick & World’s Fair at the Parkside.

6/26 amazing horn-driven noir ska/R&B/punk rockers Tri-State Conspiracy at Fontana’s, 10ish, $10 – they blew the roof off Trash Bar last month and will do the same here.

6/26, 10 PM the “Junior and Unity Band” play roots reggae at Shrine

6/26 legendary mod punks the Reducers – the American answer to the Jam – at Lakeside, 11 PM.

6/26 smart, diverse, socially aware African-style roots reggae with Meta & the Cornerstones at Zebulon, midnight-ish

6/27 the Bang on a Can Marathon starts at noon at the World Financial Ctr.: performances include “U.S. premiere of Fausto Romitelli’s Professor Bad Trip performed by Talea Ensemble; a Bang on a Can All-Stars’ premiere with Mira Calix; African crossover innovators Burkina Electric; Balinese Gamelan; music from Kyrgyzstan and more!”

6/27 haunting, multistylistic neoclassical/avant/tango composer/pianist Fernando Otero at the Blue Note, half past noon

6/27, 3 PM Gil Scott-Heron at Central Park Summerstage.

6/27 delirious northeast Brazilian percussion troupe Macaratu NY play around 4 PM on the roof at the New Design High School, 350 Grand St. on the LES, ridiculously cheap, $5/$2 under 18. Also on the bill: reggae and Haitian acts starting around 2 PM.

6/27, 4:15 PM, deviously smart harmony-driven cabaret/oldtime/noir trio the Debutante Hour play Tompkins Square Park as part of Alpha Women Attack the LES (?!?). They’re also at Union Pool on 6/30 at 9 and then at the Brooklyn Tea Party on 7/4 (which as the band cautions to add is not a party Sarah Palin is invited to)

6/27 Micale sing selections from John Zorn’s Book of Angels “in Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino, French and Arabic drawn from Rumi, Fernando Pessoa, the Hebrew Bible and more,” 7:30 PM at Rose Bar in Williamsburg.

6/27 it’s siren night – powerhouse soul/Americana siren Jo Williamson opens for charismatic, lyrically spine-tingling ukelele siren Kelli Rae Powell at Banjo Jim’s, 8 PM

6/27 Wintersleep at Bowery Ballroom – happy and jangly with your stereotypical off-key indie vocals, but a real lyrical menace and imaginative guitar/keyboard textures. If you wish the Decemberists could write melodies, you’ll love Wintersleep.

6/27, 8 PM roaring multistylistic Balkan hellraisers the Veveritse Brass Band at the Jalopy $10

6/27, 8 PM genre-blending Greek-American blues guitarist Spiros Soukis at Lucille’s

6/28 Botanica leader Paul Wallfisch plus the stylish noir rock of Darren Gaines and the Key Party at Small Beast at the Delancey 9ish.

6/28, 9 PM Veveritse Brass Band and the similarly joyous, intense Ben Syversen Trio’s cd release show at Local 269

6/28, 9 PM the JC Sanford Jazz Orchestra at Tea Lounge in Brooklyn.

6/29, 6 (sex) PM Lisa Faith Phillips and pianist Ellen Mandel present their popular parody musical How To Be a Bad Girl: Mistress Edition (FKA 7½ Habits of Highly Successful Mistresses, before the Seven Habits of… books’ publisher sued them), at Cornelia St. Cafe, $15.

6/29, 6 PM acoustic group Stout sing oldtime “tavern tunes” with five-part harmonies in “the kind of rousing environment that encourages singing along (should one be so inclined)” at the Mount Vernon Hotel Museum & Garden, 421 E 61st St. (First and York Avenues), tix $15 incl. refreshments and a tour of the historic museum.

6/29-7/4 the JD Allen Quartet (JD Allen – tenor; Jeremy Pelt – trumpet, Gregg August – bass, Rodney Green – drums) at the Vanguard. Of all the jazz composers working right now, this guy is at the pinnacle, the absolutely top of his terse, tuneful game. See him now before you can’t afford it anymore.

6/29, 7:30 PM at Damrosch Park out back of Lincoln Center a Haitian bill feat. Ansanm, Emeline Michel, Beethova Obas, BélO, Zili Misik, acts will probbly appear in reverse order.

6/29, 9 PM often poignant, frequently hilarious Nashville gothic/outlaw country band Maynard & the Musties at Sidewalk

6/30, 7 PM the one and only Mose Allison – without whom both Dr. John and Tom Waits probably never would have existed – at Madison Square Park.

6/30 bluegrass with soaring harmonies and foot-stomping tunes with the the NYCity Slickers at Banjo Jim’s 7 PM

6/30-7/3, Larry Goldings – Hammond B3 organ; Peter Bernstein – guitar; Bill Stewart – drums, sets 7:30/9:30 PM at the Jazz Standard, $25 ($30 Fri-Sat).

6/30, 9 PM Girl to Gorilla, who blend a fiery southwestern gothic vibe with a raw punk edge at the Knitting Factory, $8

6/30 Buru Style feat. Toussaint Libertor play African roots reggae 9 PM at Rose Bar.

6/30, 9 PM self-described hillbilly madman Zane Campbell – who basically brought alt-country to NYC by himself back in the 80s – plays Hill Country.

6/30, 9ish El Topo play psychedelic tropicalia/jazz/dub instrumentals at Glasslands.

6/30 confident, diverse, sometimes smoky soul/jazz chanteuse/pianist Nicole Zuraitis at Caffe Vivaldi, 9:15 PM

6/30, 10 PM haunting, intense oldtimey acoustic Nashville gothic band Bobtown at Spike Hill

6/30, 11 PM, tunefully artsy indie pop with the Secret History at the Bell House $10

7/1 the Cannabis Cup Band play “a special tribute to the classic revolutionary vinyl lp reggae anthems of the ‘60’s & ’70’s” on the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Temptress boarding at 6:30 and leaving from 41st St. and the river, first hundred tix are $20, after that adv tix $25, highly rec. at the Highline box office.

7/1, 7:30 PM Margot Leverett and the Klezmer Mountain Boys at the Jewish Museum is SOLD OUT. Good for her.

7/1, 8 PM Lee Feldman’s surreal rock musical Starboy – like the Simpsons, suitable for children but delightful for adults – performed in its entirety by an all-star cast including pianist Feldman, Henry Hample, Pete Galub, Greta Gertler, Daniel Harnett, and Jonathan Maron at Dixon Place Theatre, 161A Chrystie St. (between Rivington & Delancey).

7/1 two of the best in the NYC Americana scene – the poignant, soaring Jan Bell followed by furious, politically charged, lyrically brilliant banjoist Curtis Eller at Banjo Jim’s, 9 PM.

7/1, 9 PM crafty, fun, harmony-driven cabaret/noir/torch trio the Debutante Hour with guest pianist Jonathan Vincent at Sycamore Bar in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn.

7/1 sprawling, adventurous, innovative original bluegrass band Frankenpine play Lakeside, 9:15ish

7/1, sets 9/10:30 PM Basscentric, low-register heaven with a trio of bassists: Joelle Leandre, Mark Helias and Mark Dresser at Cornelia St. Cafe, repeating on 7/2 at 9 PM only. Helias and Dresser play a probably much further-out duo show at 10:30 PM on 7/2 afterward.

7/1, 9ish the Doc Marshalls – equally skilled at honkytonk and west Texas zydeco – at Hill Country

7/1 accordion-driven cumbia party band Very Be Careful – who have discovered the totally punk rock vibe that the best cumbia music has – at Barbes, 10 PM, note the $10 cover. Their new album is amazing.

7/1 garage rockers the Zoobombs – the Japanese Muck & the Mires – at Union Hall 10ish, early arrival advised.

7/1 delirious multistylistic Brazilian/New Orleans/funk band Nation Beat at Rodeo Bar, 10:30 PM

7/1 Boston’s best rock band, the fiery, retro 80s new wave/powerpop New Collisions at Arlene’s, 11 PM.

7/2 the king of the mighty janglerock anthem, Willie Nile, at City Winery opening for Alejandro Escovedo, 7 PM

7/2, 8 PM at Barbes: “House of Stride. Part performance-project, part-band, House of Stride wanders from classic stride piano to old-school cabaret gems and re-imagined pop classics. With Allison Leyton-Brown – piano; Russ Meissner – drums; Jim Whitney – upright bass and special guest chanteuse Daria Grace.” Followed by exhilarating 20s hot jazz big band Brian Carpenter’s Ghost Train Orchestra at 10.

7/2, 8:30 PM, gypsy brass punk rockers Stumblebum Brass Band at the Mercury, $10.

7/2, 9 PM fiddle-driven country music with the Hilary Hawke Band followed by the rousing oldtimey country harmonies of the Sweetback Sisters at the Jalopy, $10

7/2 a killer dark rock doublebill: the inimitably psychedelic, swirling guitar art-rock of Martin Bisi and then ghoul goddess Marissa Nadler at Union Pool, 10 PM.

7/2, 10 PM anthemic, literate indie rockers Overlord at Bruar Falls, $6.

7/3, 2 PM Rosanne Cash on Governors Island, free – take the free ferry (to the east of the new Shaolin ferry terminal) and follow the crowd/noise

7/3, 3 PM the second Turkish Woodstock at Central Park Summerstage with the Sounds of Turkey feat. Kenan Dogulu, Mor ve Otesi, Ilhan Ersahin’s Istanbul Sessions with Burhan Ocal and Tulug Tirpan, and Sukriye Tutkun.

7/3, 7 PM dark garage rocker Lorraine Leckie & Her Demons followed eventually by Melody Allegra’s bluegrass jam at 9 at Banjo Jim’s.

7/3, 8 PM a killer third-wave ska night at the Knitting Factory with (in reverse order) the NY Ska-Jazz Ensemble, the Scofflaws, Mother Fletcher, Tip the Van, and Harold’s Trousers, $10 adv tix highly rec. One of the best bills of the year so far.

7/3 smart, deviously satirical acoustic Americana jam band Tall Tall Trees at the Mercury, 8 PM, $10.

7/3 a cool triplebill at the Jalopy starting at 9 with acoustic Nashville noir harmony band Bobtown, then concert harpist/singer Veronica Valerio (who sounds nothing like Joanna Newsom) at 10 and then at 11 the blues harp-driven Randy Weinstein Group (ex-Hazmat Modine, and they sound a lot like his old band)

7/3, 9 PM gypsy punks Kagero followed at 10:30 by the Basement Band playing rousing country sounds at Spike Hill.

7/3, 9 PM charmingly retro 60s psychedelic pop with guy/girl vocals from the Nopar King followed by funk/groovemeisters Baby Daddy at 3 Jolly Pigeons, 6802 3rd Ave., Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

7/3, 9:30 PM, more eerie, swampy blues harp music with BBQ Bob & the Spareribs at Hill Country

7/3, 11 PM, Brooklyn’s own otherworldly, haunting, deviously smart Balkan vocal quartet Black Sea Hotel plays Pete’s Candy Store.

7/3 Escarioka – the ecstatic, sometimes transcendentally fun, horn-and-guitar-driven latin Gogol Bordello – at Kenny’s Castaways, 11 PM

7/3 slyly amusing jam-oriented acoustic Americana band Tall Tall Trees at the Mercury, 11:30 PM, $10. They’re also at Pete’s at 10 on 7/9.

7/4 original, innovative Greek-American electric blues guitarist Spiros Soukis at Lucille’s, 8 PM

7/4 killer country/punk twangsters Demolition String Band with Americana rocker Chip Robinson at Banjo Jim’s, 10 PM.

7/4 noirish indie/Americana rocker DB Reilly plays Pete’s, 10:30 PM in a rare acoustic duo show.

7/5, 8/10 PM, legendary nylon-string jazz guitarist Gene Bertoncini with the surviving members of the Les Paul Trio at Iridium, $25

7/5 fiery cello rockers Blues in Space, Botanica’s master of menace Paul Wallfisch,  Nashville gothic crooner Mark Sinnis at Small Beast at the Delancey 9ish.

7/5 goth glam goddess Kristeen Young at the Knitting Factory, 10 PM, adv tix $10 rec.

7/6 alternately charming and haunting all-girl Norwegian noir cabaret quartet Katzenjammer at the Mercury, 7:30 PM, $10.

7/7 half past noon smart, politically charged acoustic songwriting duo Left on Red at Liberty Park, downtown Broadway and Liberty Sts.

7/7, 3:30 PM Paolo Bordignon plays selections on the 1830 Appleton pipe organ in the musical instruments section at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, free w/museum adm.

7/7, free, 7 PM doors, 7:30 PM a set by chamber folk sextet Dark Dark Dark, 8:30 PM the film Flood Tide: Remixed accompanied by a new live musical score. “A meditative journey down a strange and meandering river that flows both ways with the tides.The handmade boats and their crews drift past empty new condo developments, explore crumbling castles and swim in iridescent quarries. They get stopped by torrents of rain and groaning motors.” At Socrates Sculpture Garden, on the grass along the water at Socrates Sculpture Park, 3134 Vernon Blvd., Long Island City. N train to Broadway, walk on Broadway all the way to the water as the street names (30th, 29th etc) get smaller.

7/8 soca legend Mighty Sparrow – who’s got to be in his eighties now – at noon at Metrotech Park in downtown Brooklyn, F to Jay St.

7/8 Phosphorescent – sort of the teens version of gently rootsy early Wilco – plays Pier 54 at 14th St., gates at 6 for the diehards or fans of early 70s style El Lay dad-pop band Dawes.

7/8, 7 PM Americana roots chanteuse Drina Seay with guitar god Steve Antonakos followed by another sensational guitarist, jazz/Americana stylist Peter Calo at Banjo Jim’s

7/8, 7:30 PM the extraordinary pan-Balkan punk jazz of Ansambl Mastika at the Jewish Museum, 92nd St. at 5th Ave., $15/$12 stud.

7/9 the lush art-rock of the Quavers at 8 at Barbes followed at 10 by the eternally charming, effervescent oldtimey Moonlighters.

7/8 NYC’s most exciting blues guitarist, Mississippi hill country bluesman Will Scott at Hill Country, 9 PM.

7/9 purist expat Chicago blues guitarist Irving Louis Lattin at Lucille’s 8 PM; he’s also here on the 23rd.

7/9 stark yet playful cello rockers Pearl & the Beard at the Mercury, 8:30 PM, $10

7/9 bewitching, rustic ancient Italian ritual songs and dances with Allesandra Belloni at Mehanata, 9 PM, $10.

7/9 ornate, artsy goth chanteuse/keyboardist Wendy Rule at Caffe Vivaldi, 9 PM.

7/9, 9:30 PM Chelsea Madchen: Ein Deutscher Evening Mit Nico starring Tammy Faye Starlite at Joe’s Pub, $15. Will the world’s most subversive comedienne and cover band leader end the show by falling off a bike in a druggy stupor, or with a goth version of Deutschland Uber Alles?

7/9 honkytonk guitar god Danny Weiss’ gorgeously oldschool country band Reckon So at Hill Country, 9:30 PM

7/9 hypnotic, hauntingly jangly southwestern gothic-tinged Americana rockers Tandy at Lakeside, 11 PM

7/9, 11 PM oldschool 90s LES indie stars Versus at the Bell House $17.50 adv tix rec.

7/10 the best bill of the year so far, top to bottom, is the Brooklyn County Fair country music afternoon spectacular, one great band after another starting at noon with Maynard & the Musties, 1 PM the Dixons, 2 PM Alana Amram & the Rough Gems, 3 PM the Newton Gang, 4 PM the Doc Marshalls, 5 PM Uncle Leon & the Alibis; the show continues at 10 at the Jalopy with Frankenpine. Wow. The afternoon show is at Urban Meadow, 36 President at Van Brunt, Red Hook, Brooklyn, $10.

7/10 Mexican punk/ska legends Maldita Vecindad at Central Park Summerstage 4-ish, doors at 3.

7/10, 7 PM dark, wickedly smart original cello rockers Rasputina at le Poisson Rouge, $15.

7/10, 8 PM clever, innuendo-driven 1930s French chanson revivalists les Chauds Lapins at Barbes.

7/10, 8 PM retro soul kitten Alice Smith – she purrs, she growls, with a 70s post-Motown/disco feel – at B.B. King’s, $20 adv tix rec.

7/10, 10 PM catchy, tuneful powerpop with the Mikal Evans Band at Matchless

7/10 NYC’s answer to X, Americana-punk rockers Spanking Charlene at Lakeside, 11 PM.

7/10, midnight, hilarious, satirical hip-hop artist Schaffer the Darklord plays Arlene’s

7/11 Jimmy Cliff at Central Park Summerstage, 5-ish, doors at 3

7/11 amazingly fun traditional accordion-driven Dominican merengue tipica band Liony Parra y La Mega Mafia Tipica at 7 PM at Pier One on the upper west.

7/11, 7 PM Andy Laster’s Sounds of Cairo at Barbes – Middle Eastern music from the 1920s including vintage Umm Kulthumm, Zaki Murad and Dawud Husni songs with clarinet, cello, bass and trombone. Followed by the amazing Stephane Wrembel’s gypsy guitar jazz at 9.

7/11, 7:30 PM Chris Rozzi’s one-man show Outre Island feat. music by the reliably excellent Balthrop Alabama at Joe’s Pub, $12 adv tix rec. “You may have heard that the diminutive nation of Outré Island has been trying to build a bridge to the shores of America for some time. But with oil in the Gulf (sigh), designers are moving the bridge inland to the small town of Balthrop, Alabama for one night only!”

7/12 the Ohio Players and George Clinton and P-Funk at Wingate Field in Crown Heights, free, get there early, 6:30 PM and watch your back, the cops have quotas to make

7/12, 7 PM roots reggae legend Burning Spear at Rockefeller Park, free.

7/12 legendary 80s chanteuse and Clash collaborator Ellen Foley at Lakeside, early, 7 PM.

7/12 the devious, harmonically exquisite, funny, torchy Debutante Hour at Goodbye Blue Monday, 10 PM

7/13 hip-hop from toward the end of the golden age: a 15 year celebration of the Boot Camp Clik featuring Sean Price, Buckshot, Smif N Wessun, Heltah Skeltah, Pharoahe Monch, Kidz In The Hall, Skyzoo, Marco Polo & Torae at BB King’s, 8 ish, $22 adv tix highly rec; first fifty ticketed customers through the doors get a free commemorative concert t-shirt.

7/13-14 powerhouse piano jazz with the Orrin Evans Quartet at the Jazz Standard, 7:30/9:30 PM, $20

7/14 the NY Philharmonic plays Lyadov – Baba Yaga; Glazunov – Concerto for Alto Sax; Schulhoff – Hot Sonate for Alto Sax and Orchestra; Prokofiev – Selections from Romeo & Juliet on the Great Lawn in Central Park, free, concert at 8 PM, get there early, i.e. 6 and make a night of it if you’re going

7/14, 6 PM the Mad Jazz Hatters play oldtimey stuff at Bryant Park, free

7/14 Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens at the Stuyvesant Town Oval, 7 PM. They’re at Metrotech Park in downtown Brooklyn the next day at noon.

7/14 the Jazz Museum in Harlem presents the film Nina Simone Great Performances, 7 PM at Marcus Garvey Park on Lawn A, Madison Ave. side of the park between 122nd and 124th St., free.

7/14, 8 PM in Central Park on the Great Lawn the NY Philharmonic feat. Branford Marsalis, saxophone and Andrey Boreyko, conductor plays Liadov – Baba-Yaga; Glazunov – Concerto for Alto Saxophone; Schulhoff/Bennett – Hot-Sonate for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra Prokofiev – Romeo and Juliet (selections)

7/14 reggae crooner Barrington Levy at BB King’s, 8 PM.

7/14 hilariously satirical early 50s hillbilly music trio Susquehanna Industrial Tool & Die Co. at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

7/15, half past noon jazz pianist Emmett Cohen on the World Financial Ctr. plaza.

7/15 Funkmaster Flex and EPMD at Queensbridge Park, Queens 7 PM.

7/15-18 Brazilian jazz legend Vincius Cantuaria at the Jazz Standard, 7:30/9:30, $25 ($30 weekend)

7/15, 7:30 PM the Sexteto Rodriguez Cuban-Jewish All Stars at the Jewish Museum, 92nd St. at 5th Ave. is SOLD OUT.

7/15, 8 PM at Glasslands it’s “Hipster Demolition Night II” – woo hoo – featuring (in reverse order) Muck & The Mires, Jay Banerjee & The Heartthrobs, Wormburner, the Anabolics, $10.

7/15 the Subway Surfers and garage rock genius Palmyra Delran and her band at Maxwell’s, 8:30 PM, $10

7/15, 9 PM Matt Darriau’s World Tango Project at the Cornelia St. Cafe

7/15 fearless NYC noir rockabilly/glam with the Reid Paley Trio at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

7/15, 11 PM Sun Records rockabilly legend Sonny Burgess at Public Assembly, $12 adv tix highly rec.

7/16, 7 AM (?) the Go Go’s play Good Morning America, outdoors, live – hardcore fans enter Central Park at 69th Street/5th Ave. Note that Live Nation couldn’t sell enough $60 tickets to their Irving Plaza show so they cancelled it – this whole thing may not happen.

7/16, 8 PM Changing Modes – a really amazing, catchy, smart blend of Siouxsie-esque new wave, and oldschool art-rock – at R Bar, $10

7/16, 8 PM the Universal Thump (Greta Gertler’s auspicious new art-pop band) feat. bassist Jonathan Maron from Groove Collective plus a string quartet plays Barbes. Gertler has been a great songwriter for the better part of a decade and their forthcoming album promises to be her best effort yet.

7/16 the lush, noir Elysian Fields at the Knitting Factory, 8:30 PM, $10 adv tix rec.

7/16 a terrific Middle Eastern bill feat. George Ziadeh and Amir ElSaffar (vocals, oud and santoor) with Sami Abu Shumays, Arabic violin, plus members of his Zikrayat Ensemble, 9 PM at Alwan for the Arts, $15

7/16, 9 PM a killer reggae triplebill: the Movement, Black Seeds and SOJA (Souldiers of Jah Army) at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, $15 adv tix highly rec.

7/16 the Boss Guitars play classic and obscure surf covers at Lakeside 11 PM

7/17, 1-7 PM the Bay Ridge Arab American Bazaar takes place at 79th Street and Shore Road (Shore Road Park): food/music/rides/homemade Middle Eastern ice cream/kids stuff and more.

7/17 LES punk/rockabilly/surf legend Simon & the Bar Sinisters at Lakeside 10:15 PMish.

7/18, 2-7 PM the Astoria Arab American Heritage Festival at Athens Square Park – 30th Street and 30th Avenue in Astoria with food, music, crafts, kids’ entertainment. “There is no where cooler than Astoria so be there!”

7/18, 7 PM African roots reggae with Meta & the Cornerstones at Pier One on the upper west.

7/18, 7ish Canadian goth keyboardist/chanteuse NLX at Caffe Vivaldi on a bill with jazzy, brassy chanteuse Amanda Mabro, a generic Canadian Coldplay wannabe and a folkie girl.

7/19-20 Calexico at City Winery 9 PM $30 standing room tix avail.

7/19 potently lyrical Americana songwriter Joe Pug at the Mercury 10ish

7/19 the NYCity Slickers play bluegrass at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

7/20, 5 PM Naomi Shelton & The Gospel Queens in the parking lot out back of City Winery, free

7/20-25 Jamaican piano jazz titan Monty Alexander at Dizzy’s Club.

7/20, 9 PM torchy Eastern European rock/pop with Lana Mir at Arlene’s

7/21, 6 PM John Ellis & Double-Wide at Madison Square Park

7/21 reggae covers of Radiohead, Floyd and the Fab Four by the devious Easy Star All-Stars at the Stuyvesant Town Oval, 7 PM

7/21 a killer doublebill: brilliantly lyrical soul/rock songwriter Dina RuDean and the haunting, lush, artsy chamber pop of the Snow at the Knitting Factory, 9 PM, $8 adv tix. rec.

7/22 (note date change from 7/24) Dave Campbell was one of the finest drummers in New York, a well-loved and influential figure. There’s a memorial concert at the Parkside starting around 8 with the surviving members of bands he played with: psychedelic rockers Love Camp 7, noir jazzy Americana group Erica Smith & the 99 Cent Dreams, the high-energy, punkish K’s and others.

7/22 Antibalas at Castle Clinton, 7 PM, free, tix two per person handed out to those in line at 4 PM.

7/22 Mexican folk-punk songwriter Rana Santacruz at the Jewish Museum, 92nd and 5th Ave., $15

7/22 Demolition String Band at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

7/23 energetic female-fronted garage riff-rock/noise-rock with Loose Limbs at South St. Seaport time TBA.

7/23 smart, fiery latin rockers Outernational at 7 PM at Highline Ballroom followed by oi-punk legends GBH, adv tix $17 highly rec.

7/23, 8 PM at Bargemusic the Voxare Quartet: Emily Ondracek, violin, Galina Zhdanova, violin, Erik Peterson, viola, Adrian Daurov, cello) Riley – String Quartet; Lou Harrison – String Quartet Set; Hamza El Din – Escalay (The Water Wheel); Riley – Mystic Birds Waltz, Sunrise of the Planetary Dream Collector, tix $25/$20 srs/$10 stud.

7/23, 9:30 PM the Sadies at Bowery Ballroom

7/23 legendary, hypnotic post-Velvets postpunk NYC rockers Band of Outsiders at Lakeside 11 PM.

7/23, 1 AM (actually wee hours of 7/24) the O at Arlene’s. Is this the legendary hip-hop crew, with the Anal Thermometer song, and the violent stage antics?

7/24 captivating, innovative cello-and-marimba chamber pop duo Goli at Caffe Vivaldi 9:30 PM

7/24, 11 PM PM Luminescent Orchestrii frontman Sxip Shirey’s cd release show at City Winery, $12 adv tix rec. -”deep sexy beats created on Industrial Flutes, Bullhorn Harmonica, Regurgitated Music Box, Triple Extended Pennywhistles, Miniature Hand Bell Choir, Obnoxiophone, Glass Bowls With Red Marbles and a clutch of curious objects.”

7/25, 3 PM Fool’s Gold, Burkina Electric and Bassekou Kouyate and Ngoni Ba at Central Park Summerstage.

7/25 the hilarious Uncle Leon & the Alibis – NYC’s answer to David Allan Coe – at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

7/26 Daria Grace & the Pre-War Ponies with Matt Munisteri on guitar at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

7/27, 7 PM Michael and Christian Blackwood’s extensive 1968 footage Thelonious Monk concert/documentary film Straight No Chaser at the Maysles Institute, 343 Malcolm X Blvd / Lenox Ave (between 127th and 128th Streets), free.

7/27, 7 PM klezmerite/Americanist Andy Statman at at Gantry Plaza State Park in Long Island City, 7 PM

7/27 the Mingus Orchestra at Washington Square Park 8 PM

7/27, 9:30ish Derek James followed by Brother Joscephus & the Love Revival Revolution Orchestra at the Brooklyn Bowl $10

7/27 the oldtimey/hokum blues of the Second Fiddles at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

7/28, 6:30 PM outdoors in back of Lincoln Center the subversive 1960s play No Snakes in This Grass by James Magnuson, free

7/28 7 PM Plena Libre play Wagner Park downtown

7/29 duskcore guitar great Vieux Farka Toure at noon at Metrotech Park in downtown Brooklyn, F to Jay St.

7/29, 7:30 PM jazz guitar genius Matt Munisteri plays the plaza at the Brooklyn Central Library at Grand Army Plaza, free

7/29, 7:30 PM at Damrosch Park out back of Lincoln Center a Haitian bill feat. Ansanm, Emeline Michel, Beethova Obas, BélO, Zili Misik, acts will probbly appear in reverse order.

7/29 Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes plus George Thorogood at Asser Levy Park next to the Coney Island Aquarium, 7:30 PM, F to W 8th St. or any train to Stillwell Ave.

7/30, 9/10:30 PM alto sax jazz star Jacam Manricks leads a quartet playing compositions from his really quite extraordinary new albumTrigonometry at the Cornelia St. Cafe, $10.

7/30 killer honkytonk band the Dixons at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

7/30, 11 PM, the ageless, eternally relevant Avengers – who were the American Sex Pistols thirty years ago – at the Bell House, $25.

7/31 on the plaza at Lincoln Center a murderously good Detroit music afternoon starting with Eddie Kirkland acoustic at 2 PM, the Motor City Soul Revue: Eddie Kirkland, Spyder Turner, Melvin Davis, Dennis Coffey & The Velvelettes with The Party Stompers at 2:30. At 5 PM out back in Damrosch Park it’s pioneering black punk rockers Death followed by the Gories at 6, ? and the Mysterians at 7:15 and Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels at 8:30

7/31, 9ish Sonic Youth free at Prospect Park Bandshell – this is one you’ll have to hear from behind the fence out back because no matter what time you show up it’ll be a mobscene.

7/31 Ansambl Mastika at Shrine 9 PM

8/1 Los Straitjackets and the Asylum Street Spankers, 4 PM on the plaza at Lincoln Center

8/2-3 Dr. John & the Lower 9/11 at City Winery, 8:30 PM, $35 standing room tix avail.

8/3, 7 PM Elvis Martinez plays his bachata hits at Highbridge Park.

8/4-8, 7 PM outdoors behind Lincoln Center, Asphalt Orchestra marches and plays world premieres byYoko Ono and David Byrne/Annie Clark

8/4, 7 PM sax player James Carter’s Organ Trio at Madison Square Park

8/4, 7 PM Conjunto Imagen at Wagner Park downtown

8/5 Michael Rose of Black Uhuru at noon at Metrotech Park in downtown Brooklyn, F to Jay St.

8/5, 7 PM Gil Scott-Heron at Marcus Garvey Park

8/7, 7 PM the Budos Band and Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings at Prospect Park Bandshell.

8/7, 7 PM Mucca Pazza and Balkan Beat Box at Damrosch Park out back of Lincoln Center.

8/8, 2 PM haunting Greek rebetika band the Maeandros Ensemble, the lushly slinky vintage Egyptian film music revivalists Zikrayat and Yuri Yunakov on the plaza at Lincoln Center

8/8, 7 PM Slavic Soul Party at Pier One on the upper west

8/9 the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin at Wingate Field in Crown Heights, get there early, 6:30 PM and watch your back, the cops have quotas to make. 8/12 she’s at at Asser Levy Park in Coney Island, 7:30 PM, early arrival also advised.

8/9 chanteuse/pianist Hilary Kole at Birdland – her new album features Dave Brubeck, Hank Jones, Monty Alexander and a whole slew of killer 88s guys.

8/10, 7 PM bossa nova chanteuse Hiromi Suda at Gantry Plaza State Park in Long Island City

8/11, 7 PM boricua guitarist Nino Segarra and His Orchestra at Wagner Park downtown

8/12 the creepy, artsy, extraordinarily popular Deerhunter at Pier 54 at 14th St., gates at 6, show starts at 7 with the richkid eunuch rock of Real Estate which you will have to stand through in order to see the headliners.

8/13-15 it’s the Gypsy Tabor Festival at Floyd Bennett Field in Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn. People come from miles around and camp out here; daily tix are also available. Even from the bus, it’s a bit of a hike but it’s worth it. Last year’s bill was one of the best NYC outdoor lineups in decades.

8/14, 3 PM Bachata Fest at Central Park Summerstage with Andy Andy, Luis Miguel de la Amargue, Elvis Martinez and Alexandria.

8/14, 7:30 PM at Damrosch Park out back of Lincoln Center a major moment in nuyorican music history: Larry Harlow’s La Raza Latina, A Salsa Suite makes its New York premiere, conducted by Larry Harlow with Rubén Blades, Adonis Puentes plus Orchestra and Chorus and the Bobby Sanabria Big Band

8/15, 3 PM Blitz the Ambassador, 7th Octave and Public Enemy at Central Park Summerstage.

8/17, 7 PM psychedelic raga fusion with Mission on Mars: Kristin Hoffmann on vocals, Vin Scialla on drums, sitar player Neel Murgai, electric guitarist David Ullmann, bass player, and keyboardist Jason Lindner working the effects at Gantry Plaza State Park in Long Island City.

8/17, 9 PM Lee Scratch Perry at Highline Ballroom, $25 adv tix a must, this will sell out

8/22 the Specials at Central Park Summerstage, 5ish, doors at 3

8/24 southwestern gothic chanteuse Marianne Dissard – whose new album Paris One Takes is one of our favorites – at Joe’s Pub, 7 PM. Also on the bill: delightful janglerock en Espanol band Cordero. Dissard is also at MOMA on 8/26 at 5:30/7 PM and at Barbes on 8/27 with her guitarist Brian Lopez.

8/24 classic-style roots reggae with Groundation on the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Jewel, boarding at 7 at the FDR and 23rd St., adv tix $30 at the Highline box office highly rec.

8/28, 3 PM the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival at Marcus Garvey Park  featuring McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Scott, Jason Moran and the Bandwagon and Revive da Live: Charlie Parker Revisited.

8/29, 3 PM the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival at Tompkins Square Park with James Moody, Catherine Russell, Vijay Iyer and the JD Allen Trio.

8/29, 8 PM Nellie McKay at Highline Ballroom $20 adv tix highly rec., this will probably sell out. She’s playing her Doris Day set.

9/1 the John Farnsworth Quartet outdoors at Bryant Park, 6 PM, free.

9/10 horn-driven Brooklyn country band Yarn plays the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Half Moon boarding at 23rd St. and the FDR at 6, leaving an hour later, adv tix $20 highly rec.

9/10, 9:30ish Ice-T at the Knitting Factory $20 adv tix highly rec.

9/11 Sierra Leone’s Refugee All-Stars at the Knitting Factory, 7 PM, $25 adv tix highly rec. Their show at the Highline back in May was ecstatically fun.

9/19 Strings of the Black Sea: a Celebration of Lutes and Fiddles from Bulgaria, Ukraine, Crimea and Turkey, 3 PM at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Auditorium, $30 at the museum ticket windows

9/21 British folk-rock legends the Strawbs acoustic at BB King’s

9/23, 11 PM Those Darlins at Bowery Ballroom $13 adv tix highly rec.

9/26, 3 PM at Central Park Summerstage: the Black Sea Roma Festival featuring Mahala Rai Banda, Tecsoi Banda, Selim Sesler & the NY Gypsy All-Stars and the Yuri Yunakov Ensemble

10/29 NYC third-wave NYC ska legends the Toasters at BB King’s

11/17 Red Molly at City Winery 8 PM

NYC Live Music Calendar for May-June 2010 Plus Other Events

We have a new June-July calendar up now – click the link because this page is the old May-June one without all the updates.  If you don’t recognize the place where a particular act is playing, check our venues page. If you didn’t see anything that tickled you this time around, you can always check back later since we incessantly get news about new shows and then add them here.  

 A few things you should know: acts are listed here in order of appearance, NOT headliner first and supporting acts after; showtimes listed here are actual set times, not the time doors open. If a listing here says something like ”9 PM-ish,” chances are it’ll run late. Cover charges are those listed on bands’ and venues’ sites: always best to click on the band link provided or go to the venues page for confirmation since we get much of this info weeks in advance. As always, weekly events first followed by the daily listings:

Sundays there’s a klezmer brunch at City Winery, show starts round 11:30 AM – 2 PM, $10 cover, no minimum, lots of good bands.

Sundays from half past noon to 3:30 PM, bluegrass cats Freshly Baked (f.k.a. Graveyard Shift), featuring excellent, incisive fiddle player Diane Stockwell play Nolita House (upstairs over Botanica at 47 E Houston). Free drink with your entree.

The 2009-10 series of organ concerts at St. Thomas Church continues most every Sunday (holidays excepted) at 5:15 sharp, featuring an allstar cast of performers. Concerts continue through the end of May 2010.

Stephane Wrembel plays Sundays at Barbes at 9. He’s something of an institution here, plan on arriving EARLY, 45 minutes early isn’t too soon since the whole bar gets packed fast. The guitarist has few if any equals as an interpreter of Django Reinhardt, but it’s where he takes the gypsy jazz influence in his own remarkably original, psychedelic writing – and what he brings to the Django stuff – that makes all the difference. One of the most interesting players in any style of music, anywhere in the world.

Every Sunday the Ear-Regulars, led by trumpeter Jon Kellso and (frequently) guitarist Matt Munisteri play NYC’s only weekly hot jazz session starting around 8 PM at the Ear Inn on Spring St.  Hard to believe, in the city that springboarded the careers of thousands of jazz legends, but true. This is by far the best value in town for marquee-caliber jazz: for the price of a drink and a tip for the band, you can see world-famous players (and brilliant obscure ones) you’d usually have to drop $100 for at some big-ticket room. The material is mostly old-time stuff from the 30s and 40s, but the players (especially Kellso and Munisteri, who have a chemistry that goes back several years) push it into some deliciously unexpected places.

Every Sunday, hip-hop MC Big Zoo hosts the long-running End of the Weak rap showcase at the Pyramid, 9 PM, admission $5 before 10, $7 afterward. This is one of the best places to discover some of the hottest under-the-radar hip-hop talent, both short cameos as well as longer sets from both newcomers and established vets.

Sundays in May and June the Chico O’Farrill Jazz Orchestra at Birdland sets at 9/11 PM $30

Mondays at the Fat Cat the Choi Fairbanks String Quartet play a wide repertoire of chamber music from Bach to Shostakovich starting at 7

Mondays at the Jazz Standard it’s all Mingus, whether with the Mingus Orchestra, Big Band or Mingus Dynasty: you know the material and the players are all first rate. Sets 7:30/9:30 PM, $25 and worth it.

Mondays at the Delancey on the main floor, 8:30 PMish Botanica frontman and master of menace Paul Wallfisch presents the edgiest weekly music series in town, playfully called Small Beast, an international mix of some of the most intelligent (and frequently darkest) performers passing through town. It’s free and there’s always some kind of drink special or freebee. If you wish Tonic was still open, Wallfisch is keeping the flame alive. He typically plays a solo set on piano around 10 PM, reason enough to put this on your calendar. June artists include the phantasmagorical Carol Lipnik & Spookarama, ferociously charismatic gypsy rocker Vera Beren’s Gothic Chamber Blues Ensemble, cool noir rockers Darren Gaines & the Key Party, hypnotic soundscape instrumentalist Thomas Simon,  big indie buzz band the Walking Hellos and more.

Also Monday nights Vince Giordano’s Nighthawks, a boisterous horn-driven 11-piece 1920s/early 30’s band play Sofia’s Restaurant, downstairs at the Edison Hotel, 221 West 46th Street between Broadway & 8th Ave., 3 sets from 8 to 11, surprisingly cheap $15 cover plus $15 minimum considering what you’re getting. Even before the Flying Neutrinos or the Moonlighters, multi-instrumentalist Giordano was pioneering the oldtimey sound in New York; his long-running residency at the old Cajun on lower 8th Ave. is legendary. He also gets a ton of film work (Giordano wrote the satirical number that Willie Nelson famously sang in Wag the Dog).

Mondays at the Vanguard the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra – composer Jim McNeely’s reliably good big band vehicle – plays 9/11 PM, $30 per set plus drink minimum.

Also Mondays in May the Barbes house band, Chicha Libre plays there starting around 9:30. They’ve singlehandedly resurrected an amazing subgenre, chicha, which was popular in the Peruvian Amazon in the late 60s and early 70s. With electric accordion, cuatro, surf guitar and a boisterous rhythm section, their mix of obscure classics and originals is one of the funnest, most danceable things you’ll witness this year. Perhaps not so strangely, they sound a lot like Finnish surf rockers Laika and the Cosmonauts in their most imaginative moments.

Also Mondays in May Rev. Vince Anderson and his band play Union Pool in Williamsburg, two sets starting around 11 PM. The Rev. is one of the great keyboardists around, equally thrilling on organ or electric piano, an expert at Billy Preston style funk, honkytonk, gospel and blues. He writes very funny, very politically astute, frequently salacious original gospel songs and is one of the most charismatic, intense live performers of our time. Paula Henderson from Burnt Sugar is the lead soloist on baritone sax.

The second and fourth Tuesday of the month there are free organ recitals at half past noon at Central Synagogue, Lexington Ave. at 55th., an exciting list of first-class performers in a sonically gorgeous space, a great way to spend your lunch break if you work in the neighborhood.

Tuesdays the boisterous and very popular brass-heavy gypsy jazz band Slavic Soul Party plays Barbes at 9. Get here as soon as you can as the opening act is usually popular as well.

Tuesdays in May the Dred Scott Trio play astonishingly smart, dark piano jazz at the Rockwood at midnight.

Wednesdays in May the self-explanatory and very entertaining Bato the Yugo & Gypsy Boogie at Mehanata 10 PM. They’re also at Nublu on Sundays at 9.

Every Thursday the Michael Arenella Quartet play 1920s hot jazz 8-11 PM at Nios, 130 W 46th St.

Every Friday in May at 8:30 PM at the Fat Cat Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens bring an authentic here-and-now Brooklyn church vibe, no slick theatrics, just soul.

Fridays there’s live Mediterranean music – Greek- Arabic, Turkish Armenian, Israeli fusion with Mike Stoupakis, Christos Zavolas, Sofia on on vocals, Elias Sarkar-oud/vocals, Kostas Konstantinou – drums,  plus bellydancers at Lafayette Grill & Bar, 54 Franklin St., downtown,$20 cover, 10ish, free after 1 AM.

Fridays 5/14, 21, 28 Sister Sparrow & the Dirty Birds play edgy, funky bluesy stuff at the new second stage (where are they gonna put that, on the roof?) at the Rockwood, midnight.

5/1-2 at LaMama, 74A East Fourth Street Thur-Sat 8PM + Sun matinee 2:30; $18; Box Office (212) 475-7710: “Yara Arts Group will summon ancient epics and rituals from Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan for “Scythian Stones,” an original, experimental World Music Theatre piece with choreography, which will presented by La MaMa from April 16 to May 2. The piece, created by Virlana Tkacz, features famed Ukrainian singer Nina Matvienko, her daughter Tonia and artists from Kyrgyzstan. “Scythian Stones” constructs parallel journeys for two young women, from village life and nomadic tradition into the city. Their separate journeys become epic descents into the Great Below—the modern global desert where songs, skills and languages vanish, leaving behind only mute markers like the Scythian Stones found today throughout the grasslands of Ukraine and Central Asia. The production, staged by Virlana Tkacz and Watoku Ueno, will feature Ukrainian and Kyrgyz traditional music, as well as modern music, design and movement. Interweaving performances in Ukrainian, Kyrgyz and English, “Scythian Stones” remains completely accessible to American audiences.”

5/1 haunting, hypnotic Middle Eastern golden age film music revivalists Zikrayat play the cd release for their long-awaited new cd Cinematic at Barbes with an allstar Middle Eastern lineup: Shusmo at 6, Zikrayat themselves at 7 and Falu at 8, the entire show simulcast on 91.1 FM WFMU.

5/1, 8 PM sitarist Shujaat Husain Khan (son and disciple of the late Ustad Vilayat Khan) at Symphony Space, tix $30/$18 stud.

5/1, 8 PM ethereal, minimalist, gorgeously moody Americana duo Arborea at Northeast Kingdom, 18 Wyckoff Ave. in Bushwick, L to Jefferson St.

5/1 El Pueblo play latin reggae/dub at Shrine, 9 PM; 5/28 they’re at Local 269

5/1 the Spinal Tap of brass bands, the Stagger Back Brass Band at Union Pool 9 PM

5/1-4 at the Vanguard the Bill Frisell Trio with Eyvind Kang and Rudy Royston; 5/11-16 his quartet with Kang, Hank Roberts and Jenny Scheinman.

5/1, 10ish an oldschool rooftop soul party with the One and Nines – a more Memphis version of what Sharon Jones is doing – at 51 Pacific Ave at Caven Point Ave, Jersey City: also “all night DJ’s will be spinning vinyl records of R&B, Soul, Reggae, Rock & Roll, Hip-Hop, Doo-Wop, and anything else that’s funky (no disco or house, sorry…..)”

5/1 NYC’s best blues band, Delta Dreambox at Two Boots Brooklyn 10 PM.

5/1 the ferocious, funny, charismatic, musically diverse anti-gentrification rockers – 2010′s version of the Clash – the Brooklyn What at Don Pedro’s, 11ish.

5/1 Chip Robinson, Kasey Anderson (who’s got an excellent new album out)and the Roscoe Trio have a twangfest at Lakeside 11 PM.

5/1 Top Shotta (ten-piece dub reggae band with horn section!) at Rose Bar in Williamsburg, midnight-ish.

5/2 ecstatic, cinematic, clever pan-Balkan string band Ljova and the Kontraband at the Museum of Natural History at the Silk Road exhibit at 1:30, 2:30 and 3:30pm. If you haven’t seen the exhibition yet, this is a great chance – and go see them too. They’re also here on 6/6 and 6/13

5/2, 3 PM a fascinating afternoon of new music put together by piano firebrand Kathy Supove including new work by Paula Matthusen; Rajas for John Cage by Rocco DiPietro, new compositions for toy piano and loops by Ranjit Bhatnagar; Gold Ocean by Ken Ueno/Du Yun; Neil Rolnick’s Numb and Mono plus post-concert discussion led by special guest moderator Cornelius Duffalo at the Flea Theatre, 41 White St. (Church/Bwy), free, early arrival highly advised.

5/2 John Doe & Exene Cervenka of X at City Winery 8 PM $22 tix. avail.

5/2 casually captivating, golden-voiced Americana-inspired chanteuse Robin Aigner plus a full band at the Jalopy 9 PM.

5/2 El Topo at Rose Bar in Williamsburg, 10ish “Acid-exotica septet from Brooklyn, NY. El Topo funnels influences ranging from Dirty Harry movies to Martin Denny, from classical Arabic music to Italian giallos. Combining the intensity of a psychedelic rock band with the jump-cut attitudes of film scores, El Topo conjures soundscapes for the dancer in your head.”

5/3 ferociously smart Americana siren Liz Tormes and her band play the Rockwood, 8 PM.

5/3, 9 PM latin guitar/cuatro god Aquiles Baez at Rose Bar in Williamsburg

5/4, 2 PM at Merkin Concert Hall the La Catrina Quartet play latin classical composers: Works by Emmanuel Arias y Luna, Joseph Haydn, Astor Piazzolla, Javier Alvarez, Felix Mendelssohn and Jose Pablo Moncayo, tix dirt cheap, $15.

5/4 jazz vibraphonist Mark Sherman at 55 Bar with Jim Ridl on piano, Tom Dicarlo on bass, Tim Horner on drums

5/5 at the Bell House the “Guactacular” guacamole contest/pigout/concert including free Tecate and Dos Equis 7-8 PM and a set by accordionist Alex Meixner, $12 adv tix available at the venue. Raffle, guacamole judging, general drunkenness and who knows what else.

5/5 thoughtful, atmospheric, tuneful Ninth House lead guitarist Keith Otten plays a rare solo show at 169 Bar, 8 PM.

5/5, 8 PM Ukrainian-American indie pop siren Lana Mir at Arlene’s followed eventually by an excellent Cinco de Mayo rock en Espanol bill with Kofre and then New Madrid.

5/5 celebrate Cinco de Mayo at Littlefield with NYC banda supergroup Banda Sinaloense de Los Muertos feat. Oscar Noriega & Chris Speed – clarinets; Jakob Garchick – Sousaphone; Jim Black & Vinnie Sperrazza – percussion; Patrick Farrell & Rachel Drehman ; Alto horn; Curtis Hasselbring & Brian Drye – trombones and many guest singers including Chicha Libre’s Olivier Conan, Jean Carla Rodea, Rana Santacruz and many more tba,  followed by the self-explanatory Cumbiagra, 8 PM-ish, tix cheap, only $10.

5/5 outlaw country throwback Hayes Carll followed by Dierks Bentley with his band the Travelin McCourys at Highline Ballroom is SOLD OUT. Nice to see.

5/5-9 alto sax titan Kenny Garrett at Iridium, 8/10 PM, $30/$35 weekend

5/5-6, 8 PM at Avery Fisher Hall Valery Giergiev conducts the NY Phil doing Stravinsky’s Petroushka, $31 tix avail.

5/5 indie/Americana legends the Silos at Lakeside 9:30ish.

5/5 retro country hellraisers the Jack Grace Band plays the cd release show for their new one, their best-ever Drinking Songs for Lovers at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM. They’re also at Hill Country on 5/6 at 9 and there again, same time on 5/12.

5/6, 6 PM the Joel Forrester Trio (Microscopic Septet pianist and Fresh Air theme composer) at Shrine, free.

5/6-9 pianist Mulgrew Miller and his original group Wingspan at the Jazz Standar, sets 7:30/9, tix $25 ($30 on the weekend).

5/6 Pierre de Gaillande of the Snow’s amazing English-language Georges Brassens cover band Bad Reputation at Barbes 8 PM followed by the self-explanatory Cumbiagra at 10

5/6, 8 PM Monica Huggett, violin and Audrey Axinn, fortepiano play mostly early Romantics: Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert and Weber at the Abigail Adams Smith Museum Auditorium, 417 East 61st St., $25.

5/6 Ilamawana play hypnotic, dubwise, horn-driven roots reggae at Sullivan Hall 10 PM.

5/6 El Pueblo plays dub reggae en Espanol at Hank’s 10:30 PM

5/6 Norden Bombsight – the missing link between Joy Division and Pink Floyd – at Matchless 11 PM.

5/6 oldtimey chanteuse Miss Tess & the Bon Ton Parade at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM.

5/7 the Walking Hellos (cool Brooklyn band with baritone guitar, accordion and rhythm section) open for indie cult supergroup the Golden Palominos (no idea if anybody from the original band is left) at le Poisson Rouge, 7 PM, $15

5/7, 7:30 PM Maureen McDermott, cello and Anne-Marie McDermott, piano play Bach, Brahms and Kodaly at Third St. Music School Settlement, free

5/7 a rare Flugente trio show at Banjo Jim’s 8 PM – fearlessly intense frontman/lyricist Jerry Adler, guitar god Jeremiah Lockwood and Yuval Lion of Pink Noise on drums.

5/7, 9 PM for fans of the greatest rock band ever, “a tribute to the Church in celebration of Marty Willson-Piper’s birthday” at Luna Lounge-meister Rob Sacher’s latest venture, Satellite Lounge, 143 Havemeyer St., (S. 1st.& S. 2nd.), south Williamsburg, J/M to Marcy Ave. No idea if anybody is playing, but you know the songs are bound to be good.

5/7 latin accordionist Alex Meixner at Barbes 8 PM followed by the Jack Grace Band at 10

5/7, 8:30 PM former McCoy Tyner and Earth Wind & Fire tenor player Azar Lawrence’s Sextet plays a Tribute to Ali’s Alley: Azar Lawrence, tenor/soprano sax; Eddie Henderson, trumpet; Gerald Hayes, alto sax; Benito Gonzalez, piano; Ronnie Burrage, drums. At Tribeca Performing Arts Center at the BMCC, 199 Chambers St., tix $25/$15 stud/srs. Lawrence’s new album Mystic Journey was Rashied Ali’s final session.

5/7 haunting, genre-defying Syrian chanteuse Gaida and her great levantine band at BAM Cafe 9 PM.

5/7 at the Parkside a fun triple bill: atmospheric LES psychelic garage legends Band of Outsiders at 9, the similar, slightly Dream Syndicate-ish Glass Trees at 11 and the very Alex Chilton-inspired Nu-Sonics at midnight

5/7 Americana guitarmeister Chris Erikson & the Wayward Puritans at Lakeside 9:30ish.

5/7 deliriously fun, danceable latin soul bugalu revivalists Spanglish Fly at Camaradas el Barrio, 2241 1st Ave at 116th St., 10 PM, $5

5/7 ominously funny bluespunk band the Five Points Band at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM.

5/7, 11 PM JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound – 60s style Chicago soul revivalists – at Southpaw, $10 adv tix rec.

5/7 golden age hip-hop legends EPMD at B.B. King’s, 11 PM – Erick and Parrish still making dollars after all these years.

5/7 the One and Nines – who do for Memphis soul what Sharon Jones is doing for soul/funk – at the Rockwood at midnight.

5/8 half past noon ish jazz brunch at Smoke uptown with an uncommonly interesting, smart crew: Misha Piatigorsky (piano), Danton Boller (bass), Rudy Royston (drums).

5/8, 2 (two) PM Mick Turner and Jim White of the Dirty Three play free at Soundfix Lounge in the new space at N 11th and Berry in Williamsburg

5/8 stark, intense, fun violin-and-guitar-driven artsy indie band Bern & the Brights at Spike Hill, 8 PM.

5/8, 8 PM popular indie powerpop rockers Palomar, then the chick who used to drum for the Vivian Girls and then the Primitives (who were sort of the female Teenage Fanclub) in what might be their final US show ever, at the Bell House, adv tix $22.50 highly recommended

5/8 composer/trombonist Samuel Blaser – whose most recent album ranked high on our best-of list for 2009 – leads his Quartet at the Cornelia St. Cafe, 8 PM with Todd Neufeld (guitar), Eivind Opsvik (bass), Billy Mintz (drums); they’ll also be at Zebulon on 5/9 at 9.

5/8, 8 PM the Gowanus Jazz Fest kicks off at the Douglass Street Music Collective, 295 Douglass St. (3rd/4th Aves.), Gowanus, Brooklyn with Sam Newsome playing Monk solo on soprano sax followed at 9:30 by Big Enigma feat. Christine Correa, Matt Moran, John Carlson, Jeremy Udden, Frank Carlberg, Jerome Harris and Kenny Wollesen, sugg don. $15 for the night.

5/8 oldschool 60s style soul duo Dwight and Nicole – Steve Cropper guitar and some of the most casually sultry vocals you’ll hear these days – at the Rockwood, 8 PM

5/8, 8:30 PM Middle Eastern/groove/indescribable multistylistic world music orchestra Tribecastan invades Joe’s Pub feat. special guests trombonist Steve Turre, organist Al Kooper, Samantha Parton of the Be Good Tanyas, violinist Charlie Burnham, master percussionist Todd Isler.

5/8 la Sovietika get the crowd going tiki taka style at Shrine 9 PM followed eventually by the dub roots reggae of Konga I at midnight.

5/8 very popular retro country crew M Shanghai String Band at the Jalopy 9 PM.

5/8 the ferocious South Serbian style Raya Brass Band at Mehanata, 10 PM. They’re also at Radegast Hall in Williamsburg on 5/13 at 9.

5/8, 10 PM garage-punk powerhouse 18 at Port 41 on 41st St. out behind Port Authority, $5.

5/8, 10 PM King Django play ska-punk at Two Boots Brooklyn, free.

5/8, 10:30 PM haunting, ethereal, atmospheric art-rock ensemble Edison Woods at Joe’s Pub with a special cameo by noir cabaret legend Little Annie.

5/8 LES punk/surf/rockabilly legends Simon & the Bar Sinisters at Lakeside 10:30ish.

5/8, midnight-ish Busta Rhymes at Highline Ballroom, tix $20 day of show only.

5/8 original, fun, danceable nuevo-Motown party band  Sonia’s Party at Glasslands sometime around 1 AM (actually morning of 5/9) – music til 3 AM.

5/9, 11:30AM-ish the amazingly multistylistic, danceable, often haunting, often very funny Metropolitan Klezmer at City Winery, $10, no food/drink minimum

5/9, 2VC – new music for 2 cellos and percussion feat. Jessie Reagen Mann and Gene Carr playing works by Derrik Jordan, Will Van Dyke, Jonathan Bell, Amanda Monaco, Ramon Tasat and Oded Lev-Ari “as well as some oldies but goodies” at 6th St. Synagogue, 325 E. Sixth Street (between 1st Ave. and 2nd Ave.) $15 adv tix, $8 stud/under 21.

5/9, 7 PM theremin virtuoso Pamelia Kurstin and keyboardist Pete Drungle followed by noir, gypsyish soundtrack instrumentalists Barbez at le Poisson Rouge, $12

5/9, 7 PM the Afiara String Quartet at Barbes, program TBA followed at 9 by gypsy jazz guitar god Stephane Wrembel

5/9 at Banjo Jim’s a benefit for Sean Casey Animal Rescue (who knew that the former Red Sox first baseman was such an animal lover?), 7 PM ish feat. Drina and the Deep Blue Sea, Liz Tormes, Alice Texas, Lorraine Leckie, Craig Chesler and others, $10 for a good cause.

5/9 oud player George Ziadeh leads a brilliant levantine ensemble: Tareq Abboushi on buzuq, Sami Abu Shumays of Zikrayat on violin, Amir ElSaffar on santoor, Zafer Tawil on oud and percussion, and Faisal Zedan on percussion playing “an Evening of Tarab: Adwaar, Muwashshahat & Umm Kulthoum – Back By Popular Demand!” at Alwan for the Arts, 9 PM, tix $20/15 stud., early arrival a must, this will sell out.

5/9, 9 PM, alternately haunting and entertaining art-rock/avant/folk chanteuse Larkin Grimm at Cake Shop.

5/9, 9 PM, sultry and amusing oldtime French chanson revivalists les Chauds Lapins at the Jalopy, $10.

5/9 Finotee play upbeat roots reggae at Shrine, 9 PM

5/9, 10ish at Rose Bar in Williamsburg the reliably excellent, innovative Tim Kuhl Group feat. saxist Jon Irabagon and trombonist Josh Roseman, two guitars and more.

5/9, 11 PM moody noir rockers Mad Juana at Otto’s

5/10 steampunk songwriting/accordion goddesss Rachelle Garniez at the Cornelia St. Cafe, 10ish, $15.

5/10 fiery, fearless New Orleans/Balkan chanteuse Meschiya Lake at Small Beast at the Delancey 11ish followed by Botanica mastermind Paul Wallfisch. Lake is also at Barbes on 5/13 at 10, at the Jalopy on 5/16 at 8 and at Radegast Hall on 5/20 at 9.

5/11, 8 PM Ninth House at Spike Hill playing songs from their upcoming cd 11 Cemetery and Western Classics

5/11, 8 PM fearless avant piano virtuoso Kathleen Supove at the Stone with Elan Vytal on turntables and Ryan Brown on guitars, free copy of her forthcoming cd The Exploding Piano to first five customers who sign up. Plus a prize for whoever can answer this question: “The new CD has the following works on it—“Isabelle Eberhardt Dreams of Pianos” by Missy Mazzoli; “A Shaking of the Pumpkin” by Michael Gatonska; “On Track” by Anna Clyne; “Revolution” by Daniel Becker; and “Sutra Sutra” by Randall Woolf. Question: which composition will Supove be LEAST likely to be performing at The Stone, and why?”

5/11-15 the Terence Blanchard Quintet: Brice Winston (sax) Joshua Crumbly (bass) Kendrick Scott (drums) Fabian Almazan (piano) at Birdland, 8:30/11 PM, $30 seating avail.

5/11 funny country/bluegrasswith the Jack Grace Band followed by Luther Wright and the Wrongs at Rodeo Bar, 9ish. The bill repeats on 5/12, same time, at Hill Country.

5/11, 11:30 PM creepy, improvisational art-song specialists Dollshot at Korzo, 667 5th Avenue (19th/20th Sts.), Park Slope, Brooklyn, R to Prospect Avenue or F to 7th Ave. and a 15 minute walk

5/12, 7:30 PM, clever, artsy, ethereal and often haunting indie pop band Clare & the Reasons at Joe’s Pub, $15

5/12, 7:30 PM adventurous organist Gail Archer plays from her excellent new Bach cd at Central Synagogue.

5/12, 8 PM, our pals over at Feast of Music have their monthly extravaganza over at Littlefield and this one’s a great doublebill: hypnotic, improvisational new music ensemble Kyklos followed by fiery, unpredictable, virtuosic Balkan/Russian/latin string band Ljova and the Kontraband, $8 adv tix highly rec.

5/12, 8:30 PM, jaunty 80s new wave pop revivalists Hank and Cupcakes at le Poisson Rouge, $6

5/12 adventurous multistylistic bluegrass band Frankenpine at Lakeside 9:15ish; they’re also here on 6/3 at 9.

5/12, 9:30 PM deviously comedic songwriter/chanteuse Peri Lyons at Caffe Vivaldi.

5/12, 10 PM guitarist/singer Jennifer Curtis’ imaginative, jazzy, sultry chamber-pop group This Reporter at Bar 4 in Brooklyn.

5/12-13, 10 PM Louisiana bluesman Chris Thomas King (who played the Robert Johnson character in the Coen Bros.’ O Brother Where Art Thou) plays electric at Terra Blues.

5/13 the funnest band on the planet, surfy psychedelic cumbia rockers Chicha Libre on the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Half Moon, boarding at 7 at the FDR and 23rd St., adv tix $25 at the Highline box office highly rec.

5/13, 7 PM, ominous, atmospheric, sultry noir art-rockers Elysian Fields at le Poisson Rouge, $15.

5/13, 7 PM pianist Robert Mitchell plays Debussy, Ligeti and Rzweski at the Yamaha Piano Salon, $10 sugg. don.

5/13 the Scandia String Quartet play Foerster, Grieg, eerie Icelandic folk songs and other delightful Nordic obscurities at Victor Borge Hall, at Scandinavia House, 58 Park Ave. (37/38), 8 PM, $15, free with stud. ID.

5/13 country siren Drina Seay and Americana axemeister Steve Antonakos followed by crooner Sean Kershaw & the Terrible Two at 11th St. Bar, 8 PM. Antonakos plays solo at Banjo Jim’s the next day at 1 AM (actually, morning of 5/15).

5/13, 9/10:30 PM the Alan Ferber Nonet with strings at the Jazz Gallery $15/$10 for second set.

5/13 punk-pop legends the Buzzcocks at Irving Plaza, 9 PM, $30 adv tix rec.

5/13 pianist Orrin Evans – whose new album is characteristically cerebral and intense – leads a quartet at Smalls, 9 PM.

5/13 Nashville guitar/piano legend Greg Garing – who learned at the feet of the original Grand Old Opry cast – at Southpaw, 10 PM, $10.

5/13 long-running British art-rock songwriter Al Stewart acoustic at City Winery, 10ish, $20 seating avail.

5/13 Reverend Al and the Sharptones play clever Nick Lowe style twangy reverb retro guitar rock/soul with at Fontana’s, 10 PM.

5/14, 7 PM, Gary Louris of the Jayhawks and Golden Smog at le Poisson Rouge, $22 adv tix rec.

5/14, 7:30 PM PM at Symphony Space Joydeep Ghosh plays classical and contemporary Indian compositions on the rare, ancient surshringar, sort of a bass sarod lute, tix $25/$18 stud.

5/14 jangly, anthemic Irish rockers the Saw Doctors at Irving Plaza, 9 PM, adv tix $35.

5/14, 10 PM high-energy, entertaining, funny acoustic Irish punk band Box of Crayons at Parkside

5/14 the Doc Marshalls play fiery zydeco and west Texas honkytonk at Hill Country 10 PM.

5/14 ferociously anthemic, atmospheric, socially aware, Radiohead-inflected art-rockers My Pet Dragon at the Cameo Gallery 11 PM.

5/15, doors at 11 AM, the Wall to Wall Behind the Wall marathon at Symphony Space, free, classical music from behind the old Iron Curtain including compositions by Lutoslawski, Prokofiev, Shostakovich, Gorecki, Enescu, too many acts and pieces on the program to list here, the complete calendar is here.

5/15, 7 PM legendary NYC noir rocker LJ Murphy solo acoustic at Banjo Jim’s, 7 PM. No, this is not a typo, the bar probably has him on speed dial and needed a fill-in. Lenny Kaye also did one of these fill-in shows. Get there early.

5/15 psychedelic, rustic Balkan/blues/klezmer/reggae juggernaut Hazmat Modine at 7:15ish at Terra Blues, two sets, followed by fiery Chicago style blues guitarist/crooner Johnny Allen at 10.

5/15 cellist/chamber pop songwriter/chanteuse Serena Jost at Barbes 8 PM followed by a rare Saturday night show by Chicha Libre on their home turf at 10.

5/15, 8 PM the second night of the Gowanus Jazz Fest at the Douglass Street Music Collective, 295 Douglass St. (3rd/4th Aves.), Gowanus, Brooklyn with the Carlberg/Urie City Band feat. Jeremy Udden, Douglas Yates, Kenny Pexton, Brian Landrus, Albert Leusink, Ben Holmes, John Carlson, Alan Ferber, Max Seigal, Frank Carlberg, Jorge Roeder, Ziv Ravitz,Nicholas Urie, sugg. don. $15.

5/15 moody downtempo groove-rockers El Jezel at the Cameo Gallery, 8 PM, $10

5/15 Pauline Oliveros on accordion at the Stone, sets 8/10 PM, early arrival highly advised since this will sell out

5/15 the American String Quartet plays Mozart String Quartet No. 17 in B-Flat Major, K. 458, “Hunt;” Shostakovich String Quartet No. 3 in F Major, Op. 73 and Schubert String Quartet No. 14 in d minor, D. 810, “Death and the Maiden” at Bargemusic, 8 PM, concert repeats at 3 PM on 5/16, tix $35, $30/15 srs/stud.

5/15, 8 PM Rich Russo of 101.9 WRXP’s Anything Anything has assembled a cool triplebill at Bowery Ballroom with retro 70s/80s songwriter/producer Don DiLego, tuneful, high-energy Brooklyn janglepunks the Stalkers and artsy pop band A Million Years, who sound a lot like the Police, in a good way, tix $20.

5/15, 8 PM clever Americana jamrockers Tall Tall Trees at the Shambhala Center, 118 W 22nd St., $10

5/15, 8:30 PM string quartet Crucible (Cornelius Dufallo and Chris Otto, violins; John King, viola; and Alex Waterman, cello) will perform music from King’s new CD “10 Mysteries” at Roulette.

5/15, 9 PM ferociously literate, psychedelic art-rockers the Oxygen Ponies at Sycamore Bar in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn

5/15, 9 PM fun, danceable, authentic yet original latin bugalu revivalists Spanglish Fly at Mehanata, $10.

5/15, 10 PM alto sax jazz monster Jon Irabagon at the Fat Cat

5/15 fiery, funny Americana punk band Spanking Charlene – whose frontwoman is one of the most powerful, compelling singers around – at Lakeside 11 PM

5/16, 4 (four) PM Larry Long plays Bach on the organ at the Church of the Epiphany, 1393 York Ave. and 74th St., $25.

5/16, 6:30 PM Daan Vandewalle, piano plays Frederic Rzewski’s “The People United Will Never Be Defeated!” at le Poisson Rouge, $15

5/16, 7:30 PM at the Parkside the last Songwriters from Hell mix for awhile feat. Sousalves and other denizens of the night.

5/16, 8 PM Leigh-Ra play dark chamber pop at Caffe Vivaldi.

5/16 jangly, smart southwestern gothic rock with Tom Shaner at Lakeside, 9 PM.

5/16 haunting, gorgeous-voiced Linda Thompson soundalike and first-class literate songwriter Mary Battiata of Little Pink makes a rare NYC appearance at Banjo Jim’s, 9ish on a bill with Monica Passin of Lil Mo & the Monicats

5/16, 9 PM even if you can’t get to Morocco you can enjoy the Fez Festival of Sacred Music with the linktv program Sound of the Soul feat. Nass El Ghiwane, Anuna, Katia Guerreiro, and Farida Mahwash and the Kabul Ensemble, followed by a live webcast and chat with director Stephen Olsson at 10:28 PM

5/16, 9:30 PM at Joe’s Pub Maria Raducanu, “one of the most original singers in Romania’s jazz history, together with her international trio feat. Krister Jonsson on guitar and bassist Chris Dahlgren play fado & Romanian traditional songs, cradle songs, Russian romances, jazz standards, Sephardic songs, tangos, bossa-nova,” $15 adv tix highly rec.

5/16 haunting, ominous Ninth House frontman and baritone crooner Mark Sinnis at Otto’s, 11 PM

5/16, 11ish at Rose Bar in Williamsburg – Lucky Bastard: “An organic Brooklyn-blend of the Meters, Clapton, Ray Charles, and Steely Dan.”

5/17 jazz chanteuse Karrin Allyson and her quartet outdoors at Bryant Park, 6 PM, free.

5/17 an amazing night upstairs at the Delancey, even by Small Beast standards: hypnotic psychedelic gamelanesque trip-hop on homemade instruments by Electric Junkyard Gamelan, Pearl and the Beard cellist Emily Hope Price, intense Americana powerhouse Meschiya Lake, dramatic noir rock chanteuse Rykarda Parasol and Botanica frontman/pianist Paul Wallfisch, show starts at 9. Wow.

5/17, 9 PM noir-ish Americana twang guitar genius Bill Frisell plays a benefit at Roulette, $30 adv tix. rec.

5/17, 9ish the Jeff Fairbanks Jazz Orchestra at Tea Lounge in Park Slope.

5/17, 10:30 PM Brooklyn’s own otherworldly, ethereal, hauntingly innovative Balkan vocal quartet Black Sea Hotel at Galapagos.

5/18, 1 (one) PM Camille Kohnken plays Grieg, Bartok, Beethoven and Ligeti at the Yamaha Piano Salon, free

5/18, 8 PM, ex-Railroad Jerk and White Hassle Americana rock tunesmith/wordsmith Marcellus Hall at Bruar Falls.

5/18, 8 PM at the Stone Bridget Kibbey plays solo harp: “exploring the cross-section of folk and contemporary in a set featuring works by Susie Ibarra, David Bruce, Kati Agocs and arrangements by Kibbey.”

5/18-22 this era’s most state-of-the-art jazz chanteuse, Karrin Allyson with Lewis Nash (drums) Ed Howard (bass) Rod Fleeman (guitar) at Birdland, sets 8:30/11 PM $30 seating avail.

5/18 LES powerpop legend George Usher at Lakeside 9ish.

5/19, 3 (three) PM the Grand Air Trio plays Ravel, Carrabre, Vladigerov, Mendelssohn and Piazzolla at the Yamaha Piano Salon, $10 sugg. don.

5/19, 7:30 PM organist Gail Archer plays selections from her upcoming Bach cd at Central Synagogue (123 E 55th St, Train E/V-Lex/55th St).

5/19 avant punk legends Public Image Ltd. (with Lu Edmonds of the Damned and Triaboliques on guitar, pretty cool!) at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, 9ish, adv tix $37.50 – ouch

5/19 frequently funny Nashville gothic with Maynard & the Musties at Lakeside 9:30ish.

5/19, 10:30ish the Tiki Bros. play “P Slope surf rock” at Cafe Steinhof, 10:30ish

5/20 an A-list songwriter summit: the soaring Americana-inflected Mary Lee Kortes of Mary Lee’s Corvette, 7 PM at Banjo Jim’s followed by the psychedelic tropicalia-inspired  Jenifer Jackson at 8.

5/20, 7 PM up-and-coming jazz singer/trumpeter Natalie John at Caffe Vivaldi.

5/20, 7:30 PM at Merkin Concert Hall an art-rock bill with Elizabeth and the Catapult (pianist Elizabeth Ziman and her band) plus sets by 101 Crustaceans’ singer/pianist Ed Pastorini and Gabriel Kahane, $25 adv tix avail.

5/20 clever, tuneful pianist/chanteuse Elaine Romanelli plays the cd release show for her new one The Real Deal at the Bitter End, 8 PM, $5.

5/20, 8:30 PM extremely popular Haitian singer Emeline Michel plays the Atrium at Lincoln Center, early arrival a must.

5/20 Devin the Dude plus the Coughee Bros. doing filthy Houston hip-hop at the Knittting Factory, 9ish, $15 adv tix highly rec.

5/20 catchy melodic ambitious European-flavored jazz with bassist Joris Teepe’s group featuring David Kikoski on piano plus Alex Sipiagin – trumpet , Willard Dyson – drums, 9 PM at Smalls.

5/20 a good dark garage/punk doublebill at the Mercury at 9:30 with Des Roar followed by Doppelganger at 10:30, $10

5/20 trumpeter Steven Bernstein’s reliably upbeat, fun, surprising Sex Mob at 55 Bar, 10 PM

5/21 Small Beast presents the Big Beast at the Orensanz Center, definitely the best bill of the year so far: noir cabaret legends Little Annie and Paul Wallfisch, haunting atmospheric art-rockers Bee & Flower; NYC’s best live band, the ferocious, gypsy-art-punk  Botanica ; noir atmospheric/gypsy instrumentalists Barbez, World Inferno keyboardist Franz Nicolay, pensively anthemic British art-folk songwriter Spottiswoode and Brooklyn’s own haunting Balkan vocal choir Black Sea Hotel singing from the balcony!  Adv tix $20 available at the Delancey include open bar 6:30-7:30 PM.

5/21, 6 PM Bjorkestra frontwoman Becca Stevens and her and at 55 Bar; the Brooklyn Boogaloo Blowout play afterward at 10 PM

5/21 twangy Steve Earle type stuff with the Mark McKay Band at Lakeside, 7 PM; the Boss Guitars play surf music at 11.

5/21, 8 PM the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas with violinist Daniel Andai & guitarist Pablo Sáinz Villegas play new music by Mexican composers: Gustavo Campa’s Melodía with solo violinist Daniel Andai, Ricardo Castro’s Intermezzo de Atzimba, and Candelario Huízar’s Imágenes, plus Federico Ibarra’s Sinfonía No. 2 and Manuel M. Ponce’s Concierto del Sur with solo guitarist Pablo Sáinz Villegas, and Astor Piazzolla’s Otoño Porteño at Alice Tully Hall, $15 tix adv tix avail. and highly rec.

5/21, 8:15 PM smartly entertaining, socially aware duo Left on Red at Caffe Vivaldi.

5/21 haunting, rustic, gypsy-inflected art-rockers Kotorino – whose show here last year made our 20 Best NYC Concerts list last year – at Pete’s, 9 PM.

5/21, 9ish the Joris Teepe Jazz Orchestra at Tea Lounge in Park Slope

5/21 Mexican folk-punk rocker Rana Santacruz followed by deliriously fun Brazilian/ska/New Orleans dance band Nation Beat at the 92ytribeca, 9:30 PM, $12

5/21, 9:30 PM at Smalls the Neal Smith Quartet featuring Mulgrew Miller on piano, Neal Smith – drums, Abraham Burton – tenor, Seth Lewis – bass

5/21 hypnotic Mississippi hillcountry blues guitar genius Will Scott at Hill Country, 10 PM.

5/21 Grand Masters of Gypsy Music at Mehanata, 10 PM

5/21 Black Sheep and Naughty by Nature at the Brooklyn Masonic Temple, 10ish, $28, early arrival advised.

5/21, 11 PM Roots Vibration play real oldschool rasta reggae at Shrine

5/22-23 Dafnis Prieto’s Si O Si Quartet: Peter Apfelbaum – saxophones; Manuel Valera – piano; Charles Flores – bass; Dafnis Prieto – drums at the Jazz Standard, sets 7:30/9, tix $30/$25 Sun.

5/22, 8 PM, jangly rocker Paula Carino – whose hauntingly lyrical new album Open on Sunday tops our Best Albums of 2010 list so far – open for another auspicious new one, the Larch playing cuts from their ever-more-tuneful, guitarishly amazing new cd at the Parkside

5/22, 8 PM the Gowanus Jazz Fest winds up at the Douglass Street Music Collective, 295 Douglass St. (3rd/4th Aves.), Gowanus, Brooklyn with pianist Frank Carlberg’s absolutely haunting, noir carnivalesque Tivoli Trio, sugg. don. $15.

5/22, 8 PM, free, the American Composers Orchestra plays up-and-coming composers battling for a $15K commission at Miller Theatre, 116th and Broadway. Featured works by Matti Kovler, Hannah Lash, Eric Lindsay, Tamar Muskal, Ricardo Romaneiro, Christopher Stark, and Xi Wang. A working rehearsal on 5/21 at 10 AM is also free and open to the public.

5/22, 8 PM Mark Peskanov, violin; Carlos Prieto, cello; Doris Stevenson, piano play the Haydn Piano Trio No. 35 in C Major, Hob. XV:21; Shostakovich Cello Sonata in d minor, Op. 40; and the Brahms Piano Trio No. 3 in c minor, Op. 101 at Bargemusic, repeating 5/23 at 3 PM, tix $35, $30/$15 srs/stud

5/22, 8 PM Sympho’s Tweetheart concert debuts at the Church for All Nations, 417 W 57th St. feat Singer-songwriter Jonathan Coulton, Haitian pop star Emeline Michel plus the SymphoNYC chamber orchestra. “The concert spans five centuries and multiple cultures, from commissioned and spontaneously created acoustic and electronic pieces to music by, among others, John Adams, Prokofiev, Bjork, Prince, Verdi, and Monteverdi.”

5/22 Hurricane Bells – Steve Schiltz of Longwave and Scout’s ethereal, jangly new band – at the Mercury 8 PM.

5/22, sets 9/10:30 PM jazz trumpet icon Pam Fleming & Fearless Dreamer at Parlor Jazz, 119 Vanderbilt Ave (btw Myrtle & Park), Ft. Greene, Brooklyn, G or A/C to Clinton-Washington, $30, but includes open wine bar and snacks!

5/22 fiery Americana singer/bandleader Meschiya Lake at 9 at Zebulon followed eventually around 11:30 by amazing bluegrass improvisers Thy Burden

5/22, 9 PM the amazing showmanship and down-home authentic New Orleans big-band soul of Brother Joscephus at the Brooklyn Bowl, $5.

5/22, sets at 9/10:30 PM, artsy 80s/goth pianist/singer Kristin Hoffmann at Caffe Vivaldi

5/22 Senegalese roots reggae with the popular Meta & the Cornerstones 10PMish at Rose Bar in Williamsburg.

5/22 Mattison plays warmly hypnotic, smart indie keyboard soul/pop and trip-hop at Pete’s 10 PM.

5/22 amazing, scorching Balkan punk rock with the Kreptatka Bar Band at Mehanata, 10 PM

5/22, 10 PM invigorating Indian marching band Red Baraat plays Barbes

5/22 rockabilly guitar goddess Rosie Flores at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

5/22 Tammy Faye Starlite’s hilarious Stones cover group the Mike Hunt Band at Lakeside 11 PM

5/23, 3 PM the Greenwich Village Orchestra plays a program they absolutely slay with: Ippolitov-Ivanov – Caucasian Sketches op. 10, selections; Marcus/Seletsky – The Well-Tempered Klezmier arr. for Solo Klezmer Clarinet and Orchestra; Rimsky-Korsakov – Scheherazade at Washington Irving HS Auditorium, cheap, just a $20 donation.

5/23, 8:15 PM oboeist Keve Wilson leads a quartet with pianist and composer Jeff Marder, cellist Greg Heffernan and beat box composer Gene Pritsker playing “creative arrangements of music by Piazzolla, Ravel, Lady Gag, and Zhurbin” at Caffe Vivaldi.

5/23 at the Cornelia St. Cafe, 8:30 PM the reliably disquieting, compelling Tom Beckham Group: Tom Beckham, vibraphone; Chris Cheek, saxophones; Henry Hey, piano; Matt Clohesey, bass; Ferenc Nemeth, drums

5/23 intoxicatingly hypnotic and danceable cumbia party stars Very Be Careful at SOB’s, 9 PM, adv tix highly rec. – tix originally sold for Highline Ballroom will be honored.

5/23 rising Middle Eastern chanteuse Salma Habib with haunting, slinky golden-age Egyptian/Lebanese film music revivalists Zikrayat at Joe’s Pub, 9:30 PM.

5/23 Bjorkestra frontwoman Becca Stevens’ Band at 10ish followed at around 11 by up-and-coming trumpeter/jazz chanteuse Natalie John and her combo at Rose Bar in Williamsburg.

5/23, 10 PM-ish Texas honkytonk guitar god Wayne Hancock at Public Assembly, $15 adv tix rec. unless you can wait til he plays Rodeo Bar for free.

5/24-28 lyrical, imaginative, soulful jazz pianist Deanna Witkowski plays solo at half past noon outdoors on the terrace at Bryant Park, free

5/24 the Orion String Quartet outdoors at Bryant Park, 6 PM, free, program TBA

5/24-30 Ahmad Jamal at the Blue Note, 8/10:30 PM, $30 “bar seating” avail. for early birds

5/24 anthemic,tuneful 90s-ish rock with the Royal Chains at Pete’s 9:30 PM

5/25 legendary LES psychedelic punks Band of Outsiders at Lakeside 9 PM.

5/25, 9 PM at Smalls the Ben Wolfe Quintet with Marcus Strickland on tenor, Ryan Kisor on trumpet, Ben Wolfe on bass, Luis Perdomo on piano, Greg Hutchinson on drums.

5/25, 10 PM at the Stone: the Rafi Malkiel Ensemble – Water: “All original compositions on the theme of water in its different forms, mixing Middle-Eastern, Eastern-European, Jazz, Classical and Afro-Caribbean elements, and exploring the connection between those traditions and Jewish musical heritage.”

5/25 multistylistic, sometimes phantasmagorical vibraphonist Tom Beckham’s Slice at Royale, 506 5th Ave. (12th/13th Sts.), Park Slope, Brooklyn, 10ish

5/25 virtuoso, fun hokum blues and oldtimey hillbilly songs with the Second Fiddles at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM.

5/25 Snehasish Mozumder & SOM play spiky, trancey North Indian mandolin jazz, 11ish at Rose Bar in Williamsburg.

5/25, 11 PM phantasmagorical, magical noir siren Carol Lipnik followed by her equally captivating, original, phantasmagorical jazz piano player Dred Scott and his Trio at midnight at the Rockwood

5/26 Tall Tall Trees play clever acoustic Americana/jamband stuff at Bryant Park, free, 6 PM.

5/26 a terrifically interesting, innovative duo show with Edmar Castaneda on Colombian harp and Joe Locke on vibes at 7:30/9 PM at the Jazz Standard, $20

5/26 haunting acoustic Nashville gothic band Bobtown at 68 Jay St Bar, 8 PM.

5/26, 8:15 PM multistylistic Americana/jazz/avant violinist/songwriter Mazz Swift (of Brazz Tree) at Caffe Vivaldi

5/26, 9ish psychedelic jazzy/soundtrack atmospherics with El Topo at Glasslands

5/26 whoever’s left in the Yardbirds at B.B. King’s 8 PM.

5/27 fiery, catchy, Clash-inspired politically aware acoustic rockers Gillen and Turk at Coogan’s, 169th and Broadway, 5 PM, A or 1 train to 168th

5/27 clever, tongue-in-cheek early 50s hillbilly parodists Susquehanna Industrial Tool and Die Co. at Otto’s 8:30 PM

5/27-28 Reverend Horton Heat 10:30 PM-ish at Highline Ballroom, adv tix $30 highly rec.

5/27, 6:30 PM Face the Music (NYC schools supergroup of up-and-coming new music talent) play Nico Muhly’s Honest Music and How About Now followed at 7:30 PM by SIGNAL playing new Nico Muhly and Harrison Birtwhistle, at Merkin Concert Hall, $25 adv tix. avail.

5/27, 8 PM the Grneta Duo+ (fiery pianist Alexandra Joan plus the similarly minded clarinetists Vasko Dukovski and Ismail Lumanovski) play music of Bela Bartok, many others from the former eastern bloc plus the world premiere of the “Grneta Variations” by Gerald Cohen at Bechstein Hall, 207 W 58th St., $15/$7 stud.

5/27 the hilarious, virtuosic, steampunk/delta blues/hillbilly Roulette Sisters at the Jalopy, 9 PM.

5/27 the Moonlighters at Radegast Hall in Williamsburg, 9 PM – let’s see if Bliss Blood can get the losers to quiet down and listen to those gorgeous oldtimey harmonies.

5/27 Bahian powerhouse dance band Dende & Hahahaes at Barbes, 10 PM

5/28 Jello Biafra & the Guantanamo School of Medicine play the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Temptress boarding at 6:30 and leaving from 41st St. and the river, adv tix $30 at the Highline box office highly recommended, this will sell out.

5/28, 8 PM at Barbes Raelian Cabaret: Sephardic-Balkan Extravaganza: “the debut of Sephardic music project from Chris Rael (Church of Betty), Rima Fand (Luminescent Orchestrii), Vlada Tomova (Balkan Tales), Greg Squared (Ansambl Mastika), Nacho Arimany (World flamenco fusion star Nacho)” followed at 10 by Smokey Hormel’s western swing band.

5/28, 8 PM Daphna Mor’s eerie, atmospheric Middle Eastern flavored East of the River Ensemble with Daphna Mor (recorder), Nina Stern (recorder), Omer Avital, (oud) Uri Sharlin, (accordion) Shane Shanahan (percussion) at the Stone

5/28, 8:30 PM, Missy Mazzoli night at Roulette: the world premiere of a new piece for her darkly terse art-rock ensemble Victoire, the world premiere of a new arrangement of her work A Thousand Tongues, a rare performance of her string trio Lies You Can Believe In, and solo performances by the empress of atonalism, violist Nadia Sirota and exploding pianist Kathleen Supove, $15

5/28-29 Peter Apfelbaum & the NY Hieroglyphics at the Jazz Gallery 9/10:30 PM, $20

5/28, 7 PM Jeremy Messersmith at Joe’s Pub playing stuff off his new cd The Reluctant Graveyard – retro 60s Kinks meets Elliott Smith, chamber pop and more rocking stuff with a quirky, sometimes surprisingly dark lyrical edge, $12.

5/28 an absolutely kick-ass triple bill at Trash starting at 9 with the charismatic, anti-gentrification, pro-fun individualist punkish roar of the Brooklyn What, then ferocious horn-driven ska swing rockers Tri-State Conspiracy at 10 and the surfy, noirish, Gun Club-esque garage punk of the Highway Gimps at 11

5/28, 8 PM Daphna Mor’s eerie, atmospheric Middle Eastern flavored East of the River Ensemble with Daphna Mor (recorder), Nina Stern (recorder), Omer Avital, (oud) Uri Sharlin, (accordion) Shane Shanahan (percussion)

5/28, 11 PM recently regrouped and reinvigorated LES noir glampunk/noiserock legends the Chrome Cranks at Cake Shop, $10.

5/28 Tom Clark & the High Action Boys play their potently tuneful twangy Americana rock at Lakeside 11 PM.

5/29 Raya Brass Band – scorching fiery practically satanic fun – at Mehanata 9 PM, “nobody turned away for lack of funds,” mumble something to the door girl and you’re cool.

5/29 dark, klezmer/Balkan influenced piano jazz with the Carmen Staaf Trio at the Cornelia St. Cafe, 8:30 PM – note that Staaf will not be wearing her Xylopholks furry suit for this show.

5/29, 9ish country siren Alana Amram and her sprawling, excellent band the Rough Gems at Zebulon

5/29, 10 PM indie guitar legend Thalia Zedek plus similarly legendary, recently reunited (and reinvigorated) LES noise/glampunk Chrome Cranks at the Knitting Factory $10 adv tix highly rec.

5/29 the Mess Around – the missing link between the Yardbirds and Radio Birdman – at Trash, 11 PM

5/29 careening Boston psychedelic band Stereogrove at Local 269, 11 PM, $10 and worth it. Their new album Live at the Bridge is a trip, shifting effortlessly from screaming guitar rock to clattering funk to dubwise reggae.

5/29 cool, funny garage punk with the Subway Surfers at Lakeside 11 PM.

5/30, half past noon-ish barrelhouse pianist Drew Nugent & The Midnight Society plus hot 20s jazz by Michael Arenella & His Dreamland Orchestra at Water Taxi Beach, 2 Borden Ave., Long Island City, $18 adv tix highly rec. if you live in the hood or can get there ahead of schedule.

5/30, 7:30 PM classical violinist Akiko Kobayashi at Caffe Vivaldi, program TBA.

5/30 a killer oldtimey/Americana doublebill with the Hilary Hawke Band at the Jalopy at 8 followed at 9:30 by the sultry, fetching steampunk swing of Christabel and the Jons.

5/30 funny alt-bluegrass band Cadillac Sky – who do a hillbilly cover of Video Killed the Radio Star – at Union Hall.

5/30, 10 PM Eyal Maoz’ Edom play pounding, surfy, psychedelic Middle Eastern rock instrumentals at the Stone.

5/30, 10ish low-register sonic heaven with the Moisturizer-esque Cuban groove of Gato Loco – baritone sax, bass, baritone guitar and tuba – at Rose Bar in Williamsburg.

5/30, 1 AM (actually wee hours of 5/31), ambient jazz megaplex Burnt Sugar at the Blue Note $10

5/31, 7:30 PM, free, the Brentano Quartet play String Quartet in F Major, op. 41, #2 by Schumann and the String Quartet in C-sharp Minor, op. 131 by Beethoven at Music Mondays, Advent Lutheran/ Broadway United Church, 2504 Broadway at 93rd St.,1/2/3 to 96th St.

5/31 Alan Gilbert conducts the NY Philharmonic at 8 PM at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, 8 PM, free, get there early, program TBA.

5/31 politically charged latin/rock en Espanol powerhouse Among Criminals, MC5 co-founder Wayne Kramer and the Coup – the most relevant, lyrically state-of-the-art hip-hop group in the world – play the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Temptress, boarding at 6:30 PM at 41st St. and the river, adv tix $30 highly recommended at the Highline box office, this will sell out.

5/31 oldtimey chanteuse Miss Tess & the Bon Ton Parade at Banjo Jim’s, 8:30 PM

5/31 the Pete McGuinness Jazz Orchestra at Tea Lounge in Park Slope, 9ish.

5/31 multistylistic, intense cello virtuoso Dave Eggar’s DEORO 9 PM-ish at Rose Bar in Williamsburg.

5/31 9:30 PM guitar god Pete Galub at Pete’s playing his own powerpop stuff plus “Roxy Music, Steely Dan, the Buzzcocks and Britney Spears.” Can’t vouch for the celebrity stuff but he absolutely kicks ass with the Dan.

5/31 jazz pianist Bobby Avey – whose new album with Dave Liebman is as richly melodic and bracingly adventurous as you would think – at Spike Hill 10 PM

The theme of this year’s Bard Music Festival upstate in Annandale is “Berg and His World,” Leon Botstein’s in-depth survey of music by Viennese modernist Alban Berg and his contemporaries, continuing for seven weeks starting in June. Too many concerts to list here: the entire schedule is here.

6/1 a good oldschool Jamdown doublebill with rocksteady and reggae from the Caroloregians, 7 PM at Shrine followed by the Moon Invaders playing ska at 8.

6/1, 8 PM popular Ethiopian-American singer-songwriter Meklit Hadero at le Poisson Rouge, $20 adv tix rec.

6/1 multistylistic, sophisticated Americana chanteuse Julia Haltigan at 10 PM at 11th St. Bar

6/2 Jeremy Udden’s Plainville play pensive, thoughtful Americana jazz at Bryant Park, 6 PM, free

6/2, 7:30ish jazz vibraphone legend (and Guru collaborator) Roy Ayers at Betsy Head Park, Herzl at Livonia Ave., Brownsville, Brooklyn, 3 train to Livonia Ave.

6/2 fearless, kinda noir Costello/Parker style rock songwriter Mike Rimbaud at Sidewalk, 8 PM

6/2 Toots & the Maytals at B.B. King’s, 8 PM – their new album Flip & Twist is available in special package with a “a joint-shaped USB drive loaded with Flip & Twist, a Toots Stash Box, the physical CD of the album, and a variety of other gifts.” Other gifts, hmmm…..

6/2 Robbie Krieger and Ray Manzarek at the Nokia Theatre, 8:30 PM, $30 tix available.

6/2, 9 PM soulful, pensive, artsy, distantly Wilco-ish Americana rockers the Smooth Maria at LIC Bar

6/2-3 Gillian Welch’s virtuoso guitar sidekick David Rawlings at Bowery Ballroom, 9 PM, $25.

6/2 catchy propulsive female-fronted powerpop with the Mikal Evans Band at Spike Hill, 10 PM.

6/3, 6:30 PM a benefit for Music Crossing Borders with an eclectic bill featuring West African percussion ensemble Bedstuy Ewe, amazing gypsy rockers Bad Buka (FKA Panonian Wave), darkly slinky tango nuevo innovators Importango and others at Bohemian Hall, 321 E 73rd St. (1st/2nd Aves), $30 incl. open beer/wine bar, munchies

6/3 Trombone Shorty and Michael Franti and Spearhead on Governor’s Island, 7 PM $35 adv tix avail. at the B.B. King’s box office – note that youtube losers-du-jour One Eskimo are opening so tix will go fast, get them while they last. Ferry fare is $5/ roundtrip, leaving from the old Shaolin Ferry terminal on South St.

6/3, 7 PM Inna Faliks plays Chopin, Schoenberg, Schumann, Beethoven and Pasternak at the Yamaha Piano Salon, $15.

6/3 oldschool soul/funk crooner/shouter Eli Paperboy Reed at the Mercury, 7:30 PM, $15. He’s also at the Bell House on 6/9 at 9ish for three dollars less.

6/3 a killer doublebill at Barbes starting at 8 with the rustic, gypsy-flavored, darkly atmospheric Kotorino followed by NYC’s best blues band, Bliss Blood’s Delta Dreambox at 10.

6/3, 8 PM a killer triplebill at Banjo Jim’s: Sabrina Chap, who “sounds exactly like a drunken fistfight between Scott Joplin and Phyllis Diller,” followed by sharply literate, often hilarious Americana charmer Robin Aigner at 9 and then the ferociously smart, energetically punkish, intensely charismatic banjo rocker Curtis Eller at 10.

6/3 a good country/roots triplebill with crooner Jesse Lenat, the Lonesome Heroes and Maybelles frontwoman and extraordinary singer Jan Bell at Union Pool, 8 PM $8.

6/3 richly lyrical, fearless rocker Matt Keating at the Rockwood (on the second stage – we’re still trying to figure out where they hide it in that small space) at 8 PM

6/3, 8 PM the New Amsterdam Symphony plays Prokofiev – Romeo and Juliet Suite #2 and Brahms – Violin Concerto in D at Symphony Space, tix $18/$12 stud/srs, kids $10

6/3, 8:30 PM a musical seance of sorts at Roulette: “Using ultrasonic microphones and voicemail, Speaking with the Dead will search the ether for the unhearable present while invoking voices from the past.” Audience members should be prepared to make a small “offering,” in 3 minutes or less, i.e. an activity for the audience. Performer Brenda Hutchinson suggests something of a stretch, i.e. if you’re a singer, draw a picture; if you’re a painter, sing something.

6/3 devious, hilarious steampunk songwriter/banjoist Al Duvall and the perennially witty oldtimey 2 Man Gentlemen Band at the Jalopy, 9 PM.

6/3 fearless garage rocker Anna Anabolic and her band the Anabolics at Spike Hill, 9 PM.

6/3 L’il Kim – out of jail, bless her heart – at Irving Plaza, 9 PMish adv tix $35 rec.

6/3 adventurous, rousing, totally original bluegrass band Frankenpine at Lakeside, 9:15ish.

6/3 imaginatively crosspollinating Brazilian/country/New Orleans band Nation Beat at Rodeo Bar, 10:30 PM.

6/4-8 Members of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s performing an all-Mozart program, free: Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, String Quintet No. 1 in B-flat Major, K. 174; and depending on the date, the Flute Quartet in D Major, K. 285; the Oboe Quartet in F Major, K. 370 or the Horn Quintet in E-flat Major, K. 407. Venues vary throughout the boroughs: click this link and scroll down for venues and times.

6/4 Tris McCall and band outside the Grove St. Path station in Jersey City, 8 PM. If songwriting is important to you, this guy’s important, dammit. You would have gone to this if it was 1977 and it was Elvis Costello. Well it’s 2010 and this is Tris McCall. $2 on the Path train and Dosa Hut (world’s yummiest Indian pancake place) is just down the block.

6/4, 9 PM an A-list Middle Eastern supergroup – Souren Baronian – G-clarinet, saxophone, kaval, duduk, riq with Haig Manoukian – oud, Lee Baronian – darbukkeh, Mal Stein – drums, percussion, Sprocket Royer – double bass at Alwan for the Arts.

6/4 lyrical rock monster night with the 60s flavored psychedelic pop of McGinty & White at 9 followed at 10 by new wave legend/raconteur Wreckless Eric with his fierily amusing wife Amy Rigby at Bowery Electric.

6/4 catchy indie powerpopsters Elk City at the Bell House, 9 PM, $8 adv tix rec.

6/4, 10 PM the ever-increasingly more ghostly, more psychedelic oldschool latin ballad rockers las Rubias del Norte – whose new album is one of the year’s best – at Barbes.

6/4, 10 PM Zion Judah play roots reggae at Shrine

6/4, 10 PM the Reid Paley Trio at Cafe Orwell, 247 Varet St. between Bogart & White, Bushwick, Brooklyn, L to Morgan Ave. This will be fun – see how the trendoids react to some real oldschool no-BS noir. “OOOH, I spilled PBR on my baby blue Prada!”

6/4, 10:30 PM ferocious avant-garde/rock string quintet Sybarite5 – Radiohead meets Bartok – at Galapagos, 10:30 PM, $15, adv tix highly rec

6/4, 10:30ish, 80s noir/goth legends the Psychedelic Furs at Irving Plaza, adv tix $36.50 avail.

6/4 ferocious, funny, fearless electrified bluegrass rockers Demolition String Band at Rodeo Bar, 10:30 PM

6/4 high-energy ska-flavoed Argentinian rock legends Los Autenticos Decadentes at B.B.King’s 11 PM.

6/4, midnight, Mississippi hill country blues with R.L. Burnside’s kid, Kent Burnside and the New Generation at Banjo Jim’s. Pork Chop Willie gets things off on the good foot at 11.

6/5, 7:30 PM at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine a Benefit Concert for the Congregation of Saint Saviour: Victoria Sirota, organ & Robert Sirota, piano play his Letters Abroad and Celestial Wind plus music by Bach, & Fanny & Felix Mendelssohn, $20 tix available.

6/5 a ska fest with Hub City Stompers, Rudie Crew,Moon Invaders, Caroloregians, Royal City Riot, 7:30 PM at the Knitting Factory, $10 adv tix highly rec., this may sell out.

6/5, 7 PM dark garage songwriter Lorraine Leckie and Her Demons at Banjo Jim’s

6/5-9 The New York Art Ensemble moves its Ninth Annual Tribeca New Music Festival, a 4-concert series of cutting-edge new music to Merkin Concert Hall, shows each night at 8 PM. Performers include the New York Art Ensemble Monsters (pianists Geoffrey Burleson and Kathleen Supové, and violinist Mary Rowell), the JACK Quartet, Ted Hearne Band, Pamela Z and more, adv tix $20 per concert at the box ofc highly recommended.

6/5, 8 PM the Chelsea Symphony plays Gross: Suite for Strings (world premiere); Haydn: Sinfonia Concertante; Mendelssohn: Midsummer Night’s Dream at St. Paul’s Church, 315 West 22nd St., repeating on 6/6 at 3 PM.

6/5 Brian Jonestown Massacre at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, 10 PM, $22 adv tix. rec.

6/5 the fun, sardonic punk pop of the Homewreckers at quarter to one in the morning (actually morning of 6/6) followed by the insatiable, filthy, hilarious punk/girlgroup Cudzoo & the Fagettes at half past one at Cake Shop

6/6, 3 PM the Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra plays Weill – Threepenny Opera Suite; Schoenberg – Chamber Symphony #1; Rachmaninoff – Symphonic Dances at St. Ann’s Church, 157 Montague St. (Clinton/Henry), downtown Brooklyn, 2/3/4 to Borough Hall or F to Jay St. or A/C to High St., dirt cheap, only a $15 donation

6/6, 3 PM doors, the new jacks of latin music –  Jose Conde – with the venerable  Cuban son revivalists  los Van Van at Central Park Summerstage.

6/6, 3 PM the season finale of Kathleen Supove’s reliably entertaining avant garde series at the Flea Theatre, 41 White St. (Church/Broadway), in Tribeca, free – Michael Evans and Susan Hefner doing a percussion/dance piece, adventurously atmospheric guitarist Nick Didkovsky and then Eylan Vital doing electronic stuff plus a lively after-show discussion with the audience

6/6 the NYCity Slickers play soaring bluesgrass with harmonies at Bar Nine on 9th Ave. betw. 53/54th Sts., 6 PM

6/6 fiery janglerock/indie rockers Cementhead at the Mercury 9 PM

6/7-11 Microscopic Septet pianist and Fresh Air theme composer Joel Forrester plays outdoors on the terrace at Bryant Park, half past noon, free

6/7 the Imani Winds at Bryant Park, 6 PM, free, program TBA

6/7, an amazing Small Beast 8:30ish at the Delancey with Botanica frontman Paul Wallfisch, playful Kate Bush-style avant/cabaret chanteuse Adrienne Anemone, the eerie four-octave range of phantasmagorical Carol Lipnik and Spookarama, and the intense, dark southwestern gothic twang of And the Wiremen.

6/7, 8:30 PM guitarist to the stars of the underground (Love Camp 7, Drina Seay, Magges ad infinitum) Homeboy Steve Antonakos at Banjo Jim’s.

6/7, 9ish the Wailers – feat. original Marley guitarist Al Anderson and “Police and Thieves” crooner Junior Marvin at B.B. King’s, $25 adv tix rec.

6/8, 7 PM latin song multistylist Marta Topferova and excellent understated band at 55 Bar.

6/8 first-class Irish folk instrumental/dance quartet New Time Ensemble (flute, guitar, fiddle and cello) play the Irish seisun at Dempsey’s, 8 PM; 6/10 they’re at the SoHo Gallery for Digital Art, 138 Sullivan St. at 8 PM, $15

6/8-13, 7 PM Evelyn Evelyn AKA Amanda Palmer of the Dresden Dolls and Jason Webley do their conjoined-twin ukelele comedy/rock thing at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, $25 adv tix ostensibly not sold out yet and very highly rec.

6/8 the Museum Mile Festival just gets shorter and shorter.This year the following museums are open for free 6-9 PM with Fifth Ave. turned into a pedestrian mall: El Museo del Barrio; The Museum of the City of New York; The Jewish Museum; Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, Smithsonian Institution; National Academy Museum & School of Fine Arts; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; Neue Galerie New York; Goethe-Institut New York/German Cultural Center; and The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

6/8 Changing Modes – a really amazing, catchy, smart blend of Siouxsie-esque new wave, and oldschool art-rock – downstairs at Ella, 9 Ave. A. (the latin disco with the scary-looking bouncers outside), 9 PM, $9. They’re also at Cafe Bar, 32-90 36th St in Astoria for Make Music NY on 6/21 at 8.

6/9, 8 PM Norah Jones at Prospect Park Bandshell, free – suggest you go in the back entrance, to the right of the main gate, past the bathrooms – or linger beyond the fence in back, this will be packed to capacity very fast.

6/8, 9:30 PM Stateless: A Hip-Hop Vaudeville by Dan Wolf and Tommy Shepherd with Keith Pinto, music by Felonious and One Ring Zero at Joe’s Pub. Dan Wolf of Felonious discovered that his great-grandfather and great-uncle were Jewish vaudevillians in pre-WWII Germany, took some of their old songs and brought them forward about eighty years. Our Balkan music maven raves about it. Adv tix $15 highly suggested.

6/9 the Easy Star All-Stars – the crazy reggae crew responsible for Radiodread, Dub Side of the Moon and the reggae version of Sgt. Pepper – at Hiro Ballroom, adv tix. available at the Highline.

6/9, 9 PM the Tarantinos NYC play smart, original, diverse surf and soundtrack instrumentals at the Brooklyn Bowl, free.

6/9, 10:30 PM at Rodeo Bar there’s tongue-in-cheek, period-perfect early 50s style country from Susquehanna Industrial Tool & Die Co.

6/10 an absolutely sick triplebill at Union Hall: hillbilly chick satirists Menage a Twang at 8:30, the Debutante Hour lending some badly needed seriousness to the event and then the fearless, hilarious, sex-crazed faux girl-group punk-pop of Cudzoo & the Fagettes, $8, get there early because this will sell out.

6/10 pensive, atmospheric, often rustically haunting loop-driven art-rockers the Quavers at Barbes, 10 PM

6/11, 6 PM at Barbes violinist Marandi Hostetter, violist/violinist Pedro Vizzarro-Vallejos,  cellist Eric Cooper and mezzo-soprano Sara Dougherty play works by Jai Vilnai: Pisces for string trio; selections from his Shakespeare Songs for string trio and mezzo; selections from Visual Percussion, a collaboration with artist Elizabeth Hamby of short pieces for live music and video; a setting of a text by Wyatt for mezzo and chamber quintet plus Whitney George’s Seven Sins for string trio.

6/11 saxophonist Marcus Strickland 7:30/9:30/11:30 at the Bar Next Door.

6/11 Greek rebetika oud genius Mavrothi Kontanis at Barbes 8 PM followed by the self-explanatory Cumbiagra at 10

6/11, 9:30 PM at Smalls the Scott Reeves Band: Scott Reeves – trombone , Rich Perry – tenor sax , Mike Holober – piano , Mike McGuirk – bass , Andy Watson – drums. Reeves’ most recent album is an absolutely gorgeous, lyrical throwback to the golden age of the 50s, highly recommended.

6/11 Quintron & Miss Pussycat at Glasslands 10ish

6/11 the Budos Band play the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Temptress boarding at 6:30 and leaving from 41st St. and the river, adv tix $25 at the Highline box office highly recommended.

6/12 the Hetrick-Martin Institute’s benefit dance party at the Grey Gardens mansion in the Hamptons is SOLD OUT – no great surprise!

6/12 powerful slinky joyous haunting all-female virtuoso klezmer group Isle of Klezbos play a free outdoor show in the community garden on 12th St. between Ave A/B, 7 PM.

6/12, 7 PM psychedelic, hypnotic avant garde guitar quartet Dither’s cd release show at the Invisible Dog Art Center, 51 Bergen St., Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, F/G to Bergen St., “Highlights include Elliott Sharp performing selections from Octal for eight-string guitarbass, a solo bagpipe performance from progressive piper Matthew Welch, a collaboration between pianist Kathleen Supové and composer/guitarist Nick Didkovsky, and the Deprivation Orchestra of NY’s rendition of Eric km Clark’s Deprivation Music #1 for a large ensemble of hearing-deprived musicians! Dither will perform selections from their album, as well as the the world premiere of Eve Beglarian’s The Garden of Cyrus, Fred Frith’s Stick Figures performed by two players on six table-top guitars, and James Tenney’s rarely heard Septet for six guitars and electric bass” plus performances by Loud Objects, the extraordinary ambient chamber group Redhooker, Mantra Percussion and Florent Ghys, ridiculously cheap at $6.

6/12, 7 PM incorrigible extrovert and powerhouse soul singer Meg Braun – sort of the white Bettye LaVette – at Caffe Vivaldi.

6/12 the Snow’s frontman Pierre de Gaillande’s fearless, frequently filthy Georges Brassens English-language cover band Bad Reputation plays their cd release show 7:30 PM at the Bell House.

6/12 imaginative, captivating, atmospheric alto player and big band jazz composer Jacam Manricks plays the Bar Next Door, 3 sets starting 8-ish.

6/12, 8 PM oldschool Cuban son done gorgeously low-register style with bass, baritone sax, tuba and baritone guitar by Gato Loco at Barbes

6/12, 8:30 PM New Orleans soul legend Allen Toussaint at Prospect Park Bandshell.

6/12, 9 PM a phenomenal night at Alwan for the Arts with multistylistic expat Syrian chanteuse Gaida and the amazing band that plays on her album: Zafer Tawil – kanun; George Dulin- piano; Amir ElSaffar – trumpet; Jennifer Vincent – bass; Tony de Vivo – percussion

6/12-13 the Undead Jazzfest at le Poisson Rouge, Kenny’s Castaways and Sullivan Hall: an unbelievable lineup of A-list, adventurous jazz groups for an unbeatable price. The two-day pass for $30 – roughly a third of what you’d spend at the Blue Note for a single act – is your best bet. Acts include the Alan Ferber Nonet, Ben Perowsky’s Moodswing Orchestra, Burnt Sugar The Arkestra Chamber, John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble, Matthew Shipp, Roswell Rudd & Lafayette Harris and many more, the complete list is here.

6/12 a string jazz doublebill at Rose Bar in Williamsburg, 9ish with the hip-hop flavored Nuttin but Strings followed by French violinist/composer Scott Tixier

6/12, 10:15ish LES rockabilly/surf/punk legends Simon & the Bar Sinisters at Lakeside.

6/12 haunting noir Americana crooner Mark Sinnis (of Ninth House) at midnight at Otto’s

6/13 Chilean cumbia superstars Chico Trujillo play their cd release show at 8 PM at La Oveja Negra, 3438 38th St. in Astoria, 4th. fl of the Astoria Sports Complex on 38th St. between 34th and 35 Ave. right by the Kaufman Studios, right next to pizzeria uno, R/G/V to Steinway St. They’re also at Barbes on 6/14 at 8 PM (early arrival a must) opening for Chicha Libre!

6/13, 9 PM captivatingly dark Americana chanteuse Jessie Kilguss at Lakeside

6/13 Franco-Algerian punk/rai-rock legend Rachid Taha at Highline Ballroom, 9ish, adv tix very highly rec.

6/13 the NYCity Slickers play tight, soaring harmony-driven bluegrass at Rodeo Bar, 10:30 PM.

6/14 latin jazz guitar genius Juancho Herrera at the Bar Next Door, 8:30 PM

6/14 dark guitar atmospherics with Thomas Simon and dark keyboard surprises from Botanica bandleader Paul Wallfisch at Small Beast at the Delancey, 9ish

6/15, 7 PM a craftbrewing competition at Union Hall, free, open to the public 21+ with tasting of home and craft brews from top microbreweries. First prize: your recipe will be made into a kit marketed by Brooklyn Brew Shop and you get a day observing at Sixpoint Brewery; second prize is a $50 gift certificate to the shop. “Union Hall will then host two additional homebrewing competitions in August and October. June, August and October winners will compete in a holiday competition in December, which will determine who will get to brew their own winning recipe on Sixpoint’s pilot brewing system alongside the brewers. The resulting keg will then be transferred to Union Hall, where it will be served to all your friends and family during a private party.”

6/15 Nashville gothic with the Handsome Family at the Mercury, 9:30 PM, $15

6/16, 6:30 PM one of the new music highlights of the year: Frederic Rzewski plays Frederic Rzewski at le Poisson Rouge $20, adv tix highly rec. this will sell out.

6/16 oldschool hip-hop vet Big Daddy Kane at Von King Park in Brooklyn 8ish.

6/16-19 the Vijay Iyer Trio at Birdland sets 8:30/11 PM, $30 seating avail.

6/16 British vintage funk/soul revivalists the Heavy with Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings at Bowery Ballroom.

6/16 fiery, original, occasionally noir rockabilly/surf trio Catspaw at P&G Bar, 380 Columbus Ave (at 78th St.), 11 PM

6/16, midnight-ish noir chanteuse Marissa Nadler at the Knitting Factory, adv tix $10 highly rec.

6/17 the NYC Jazz Festival starts; too many acts to list here. The complete schedule is here; choice acts listed below.

6/17, 6 PM at Puppets Jazz Bar Ralph Hamperian’s Tuba D’Amour followed at 9 by the Bill Ware Group and then the John McNeil Quartet at midnight.

6/17, 7 PM Tift Merritt – who if you haven’t been paying attention has sort of become New York’s answer to Shelby Lynne – at the Hiro Ballroom

6/17 at Zebulon, 9 PM guitarist/banjoist Brandon Seabrook’s Seabrook Power Plant (gotta love that name!) and ruthless jazz satirists Mostly Other People Do the Killing.

6/17, 10 PM tuneful, propulsive, intense janglerock songwriter Jennifer O’Connor at the Knitting Factory, $10.

6/17, 10 PM first-class oldschool honkytonk band the Dixons and then oldschool piano-based 60s R&B revivalists the Brilliant Mistakes at 11 at the Rockwood.

6/17 funny, eerie bluespunks the Five Points Band at Rodeo Bar, 10:30 PM

6/18, 7:30 PM organ jazz guru Dr. Lonnie Smith at Prospect Park Bandshell.

6/18, 8 PM, Bio Ritmo spinoff Miramar – masterful, often haunting mid-50s style bolero specialists – followed by smartly literate, often funny Americana rockers Kill Henry Sugar at 10 at Barbes

6/18, 8 PM the Jazz Gallery Allstars: Claudia Acuña, Ambrose Akinmusire, Lage Lund, Gerald Clayton, Kendrick Scott, Ben Williams, Pedro Martinez, Miguel Zenón at Symphony Space $15.

6/18, 10 PM, a killer reggae doublebill: oldschool style Meta & the Cornerstones and then French reggae/dub/hiphop crew Dub Inc. at the 92YTribeca, $12.

6/18 the Boss Guitars play surf music classics and obscurities at Lakeside, 11 PM

6/19 the NY Brewfest goes 3:30 until 8 PM on Governors Island, tix $55 all you can drink micros and gourmet beer (300+ vendors!) plus free music plus water taxi to/from the island , tix available at Heartland Brewery locations.

6/19 sprawling psychedelic gypsyish jam band Hazmat Modine and Slavic Soul Party at Barbes 8 PM, $15.

6/19, 8:15 PM, the Thomas Piercy Trio – expertly passionate interpreters of the Astor Piazzzolla canon – play the cd release show for their new one at Caffe Vivaldi.

6/19, 9 PM at Alwan for the Arts Turkish piano innovator Hakan Ali Toker who like Steve Nieve will play an improvisation based on dubious audience suggestions and make them brilliant, $15

6/19, 9 PM retro soul star Eli Paperboy Reed at the Bell House, $12 adv tix rec.

6/19 clever, tongue-in-cheek early 50s hillbilly parodists Susquehanna Industrial Tool and Die Co. followed by ferocious Nashville gothic rockers Ninth House at Hank’s, 10 PM

6/19, 10 PM the New Pornographers at Terminal 5, adv tix $30 at the Mercury box office highly rec.

6/19 ferocious, often funny Americana punk with Spanking Charlene at Lakeside, 11 PM.

6/20, 8 PM Talib Kweli plus Jean Grae at the Brooklyn Bowl, $5 (yup – five bucks!) getin line and get there early

6/20, 11 PM awe-inspiring oldschool country singer/writer Greg Garing – as charismatic a rockabilly pianist as he is a bluegrass guitarist – at the Rockwood

6/21 it’s Make Music New York – free street performances all day by all kinds of absurdly good bands and artists. We’ll put up a separate page with highlights once there’s some semblance of a schedule available.

6/21, 7:30/9:30 PM Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society at Dizzy’s Club $20/$10 stud.

6/21, 8 PM Carol Lipnik & Spookarama in the community garden at Houston and Ave. C – a perfect stop on the way down to the Delancey if you’re going to Small Beast.

6/21 the ferociously charismatic gypsy-punk Vera Beren’s Gothic Chamber Blues Ensemble , noir accordionist Marin Rice and big indie buzz band the Walking Hellos at at Small Beast at the Delancey, 9ish.

6/21 the Jentsch Group Large plays a rare performance at Tea Lounge in Park Slope – they’ll be doing the entire lush, lavish, Pink Floyd meets Ellington-style Cycles Suite album starting with movements one through three at 9 PM and then the final three at 10:30 PM

6/22 chamber music with the exceedingly popular Eroica Trio at the World Financial Ctr., 7 PM, free, early arrival advised

6/22, 7 PM Eddie Palmieri y la Perfecta II at Soundview Park in the Bronx.

6/22 Custard Wally – unsung oldschool heroes of obscene, sexually charged, hilarious Brooklyn punk and garage rock – at Trash Bar, 9 PM

6/23, 7 PM ex-Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett followed by Annie Haslam’s theatrical art-rock legends Renaissance at Rockefeller Park, free.

6/23, 7 PM at Central Park Summerstage the McCoy Tyner Quartet feat. Ravi Colrane, Esperanza Spalding and Francisco Mela plus Stanley Clarke’s band opening, which you’ll have to stand/suffer through if you want to see the headliner.

6/23, 8 PMish Tortoise at le Poisson Rouge $22 adv tix rec.

6/23 clever, fun 80s style synth-pop with Hank & Cupcakes 9 PM at the Brooklyn Bowl, free

6/23 Sister Sparrow & the Dirty Birds play tastefully bluesy, funky stuff at Sullivan Hall, 10ish

6/24, 7 PM Conjunto Clasico at St. Mary’s Park in the Bronx, free.

6/24 the Northside Festival starts in Williamsburg. Last year’s was overhyped to the max; hopefully this year’s will be better. Too many acts to list here – the main schedule page is here; as dates and venues are announced we’ll list anything good we see (Polvo is playing!).

6/24 Jason Moran and the Bandwagon with Mary Halvorson and Ron Miles at the Jazz Standard, 7:30/9:30 PM, $15

6/24, 7:30 PM at the Parkside: the haunting, jazzy Erica Smith & the 99 Cent Dreams.

6/24, 7:30 PM Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club (what’s left of the original crew) featuring ageless cantante Omara Portuondo and Nelida Tirado at Prospect Park Bandshell.

6/24 boisterious (ok, thunderous) Bahian dance band Dende & Hahahaes at Barbes, 10 PM.

6/25 a cool latin doublebill at Barbes, 8 PM: Marta Topferova, who writes rustically tinged originals in innumerable vintage styles, followed by Spanglish Fly, who play deliriously danceable oldschool latin soul and bugalu at 10

6/25 downtempo jazz/ambient grooves with Soul Cycle at BAM Cafe 9 PM.

6/25 latin piano monster Jason Lindner & Breeding Ground feat. Pangeotis Andreou, Mazz Swift and others 9/10:30 PM at the Jazz Gallery, $20

6/26 desert blues titans  Tinariwen at Central Park Summerstage, 3 PM d00rs.

6/26, 8 PM second-wave punk with the New Bomb Turks’ reunion show at the Bell House, $12.

6/26 the Okbari Middle Eastern Ensemble play “Ottoman classical instrumental and vocal music, along with Turkish folk and Arabic contemporary compositions, including original works by their late teacher, oud master and composer Udi Alan Shavarsh Bardezbanian” at 9 PM at Alwan for the Arts, $15

6/26 East Village Pharmacy play imaginative, psychedelic dub and reggae at Shrine, 9 PM.

6/26 legendary mod punks the Reducers – the American answer to the Jam – at Lakeside, 11 PM.

6/26 smart, diverse, socially aware African-style roots reggae with Meta & the Cornerstones at Zebulon, midnight-ish

6/27 the Bang on a Can Marathon starts at noon at the World Financial Ctr.: performances include “U.S. premiere of Fausto Romitelli’s Professor Bad Trip performed by Talea Ensemble; a Bang on a Can All-Stars’ premiere with Mira Calix; African crossover innovators Burkina Electric; Balinese Gamelan; music from Kyrgyzstan and more!”

6/27, 3 PM Gil Scott-Heron at Central Park Summerstage

6/27 Wintersleep at Bowery Ballroom – happy and jangly with your stereotypical off-key indie vocals, but a real lyrical menace and imaginative guitar/keyboard textures. If you wish the Decemberists could write melodies, you’ll love Wintersleep.

6/28 Botanica leader Paul Wallfisch plus the stylish noir rock of Darren Gaines and the Key Party at Small Beast at the Delancey 9ish

6/29-7/4 the JD Allen Quartet (JD Allen – tenor; Jeremy Pelt – trumpet, Gregg August – bass, Rodney Green – drums) at the Vanguard. Of all the jazz composers working right now, this guy is at the pinnacle, the absolutely top of his terse, tuneful game. See him now before you can’t afford it anymore.

6/29, 7:30 PM at Damrosch Park out back of Lincoln Center a Haitian bill feat. Ansanm, Emeline Michel, Beethova Obas, BélO, Zili Misik, acts will probbly appear in reverse order.

6/30 Buru Style feat. Toussaint Libertor play African roots reggae 9 PM at Rose Bar

6/30, 11 PM, tunefully artsy indie pop with the Secret History at the Bell House $10

7/1 the Cannabis Cup Band play “a special tribute to the classic revolutionary vinyl lp reggae anthems of the ‘60’s & ’70’s” on the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Temptress boarding at 6:30 and leaving from 41st St. and the river, first hundred tix are $20, after that adv tix $25, highly rec. at the Highline box office.

7/1, 7:30 PM Margot Leverett and the Klezmer Mountain Boys at the Jewish Museum, 92nd St. at 5th Ave., $15/$12 stud.

7/2, 8 PM at Barbes: “House of Stride. Part performance-project, part-band, House of Stride From wanders from classic stride piano to old-school cabaret gems and re-imagined pop classics. With Allison Leyton-Brown – piano; Russ Meissner – drums; Jim Whitney – upright bass and special guest chanteuse Daria Grace.”

7/2 a killer dark rock doublebill: the inimitably psychedelic, swirling guitar art-rock of Martin Bisi and then ghoul goddess Marissa Nadler at Union Pool, 10 PM

7/3, 3 PM the second Turkish Woodstock at Central Park Summerstage with the Sounds of Turkey feat. Kenan Dogulu, Mor ve Otesi, Ilhan Ersahin’s Istanbul Sessions with Burhan Ocal and Tulug Tirpan, and Sukriye Tutkun.

7/5 Botanica’s master of menace Paul Wallfisch and Nashville gothic crooner Mark Sinnis at Small Beast at the Delancey 9ish

7/6 rustic, fun, charming Norwegian oldtimey Applachian all-girl quartet Katzenjammer at the Mercury.

7/7 half past noon Left on Red at Liberty Park, downtown Broadway and Liberty Sts.

7/8 Phosphorescent – sort of the teens version of gently rootsy early Wilco – plays Pier 54 at 14th St., gates at 6 for the diehards or fans of early 70s style El Lay dad-pop band Dawes.

7/8, 7:30 PM the extraordinary pan-Balkan punk jazz of Ansambl Mastika at the Jewish Museum, 92nd St. at 5th Ave., $15/$12 stud.

7/9 hypnotic, hauntingly jangly southwestern gothic-tinged Americana rockers Tandy at Lakeside, 11 PM

7/9, 11 PM oldschool 90s LES indie stars Versus at the Bell House $17.50 adv tix rec.

7/10 Mexican punk/ska legends Maldita Vecindad at Central Park Summerstage 4-ish, doors at 3.

7/10, 7 PM dark, wickedly smart original cello rockers Rasputina at le Poisson Rouge, $15

7/11 Jimmy Cliff at Central Park Summerstage, 5-ish, doors at 3

7/12, 7 PM roots reggae legend Burning Spear at Rockefeller Park, free

7/14, 6 PM the Mad Jazz Hatters play oldtimey stuff at Bryant Park, free

7/14 Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens at the Stuyvesant Town Oval, 7 PM.

7/14, 8 PM in Central Park on the Great Lawn the NY Philharmonic feat. Branford Marsalis, saxophone and Andrey Boreyko, conductor plays Liadov – Baba-Yaga; Glazunov – Concerto for Alto Saxophone; Schulhoff/Bennett – Hot-Sonate for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra Prokofiev – Romeo and Juliet (selections)

7/14 reggae crooner Barrington Levy at BB King’s.

7/15, half past noon jazz pianist Emmett Cohen on the World Financial Ctr. plaza.

7/15 Funkmaster Flex and EPMD at Queensbridge Park, Queens 7 PM.

7/15, 7:30 PM the Sexteto Rodriguez Cuban-Jewish All Stars at the Jewish Museum, 92nd St. at 5th Ave., $15/$12 stud.

7/16, 7 AM (?) the Go Go’s play Good Morning America, outdoors, live – hardcore fans enter Central Park at 69th Street/5th Ave.

7/16, 8 PM the Universal Thump (Greta Gertler’s band) feat. bassist Jonathan Maron from Groove Collective plus a string quartet plays Barbes. Gertler has been a great songwriter for the better part of a decade and their forthcoming album promises to be her best effort yet.

7/20, 5 PM Naomi Shelton & The Gospel Queens in the parking lot out back of City Winery, free

7/20-25 Jamaican piano jazz titan Monty Alexander at Dizzy’s Club.

7/21 reggae covers of Radiohead, Floyd and the Fab Four by the devious Easy Star All-Stars at the Stuyvesant Town Oval, 7 PM

7/21 a killer doublebill: brilliantly lyrical soul/rock songwriter Dina RuDean and the haunting, lush, artsy chamber pop of the Snow at the Knitting Factory, 9 PM, $8 adv tix. rec.

7/22 Antibalas at Castle Clinton, 7 PM, free, tix two per person handed out to those in line at 4 PM.

7/23 energetic female-fronted garage riff-rock/noise-rock with Loose Limbs at South St. Seaport time TBA.

7/23 smart, fiery latin rockers Outernational at 7 PM at Highline Ballroom followed by oi-punk legends GBH, adv tix $17 highly rec.

7/23, 8 PM at Bargemusic the Voxare Quartet: Emily Ondracek, violin, Galina Zhdanova, violin, Erik Peterson, viola, Adrian Daurov, cello) Riley – String Quartet; Lou Harrison – String Quartet Set; Hamza El Din – Escalay (The Water Wheel); Riley – Mystic Birds Waltz, Sunrise of the Planetary Dream Collector, tix $25/$20 srs/$10 stud.

7/23, 9:30 PM the Sadies at Bowery Ballroom

7/23 Band of Outsiders at Lakeside 11 PM

7/24 Dave Campbell was one of the finest drummers in New York, a well-loved and influential figure. There’s a memorial concert at the Parkside starting around 8 with the surviving members of bands he played with: psychedelic rockers Love Camp 7, noir jazzy Americana group Erica Smith & the 99 Cent Dreams, the high-energy, punkish K’s and others.

7/25, 3 PM Fool’s Gold, Burkina Electric and Bassekou Kouyate and Ngoni Ba at Central Park Summerstage.

7/27 the Mingus Orchestra at Washington Square Park 8 PM

7/28, 6:30 PM outdoors in back of Lincoln Center the subversive 1960s play No Snakes in This Grass by James Magnuson, free

7/29, 7:30 PM at Damrosch Park out back of Lincoln Center a Haitian bill feat. Ansanm, Emeline Michel, Beethova Obas, BélO, Zili Misik, acts will probbly appear in reverse order

7/30, 11 PM, the ageless, eternally relevant Avengers – who were the American Sex Pistols thirty years ago – at the Bell House, $25.

7/31 starting at 2 PM on the plaza at Lincoln Center a diverse afternoon of veteran Detroit artists including Eddie Kirkland, the Velvelettes with the Party Stompers, Spyder Turner, Dennis Coffey, the Motor City Soul Revue featuring Melvin Davis, and the Gories.

7/31 at at Damrosch Park out back of Lincoln Center the Motor City madness continues with Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels, ? & the Mysterians, Death, no idea who is headlining although Death really ought to…he will eventually, might as well put him at the top of the bill now….

7/31, 9ish Sonic Youth free at Prospect Park Bandshell – this is one you’ll have to hear from behind the fence out back because no matter what time you show up it’ll be a mobscene.

8/1 Los Straitjackets and the Asylum Street Spankers, 4 PM on the plaza at Lincoln Center

8/3, 7 PM Elvis Martinez plays his bachata hits at Highbridge Park.

8/4-8, 7 PM outdoors behind Lincoln Center, Asphalt Orchestra marches and plays world premieres byYoko Ono and David Byrne/Annie Clark

8/5, 7 PM Gil Scott-Heron at Marcus Garvey Park

8/7, 7 PM the Budos Band and Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings at Prospect Park Bandshell.

8/7, 7 PM Mucca Pazza and Balkan Beat Box at Damrosch Park out back of Lincoln Center.

8/8, 2 PM haunting Greek rebetika band the Maeandros Ensemble, the lushly slinky vintage Egyptian film music revivalists Zikrayat and Yuri Yunakov on the plaza at Lincoln Center

8/12 the creepy, artsy, extraordinarily popular Deerhunter at Pier 54 at 14th St., gates at 6, show starts at 7 with the richkid eunuch rock of Real Estate which you will have to stand through in order to see the headliners.

8/13 the Gypsy Tabor Festival – details TK – last year’s was one of the best lineups ever in the NYC area

8/14, 3 PM Bachata Fest at Central Park Summerstage with Andy Andy, Luis Miguel de la Amargue, Elvis Martinez and Alexandria.

8/14, 7:30 PM at Damrosch Park out back of Lincoln Center a major moment in nuyorican music history: Larry Harlow’s La Raza Latina, A Salsa Suite makes its New York premiere, conducted by Larry Harlow with Rubén Blades, Adonis Puentes plus Orchestra and Chorus and the Bobby Sanabria Big Band

8/15, 3 PM Blitz the Ambassador, 7th Octave and Public Enemy at Central Park Summerstage.

8/22 the Specials at Central Park Summerstage, 5ish, doors at 3

8/24 classic-style roots reggae with Groundation on the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Jewel, boarding at 7 at the FDR and 23rd St., adv tix $30 at the Highline box office highly rec.

8/28, 3 PM the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival at Marcus Garvey Park  featuring McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Scott, Jason Moran and the Bandwagon and Revive da Live: Charlie Parker Revisited.

8/29, 3 PM the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival at Tompkins Square Park with James Moody, Catherine Russell, Vijay Iyer and the JD Allen Trio.

9/1 the John Farnsworth Quartet outdoors at Bryant Park, 6 PM, free.

9/23, 11 PM Those Darlins at Bowery Ballroom $13 adv tix highly rec.

9/26, 3 PM at Central Park Summerstage: the Black Sea Roma Festival featuring Mahala Rai Banda, Tecsoi Banda, Selim Sesler & the NY Gypsy All-Stars and the Yuri Yunakov Ensemble

NYC Live Music Calendar for April-May 2010 Plus Other Events

Hey, this isn’t the latest, most updated NYC Live Music Calendar here. Click here for the latest one.

If you don’t recognize the place where a particular act is playing, check our venues page. If you didn’t see anything that tickled you this time around, you can always check back later since we constantly get news about new shows and post them here.  

 A few things you should know: acts are listed here in order of appearance, NOT headliner first and supporting acts after; showtimes listed here are actual set times, not the time doors open. If a listing here says something like ”9 PM-ish,” chances are it’ll run late. Cover charges are those listed on bands’ and venues’ sites: always best to click on the band link provided or go to the venues page for confirmation since we get much of this info weeks in advance. As always, weekly events first followed by the daily listings:

4/16-5/2 at LaMama, 74A East Fourth Street Thur-Sat 8PM + Sun matinee 2:30; $18; Box Office (212) 475-7710: “Yara Arts Group will summon ancient epics and rituals from Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan for “Scythian Stones,” an original, experimental World Music Theatre piece with choreography, which will presented by La MaMa from April 16 to May 2. The piece, created by Virlana Tkacz, features famed Ukrainian singer Nina Matvienko, her daughter Tonia and artists from Kyrgyzstan. “Scythian Stones” constructs parallel journeys for two young women, from village life and nomadic tradition into the city. Their separate journeys become epic descents into the Great Below—the modern global desert where songs, skills and languages vanish, leaving behind only mute markers like the Scythian Stones found today throughout the grasslands of Ukraine and Central Asia. The production, staged by Virlana Tkacz and Watoku Ueno, will feature Ukrainian and Kyrgyz traditional music, as well as modern music, design and movement. Interweaving performances in Ukrainian, Kyrgyz and English, “Scythian Stones” remains completely accessible to American audiences.”

Sundays there’s a klezmer brunch at City Winery, show starts round 11:30 AM – 2 PM, $10 cover, no minimum, lots of good bands.

Sundays from half past noon to 3:30 PM, bluegrass cats Freshly Baked (f.k.a. Graveyard Shift), featuring excellent, incisive fiddle player Diane Stockwell play Nolita House (upstairs over Botanica at 47 E Houston). Free drink with your entree.

The 2009-10 series of organ concerts at St. Thomas Church continues most every Sunday (holidays excepted) at 5:15 sharp, featuring an allstar cast of performers. Concerts continue through the end of May 2010.

Sundays in April, 8:30 PM the Baby Soda Jazz Band play hot oldtimey swing stuff at Pete’s

Stephane Wrembel plays Sundays at Barbes at 9. He’s something of an institution here, plan on arriving EARLY, 45 minutes early isn’t too soon since the whole bar gets packed fast. The guitarist has few if any equals as an interpreter of Django Reinhardt, but it’s where he takes the gypsy jazz influence in his own remarkably original, psychedelic writing – and what he brings to the Django stuff – that makes all the difference. One of the most interesting players in any style of music, anywhere in the world.

Every Sunday the Ear-Regulars, led by trumpeter Jon Kellso and (frequently) guitarist Matt Munisteri play NYC’s only weekly hot jazz session starting around 8 PM at the Ear Inn on Spring St.  Hard to believe, in the city that springboarded the careers of thousands of jazz legends, but true. This is by far the best value in town for marquee-caliber jazz: for the price of a drink and a tip for the band, you can see world-famous players (and brilliant obscure ones) you’d usually have to drop $100 for at some big-ticket room. The material is mostly old-time stuff from the 30s and 40s, but the players (especially Kellso and Munisteri, who have a chemistry that goes back several years) push it into some deliciously unexpected places.

Every Sunday, hip-hop MC Big Zoo hosts the long-running End of the Weak rap showcase at the Pyramid, 9 PM, admission $5 before 10, $7 afterward. This is one of the best places to discover some of the hottest under-the-radar hip-hop talent, both short cameos as well as longer sets from both newcomers and established vets.

Mondays at the Fat Cat the Heun Choi String Quartet play a wide repertoire of chamber music from Bach to Shostakovich starting at 7

Mondays at the Jazz Standard it’s all Mingus, whether with the Mingus Orchestra, Big Band or Mingus Dynasty: you know the material and the players are all first rate. Sets 7:30/9:30 PM, $25 and worth it.

Mondays at the Delancey on the main floor, 8:30 PMish Botanica frontman and master of menace Paul Wallfisch presents the edgiest weekly music series in town, playfully called Small Beast, an international mix of some of the most intelligent (and frequently darkest) performers passing through town. It’s free and there’s always some kind of drink special or freebee. If you wish Tonic was still open, Wallfisch is keeping the flame alive. He typically plays a solo set on piano around 10 PM, reason enough to put this on your calendar. May artists include haunting Balkan/Appalachian singers AE, cellist Emily Hope Price, the hypnotically psychedelic Electric Junkyard Gamelan with all their homemade instruments, and don’t forget what may be the single best concert in NYC in all of 2010, the Big Beast on May 21 at the Orensanz Center starting at 6 PM with Black Sea Hotel, Botanica, the cd release show for Little Annie and Paul Wallfisch’s new one Genderful, Bee and Flower and more.

Also Monday nights Vince Giordano’s Nighthawks, a boisterous horn-driven 11-piece 1920s/early 30’s band play Sofia’s Restaurant, downstairs at the Edison Hotel, 221 West 46th Street between Broadway & 8th Ave., 3 sets from 8 to 11, surprisingly cheap $15 cover plus $15 minimum considering what you’re getting. Even before the Flying Neutrinos or the Moonlighters, multi-instrumentalist Giordano was pioneering the oldtimey sound in New York; his long-running residency at the old Cajun on lower 8th Ave. is legendary. He also gets a ton of film work (Giordano wrote the satirical number that Willie Nelson famously sang in Wag the Dog).

Mondays at the Vanguard the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra – composer Jim McNeely’s reliably good big band vehicle – plays 9/11 PM, $30 per set plus drink minimum.

Also Mondays in April the Barbes house band, Chicha Libre plays there starting around 9:30. They’ve singlehandedly resurrected an amazing subgenre, chicha, which was popular in the Peruvian Amazon in the late 60s and early 70s. With electric accordion, cuatro, surf guitar and a boisterous rhythm section, their mix of obscure classics and originals is one of the funnest, most danceable things you’ll witness this year. Perhaps not so strangely, they sound a lot like Finnish surf rockers Laika and the Cosmonauts in their most imaginative moments.

Also Mondays in April Rev. Vince Anderson and his band play Union Pool in Williamsburg, two sets starting around 11 PM. The Rev. is one of the great keyboardists around, equally thrilling on organ or electric piano, an expert at Billy Preston style funk, honkytonk, gospel and blues. He writes very funny, very politically astute, frequently salacious original gospel songs and is one of the most charismatic, intense live performers of our time. Paula Henderson from Burnt Sugar is the lead soloist on baritone sax.

The second and fourth Tuesday of the month there are free organ recitals at half past noon at Central Synagogue, Lexington Ave. at 55th., an exciting list of first-class performers in a sonically gorgeous space, a great way to spend your lunch break if you work in the neighborhood.

Tuesdays the boisterous and very popular brass-heavy gypsy jazz band Slavic Soul Party plays Barbes at 9. Get here as soon as you can as the opening act is usually popular as well.

Tuesdays in April the Dred Scott Trio play astonishingly smart, dark piano jazz at the Rockwood at midnight.

Every Thursday the Michael Arenella Quartet play 1920s hot jazz 8-11 PM at Nios, 130 W 46th St.

Thursdays in April Tall Tall Trees play Pete’s, 9 PM. Sort of a steampunk Americana jamband – a little bluegrass, a little blues and a great sense of humor. Always a lot of fun.

Fridays 4/16, 4/23 and 4/30 Chicago expat blues guitarist Irving Louis Lattin plays Lucille’s, 8 PM

Every Friday in April at 8:30 PM at the Fat Cat Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens bring an authentic here-and-now Brooklyn church vibe, no slick theatrics, just soul.

Fridays there’s live Mediterranean music – Greek- Arabic, Turkish Armenian, Israeli fusion with Mike Stoupakis, Christos Zavolas, Sofia on on vocals, Elias Sarkar-oud/vocals, Kostas Konstantinou – drums,  plus bellydancers at Lafayette Grill & Bar, 54 Franklin St., downtown,$20 cover, 10ish, free after 1 AM.

4/1-21 free noontime concerts with chamber music of J.S. Bach at half past noon at Philosophy Hall, Columbia University (on the east edge of campus, north of 116th St./College Walk and east of Low Library and Buell Hall). Seating is limited; early arrival is strongly recommended.  Pianist Benjamin Hochman 4/12-14; cellist Alisa Weilerstein 4/19-21.

4/1 Tris McCall’s indie supergroup  Overlord at Bruar Falls 8 PM

4/1 Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk and Rebirth Brass Band at Highline Ballroom, 8ish, 4/2 they’re at Sullivan Hall

4/1 Brazilian tropicalia/garage rockers Garotas Suecas at the Knitting Factory, 11 PM, $8. They’re at Cake Shop on 4/2.

4/1 the Snow’s Pierre de Gaillande’s fascinating Georges Brassens cover band Bad Reputation at Barbes 8 PM

4/1-4 at the Jazz Standard pianist Danilo Perez and band play Dizzy Gillespie with the amazing Amir ElSaffar on trumpet, 7:30/9:30 adv. res. rec.

4/1, 9 PM mesmerizing Bay area Middle Eastern group Qadim Ensemble feat. Gari Hegedus on oud and saz, Faisal Zedan on percussion, Rachel Valfer Sills on lead vocals and oud, and Eliyahu Sills on ney, bansuri and oud at Zebulon. They’re also at Lafayette Bar and Grill on 4/2 at 8, at Sufi Books, 245 W Broadway on 4/3 at 8 (get there early if you’re going) and at Nublu on 4/4 at 9.

4/1 innovative, fiery newschool bluegrass band Frankenpine at Lakeside 9:15ish

4/1 Oh Liza Jane play original bluegrass and Americana at the Cornelia St. Cafe, 8:30 PM.

4/2 lush, slinky, haunting Egyptian film music revivalists Zikrayat at the Brooklyn Museum, 5 PM showtime, free, line up for tix 4:30 if you’re smart

4/2 brilliantly lyrical Americana rockers Mary Lee’s Corvette at Lakeside 7 PMish.

4/2 Mississippi hill country blues night at Banjo Jim’s with Garry Burnside at 8, Pork Chop Willie at 9, Kent Burnside at 10.

4/2, 9:30 PM Sistermonk plays gypsy funk, Arabic trance and more, free at the bar at Symphony Space

4/2 oldtimey hokum blues with the Second Fiddles at Two Boots Brooklyn 10 PM

4/2 fun, danceable bugalu revivalists Spanglish Fly at Camaradas El Barrio, 1st Ave/, 115th St., 10 PM. They’re also playing the cd release show for their new one at Rose Bar on 4/23.

4/2 retro country hellraiser Jack Grace at Barbes 10 PM

4/2, 11 PM funkmeisters Turkuaz at Spike Hill.

4/3 dark garage rock with Lorraine Leckie & Her Demons at Banjo Jim’s 7 PM.

4/3 ferocious blues guitar virtuoso Bobby Radcliff 7 PM at Terra Blues.

4/3 rustic, oldtimey Brazilian band Orquestra Contemporânea de Olinda 8:30 PM at SOB’s $8 w/rsvp to rsvp@SOBS.com

4/3 powerpop guitar genius Pete Galub at 8 and then jangly retro psychedelic rockers Love Camp 7 at 9:30 at the Parkside.

4/3, 9 PM, moody, groove-driven downtempo/shoegaze rockers El Jezel at Bowery Poetry Club

4/3, 10 PM blazing Indian marching brass band Red Baraat – who play a lot of different songs in that style – at Barbes

4/3 powerful, propulsive, mulstylistic rock en Espanol group New Madrid at Crash Mansion, 10 PM.

4/3, 8 PM haunting Turkish classical and new compositions with Erkan Ogur & Ismail H. Demircioglu at the Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College, $35 adv tix avail.

4/3 charming, harmony-driven steampunk veterans the Moonlighters at Two Boots Brooklyn, 10 PM

4/4 at Highline Ballroom at noon a joyous New Orleans Easter soul/funk brass band brunch with Brother Joscephus & the Love Revival Revolution Orchestra.

4/4, 8 PM the NYCity Slickers play bluegrass at Rodeo Bar, 8 PM (note early showtime). They’re also here on 4/18 at 8 as well.

4/4 scary noir vibraphone jazz with Tom Beckham’s Slice: Tom Beckham – vibraphone; Nate Radley – guitar; Matt Pavolka – bass; Diego Voglino – drums, 9:30 PM at Rose Bar in Williamsburg.

4/5 art-rock composer Julia Frodahl of Edison Woods, Brooklyn’s pioneering, haunting Balkan a-cappella quartet Black Sea Hotel, Botanica master of menace Paul Wallfsich and noir psychedelic rocker Martin Bisi at Small Beast at the Delancey, 9 PM.

4/5 fiery gypsy punks the Stumblebum Brass Band at the Mercury, 10 PM, $8 

4/6, 7:30 PM Kathy Halvorson’s adventurous reed trio the Threeds with oboeist Katie Scheele and Mark Snyder “are experimenting with arrangements of rock stuff — some by others, some by us, including yours truly, the Doors, Stevie Wonder, Radiohead, David Bowie, etc.”- at Affair on 8th, a new Irish pub on W. 8th St, between 5th and 6th Aves.

4/6 the Whispering Tree plays Pete’s, 9 PM. Noir-ish folk and blues inflected rock songs, strong lyrics and unaffectly smart vocals from their frontwoman.

4/6 at Rose Bar, 9 PM, free, ex-James Brown bassist Fred Thomas leads a group with guitarist Gabe Kaplan (Naomi Shelton & The Gospel Queens), and drummer Mathias Kunzli (Ljova and the Kontraband, Tall Tall Trees) plus featuring guest singers, and the horns from Ikebe Shakedown on JB classics.

4/6, 8 PM pianist/songwriter Lee Feldman shows off his remarkably good classical chops playing Bach, Chopin and Feldman (that’s Lee, not Morton) at the Third St. Music School Settlement, free.

4/6-10, 8:30/11 PM the Pharaoh Sanders Quartet at Birdland, $30 tix available.

4/7, 3:30 PM Paolo Bordignon plays the 1830 Appleton organ at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, free w/museum adm, concert is on the balcony in the musical instruments section in the back

4/7 at Joe’s Pub Twang Twang Shock-a-Boom – the famously obscure, less-cynical, more-danceable Texas counterpart to the Violent Femmes – play as part of their 20-year reunion tou, time TBA

4/7, 6:30 PM kick-ass avant garde songwriting and playing with Missy Mazzoli & Victoire and Arp & Anthony Moore (former collaborator with Pink Floyd’s Rick Wright) at le Poisson Rouge $15

4/7 the world premiere of Robert Sirota’s Assimilations played by the Washington Square Contemporary Music Society: “Assimilations, written for violin, clarinet, cello and piano, is an exploration of Robert Sirota’s [emotionally charged, sometimes uneasy] relationship with his Jewish heritage and identity.” Also on the bill: Richard Festinger: Concerto for Piano and Nine Instruments (NY Premiere); Fabio Grasso: Blumentraum (NY Premiere); Louis Karchin: Chamber Symphony (World Premiere); Laurie San Martin: Two Pieces for Piano and Percussion (World Premiere) at 8 PM at Merkin Concert Hall, adv tix $20/$15 srs/$8 stud. rec.

4/7 a rare live show by edgy, occasionally noir acoustic songwriter Dina Regine at 68 Jay St. Bar, 8 PM  followed by “the ladies of M Shanghai String Band”

4/7, 9ish best kick-ass rock doublebill of the month, the girls and then the guys: Beluga and Des Roar at Glasslands.

4/7 Left on Red – edgy, politically aware harmony driven acoustic duo at Fontana’s, 10 PM

4/8, 7 PM the Komeda Project feat. pianist Andrzej Winnicki and saxophonist Krzysztof Medyna, along with trumpeter Russ Johnson, bassist Drew Gress, and drummer Rudy Royston doing works by the haunting, doomed Polish jazz composer at the Polish and Slavic Center, 177 Kent St. (NOT Kent Ave), Greenpoint, G to Greenpoint Ave.

4/7 Venezuelan guitar and cuatro genius Aquiles Baez at Barbes 8 PM.

4/7, 8 PM at the Canal Room a rare live gig by Mojo Mancini, the allstar crew of A-list sidemen Rick DePofi (reeds), Conrad Korsch (bass), John Leventhal (Rosanne Cash band – guitar), Brian Mitchell (Bob Dylan band – keyboards, vocals), and Shawn Pelton (percussion) with a special guest, the imcomparable and mysterious Rachelle Garniez.

4/8 funny metal band Psychostick on the Rocks Off Concert Cruise, leaving from 23rd St. and the FDR, boarding at 7 PM prompt, tix $20 highly rec. at the Highline Ballroom box ofc.

4/8, 7 PM, all ages show at Bushwick Music Studios, 55 Waterbury St. in Brooklyn, L train to Montrose, ska/punk with Nix 86, Hey Stranger and Curious Volume

4/8, 7:30 PM at Banjo Jim’s a good female-fronted Americana doublebill with Drina & the Deep Blue Sea (with Steve Antonakos on guitar) followed by the rockabilly of Lil Mo & the Monicats at 8:30

4/8 psychedelic, dark Norwegian shoegaze rockers Serena Maneesh 8PMish at le Poisson Rouge $12.

4/8 energetic cowpunks I’ll Be John Brown at Spike Hill 8 PM

4/8, 8 PM at Symphony Space the New Amsterdam Symphony Orchestra plays Sibelius’ Symphony No. 3., Elgar’s “Enigma Variations” and violinist Jessica Lee as soloist in Vaughan Williams’ “The Lark Ascending,” $18/$10 children.

4/8, 9 PM Raya Brass Band at Radegast Hall in Williamsburg – loud enough to drown out the douchebags

4/8 oldtimey Americana with the Weal and Woe at Barbes 8 PM followed by the scorching “new Balkan uproar” of Ansambl Mastika at 10.

4/9, 8 PM fiery new wave/soul/psychedelic rockers the Disclaimers at Spike Hill.

4/9-12 the Dr. Lonnie Smith Trio at Iridium, $30 ($35 Sat), sets 8/10 PM

4/9 Luminescent Orchestrii violin powerhouse Rima Fand plus special guests 8 PM at Barbes followed by nuevo bugalu dancefloor sensation Spanglish Fly at 10

4/9 Turkish rock/new music stars chanteuse Sertab Erener and all-purpose guitar genius Demir Demirkan at Hiro Ballroom

4/9, 7:30 PM at Carnegie Hall – Orchestra Underground performing “Louis & the Young Americans,”Jeffrey Milarsky conducting: Louis Andriessen – Symphony for Open Strings (New York City Premiere); Missy Mazzoli: These Worlds in Us (World Premiere, new orchestration); Michael Fiday: HST: In Memoriam Hunter S. Thompson (World Premiere, ACO Commission); John Korsrud: New Work (World Premiere, ACO Commission). This is a big deal in NYC music history, the concert will sell out, if you consider yourself a fan of new music you really ought to catch the show.

4/9, 8 PM at Galapagos big buzz jazz orchestra Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society

4/9, 9 PM George Clinton & the P-Funk Allstars at BB King’s, 9 PM, $37.50 adv tix absolutely necessary.

4/9 deliriously danceable latin bugalu revivalists Spanglish Fly at Barbes, 10 PM. They’re also playing the cd release show for their killer new one at Rose Bar on 4/23.

4/9 at midnight ageless faux French garage rockers les Sans Culottes at Otto’s

4/9, half past midnight (actually the wee hours of 4/10) funk powerhouse Turkuaz at Bowery Poetry Club

4/10 at Hank’s Brooklyn’s #1 regressive rock act, Spinal Tap style metal spoof Mighty High at 10:30

4/10, 6 PM members of fiery, intense art-rockers Norden Bombsight play an ambient jam at the closing party for Daphane Park’s current art installation at Honey Space Gallery, 148 11th Ave. (btw. 21st & 22nd) in Chelsea.

4/10 at Bowery Electric, 7 PM “the first ever Flugente combo show” – intense lyricist/frontman Jerry Adler with Jeremiah Lockwood on guitar (Sway Machinery, Balkan Beat Box) and Yuval Lion on drums (formerly of The Blam, currently of Pink Noise).

4/10, 7 PM haunting acoustic Nashville gothic and original chain gang songs with Bobtown at Banjo Jim’s.

4/10 Das Vibenbass play pretty self-explanatory, hypnotic jazz/groove stuff at Arlene’s, 7 PM

4/10 charming harmony-driven steampunk vets the Moonlighters at 7:30 PM at the Indian Road Cafe, 600 West 218th St. in Inwood, 1 train to 215th St., walk up 10th Ave. and go left on 218th St. all the way to the end, it’s around the corner.

4/10 hot oldtime 20s swing jazz with Brian Carpenter’s Ghost Train Orchestra at Barbes 8 PM followed by the equally rustic, even hotter delta blues/hillbilly/swing quartet the Roulette Sisters – back together again, it seems – at 10.

4/10 Mississippi hill country blues guitar monster Will Scott at 68 Jay St. Bar 9 PM

4/10, 9 PM the Windsor Terrors – gotta love that name – at Tea Lounge in Park Slope; Jim Kiernan (bass, vocals), Kenee Lee (keyboards, vocals), John O’Dea (guitar, vocals), Gregg Masiello (percussion, vocals).

4/10, 10 PM ska jazz sax legend Dave Hillyard & the Rocksteady 7 at Two Boots Brooklyn.

4/10 rockabilly/punk/surf NYC LES legend Simon & the Bar Sinisters at Lakeside 10:15ish.

4/11, 11 AM Issue Project Room’s debut show at their new digs at 110 Livingston St. in Brooklyn Heights, broadcast live on Q2, free: “a rare performance of Morton Feldman’s String Quartet No. 2 in its entirety  for a pre-renovation, inaugural Open House event. Performed by Ne(x)tworks, the six hour-long ‘contemporary masterpiece’ will be free to the public, commemorating Issue’s first concert in their future Downtown Brooklyn home.  String Quartet No. 2 has been performed in its entirety only a few times, the first being in 1999 by the FLUX Quartet at Cooper Union.”

4/11 Ahreum Han plays a free classical organ recital St. Thomas Church, 53rd and 5th Ave., 5:15 PM. Of all the young organists we’ve seen over the last couple of years, Han’s blend of sensational chops and fearless emotional intensity set her apart from the others. Come see what the buzz is all about.

4/11 NYC’s very own hypnotic Indonesian community gamelan orchestra Gamelan Dharma Swara, 7 PM at Joe’s Pub.

4/11, 8:30 PM at the Cornelia St. Café, the Noah Preminger Group feat. Nir Felder, guitar;  John Hébert, bass;  Rudy Royston, drums

4/11, 9:30 PM soulful nouveau Americana – Wilco meets Van Morrison – with the Smooth Maria at Pete’s

4/11 late 80s British indie innovators the Wedding Present at Bowery Ballroom 10 PM, $15 adv tix rec.

4/12, 7:30ish Vancouver klezmer-punk accordionist Geoff Berner at Barbes.

4/12, 8:30 PM clever Americana songwriting with Homeboy Steve Antonakos at Banjo Jim’s

4/12, 9 PM avant composer/cellist Valerie Kuehne plus Botanica keyboardist/frontman Paul Wallfisch at Small Beast at the Delancey, 9 PM.

4/12, 9:30 PM klezmer bassist Jim Guttmann, best known as the anchor in the Klezmer Conservatory Band plays the cd release show for his new one with a big fiery band at Joe’s Pub, $15.

4/13, 7 PM excellent acoustic guitarist Rob Moose’s Bach Reformed at Barbes followed at 9 by Slavic Soul Party.

4/13 legendary punk accordion chanteuse Phoebe Legere at Iridium, sets 8/10 PM, $25

4/13 captivating, haunting, imaginative chamber-pop/folk/avant siren Larkin Grimm at Sidewalk 9 PM

4/13, 9:30ish a reggae triplebill at Bowery Electric with Hard Times, the Equilibrians and Wolf & Leopard, cheap, $5

4/13, 10:30 PM art-rockers the Red Sparowes – whose haunting, hypnotic, apocalyptic previous album was one of the best of the previous decade – at the Mercury, $12 adv tix. absolutely required, this will sell out.

4/13, 11 PM NYC garage rock legends Johnny Chan & the New Dynasty 6 play Arlene’s

4/14, 6:30 PM percussionist Glen Velez and vocalist Lori Cotler open for new-music cello star Maya Beiser, joined here by oud virtuoso Bassam Saba plus Velez and Matt Kilmer of the Mast on percussion, playing Kayhan Kalhor, Djivan Gasparian, Led Zep and more at le Poisson Rouge.

4/14, 7 PM a killer country night at Rodeo Bar with Bill Kirchen  – the guy who basically invented alt-country – followed at 10:30 by the equally funny Susquehanna Industrial Tool and Die Co.

4/14, 7:30 PM Nancianne Parrella plays an organ recital feat. works of Bach, DeBlasio, Dvorak, Stanford and Tournier with Jorge Ávila, violin; Victoria Drake, harp; and Arthur Fiacco, cello. at the Church of Saint Ignatius Loyola, Park Avenue @ 84th St., $20/$15 stud/srs.

4/14, LES funk legends Defunkt at Drom 9 PM – all original members

4/14 the multistylistic reggae/afropop Refugee All Stars of Sierra Leone, 9ish at Highline Ballroom.

4/14 aggressively tuneful, 90s British style rockers the Royal Chains at Spike Hill 11 PM

4/15 Lila Downs at Casita Maria Center for Arts Education, 928 Simpson Street, Bronx, NY, price TBA; 4/17-18 she’s at City Winery, $25 tix avail.

4/15 our pals over at Feast of Music have put together a slam-dunk of a quadruple bill at Littlefield at 7:30 with violinist Tom Swafford, ambient duo Itsnotyouitsme (violinist Caleb Burhans and guitarist Grey McMurray), frequently creepy avant keyboardist John Kameel Farah and then Tom Tom Club soundalikes Saadi. Ridiculously cheap at $7.

4/15, 8 PM at the Stone 25 O’Clock Band: the 25-year reunion – Dave Sewelson (saxes) David Hofstra (bass, tuba) Steve Moses (drums) Robin Holcomb (piano) followed by Sex Mob at 10.

4/15, 8 PM at Otto’s ex-Gotham 4 guitarist Bryan Wade’s new band Wrongwrongwrong: “We have combined a Queens of the Stone Age CD, a Police cassette, and a Thelonious Monk record to create a flat-out oddrock of punk, funk, jazz, and free sound cut with a big dose of off-kilter chords and melodies.”

4/15 fiery, original female-fronted rockabilly/surf trio Catspaw at Santos Party House 7 (seven, note new time) PM.

4/15 Brazilian-American reggae/tropicalia juggernaut Dende & Hahahaes at the Atrium at Lincoln Center, 61 W 62nd St., 8:30 PM, free

4/15 stoner hiphop legends Cypress Hill, um, where? Oh yeah, at SOB’s 9 PM $25.

4/15 the Heavy Beat (the Pietasters’ slower, rootsier side project) play roots reggae at Shrine at 9 followed eventually at 11ish by S.S. King’s Iviorian reggae

4/15 the ferocious, lyrically potent Oxygen Ponies at the Soho Playhouse Downstairs 9:30 PM. They’re also at the Bell House on 4/21 at 8.

4/16, 6 (six) PM the adventurous Becca Stevens Band (she sings in Bjorkestra) at 55 Bar – guitar, charango, uke, accordion, banjo, piano, bass, percussion.

4/16, 7:30 PM cellist/vocalist Jody Redhage and Fire in July at First Presbyterian Church in Brooklyn Heights, 124 Henry St., 2/3 to Clark St., A/C to High St. or 4/5 to Borough Hall, $10 sugg. don.

4/16, 8 PM at Symphony Space the auspicious second episode of CONTACT! the NY Phil’s avant ensemble extravaganza has Alan Gilbert conducting world premieres by composers Sean Sheperd, Nico Muhly, and Matthias Pintscher, adv tix $28 highly rec., this will sell out. The program repeats at 7 PM on 4/17.

4/16, 8 PM jazz chanteuse Jamie Leonhart, then at 9 multistylistic, funky bandleader Shayna Zaid & the Catch at the Rockwood followed eventually at 11 by retro Americana siren Julia Haltigan, then the all-purpose country Madison Square Gardeners at midnight and then jazz guitarist Nir Felder at 1 AM. Wow, what a lineup.

4/16 noir cabaret legend Little Annie and Botanica keyboard monster Paul Wallfisch at Littlefield, 8 PM

4/16, 8 PM, repeating 4/18 at 6 PM Eleanor Bindman plays Chopin, Schumann and Liszt at the Old Stone House in Park Slope,  tix $20/$10 srs/stud

4/16, 9 PM powerpop siren Patti Rothberg and her band at Arlene’s

4/16 Jon Spencer Blues Explosion at the Brooklyn Bowl is SOLD OUT.

4/16 the Budos Band at Southpaw 9ish $10 – should be good because they don’t have vocals.

4/16 Molly White of beguiling dark gypsy-ish rockers Kotorino has a cool project, B Is for Baroness that puts an edgy spin on torch songs from around the world; they’re at Pete’s at 9 followed at 10 by steampunk guitar god/songwriter Lenny Molotov at Pete’s and then Alex Battles of the Whisky Rebellion.

4/16, 10:30 PM the Jack Grace Band – arguably the funniest act in town, with a killer new album out, Drinking Songs for Lovers- at Rodeo Bar.

4/16, 10:30 PM deviously funny acoustic  Americana jammers Tall Tall Trees at the Postcrypt

4/16 surf classics and obscurities with the Boss Guitars at Lakeside 11 PM.

4/16 the fun, theatrical, oldtimey noir Not Waving But Drowning plus the reliably ferocious, equally fun Raya Brass Band at (wild guess) 10:30ish at the Red Lotus Room, 893 Bergen St. (Classon and Franklin), Bed-Stuy, C to Franklin Ave., $10

4/16 the Hard Times play roots reggae at Shrine 11 PM

4/17, 7 PM desert blueswoman Rokia Traore at Highline Ballroom, gen adm tix $28.

4/17,7ish at the Workmens Circle the Michael Winograd Klezmer Trio: clarinetist Michael Winograd, accordionist Patrick Farrell and bassist/singer Benjy Fox-Rosen.

4/17, 9 PM expat Middle Eastern supergroup Tarab – Tareq Abboushi (buzuq); Taoufiq Ben Amor (vocals, oud and percussion); Ramzi El-Edlibi (percussion and dance); Zafer Tawil (violin, oud and ercussion) at Alwan for the Arts, $15, early arrival advised.

4/17 rambunctious, cutting-edge bluegrass behemoth Frankenpine at Banjo Jim’s 9 PM ; Sean Kershaw & the Terrible Two at midnight

4/17, 10 PM las Rubias del Norte – whom we’ve been calling the “female Chicha Libre” since their new album is so amazing – at Barbes

4/17, 10 PM Chicago-style guitar powerhouse Johnny Allen at Terra Blues.

4/17, 11ish scorching, Radio Birdman-style garage punk with the Mess Around at Don Pedro’s

4/17 NYC’s fun, playful version of X – Spanking Charlene at Lakeside 11 PM

4/17, cello rockers Snazz Mammoth play Teneleven, 11PMish as part of one of those powdered wig theme parties – dress as Marie Antoinette or Dr. Guillot and get in half-price for five bucks, otherwise it’s $10

4/17, midnight, cowpunk with the Nightmare River Band at Spike Hill – note that there is a $7 cover

4/18 the Christian Jello Biafra, Reverend Billy & The Life After Shopping Gospel Choir, 1 PM at Highline Ballroom.

4/18, 5 PM the NY Scandia Symphony roll out their string quartet at Our Savior of Atonement, 189th St. and Bennett Ave. in the Bronx for an intriguing bill of Grieg, Frank Foerster, Zack Patten, C.E.F. Weyse, Langgaard and Nielsen. Admission is free.

4/18 ACME and Eric Huebner play Louis Andriessen at le Poisson Rouge with a pre-concert talk by the composer!! at 6, $15

4/18, 7 PM fado superstar Ana Moura at Symphony Space, tix $32/$18 stud.

4/18, 8 PM Karine Poghosyan plays the Shostakovich Piano Concerto No. 2 in F, Op. 102 with the Jubilee Symphony at Christ and St. Stephen Church, 120 W 69th St. (Bwy/Columbus).

4/18 imaginative Greek-American electric blues with Spiros Soukis at Lucille’s 8 PM. He’s also here on 4/25.

4/18 Ninth House’s ominous baritone frontman Mark Sinnis plays the cd release show for his third solo album of acoustic Nashville gothic songs, The Night’s Last Tomorrow at the Slipper Room, 10 PM.

4/18 10:30 PM haunting Middle Eastern jazz trumpet intensity with the Amir ElSaffar/Hafez Modirzadeh Quartet cd release show for their new one, Radif Suite at le Poisson Rouge, $15

4/18 rustic oldtimey harmony-driven Americana with Oh Liza Jane at Pete’s 10:30 PM.

4/19 Ben Ratliff – the torchy noir singer/guitarist, not the NY Times critic – at Banjo Jim’s, 7:30 PM

4/19, 7:30ish Zoltan Lantos & Tanya Kalmanovitch play Balkan, gypsy and Indian-influenced violin/viola duos at Barbes followed by the incomparable Chicha Libre at 9:45ish

4/19 fiery, literate rocker Matt Keating at the Rockwood, 8 PM.

4/19 the virtuosically funny Erin and Her Cello, haunting indie rock siren Elisa Flynn and Botanica frontman/pianist Paul Wallfisch at Small Beast at the Delancey, 9 PM.

4/19 an excellent country/roots/oldtimey doublebill with the reliably charming Daria Grace & the Prewar Ponies followed by the more haunting Americana of Jan Bell at Union Hall, 9ish, free

4/20 violin mastermind Jenny Scheinman 7 PM at Barbes followed at 9 by Slavic Soul Party

4/20-24 bass legend Dave Holland and his Quintet at Birdland, sets 8:30/11 PM, $30 tix available.

4/20-21 second-wave ska legends the Specials at Terminal 5, $30 adv tix.

4/20 Apr 20 Neil Innes Of Monty Python and his legendary Beatles parody band the Rutles at B.B.King’s, 8:30ish, $20 adv tix. absolutely necessary, this will sell out.

4/20 smart, tuneful steampunk/Americana/blues songwriter Andrew Vladeck at the Rockwood 9 PM.

4/20, 10 PM Pierre de Gaillande, mastermind behind the Snow and Bad Reputation at Pete’s.

4/21 Nashville bluegrass legend Greg Garing 7 PM at the Knitting Factory, free

4/21, 7ish a summit of sorts with three of the best songwriters on the planet, the April Blossoms (Mary Lee Kortes of Mary Lee’s Corvette with torchy, Britfolk/jazz siren Amanda Thorpe and ex-Rasputina cello multistylist Serena Jost) at Lakeside.

4/21 Orchestre de Chambre Miniature – Clare & the Reasons’ Olivier Manchon’s new-music group play the cd release show for their new one at Barbes, 8 PM.

4/21 and 4/23-24 the timeless, more-potent-than-ever Ian Hunter at City Winery 10 PM $30 tix available.

4/21, 7:30 PM organ adventurer Gail Archer plays selections from her new Bach cd at St. Paul’s Chapel (117th St & Amsterdam, 1 train to 116th St.). It’s her home turf – her previous concert back in March was exhilarating.

4/22, 7:30 PM Lark Chamber Artists and pianist Jeremy Denk perform the world premiere of Paul Moravec’s Piano Quintet, also Jennifer Higdon’s Exaltation of Larks; Felix Mendelssohn’s Four Pieces for String Quartet, Op.81; and Robert Schumann’s Piano Quintet in E flat Major, Op. 44. at Merkin Concert Hall.

4/22 White Hinterland – sort of an icy cross between Goldfrapp and the Creatures – play Union Hall, 8 PM, $12

4/22, 8 PM Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks, who was steampunk before steampunk existed, back in the late 60s and is still going strong, at BB King’s, 8 PM, $25 adv tix. rec.

4/22 powerpop legend George Usher at Banjo Jim’s, 8 PM; be aware that a popular vocalist (can’t really call him a singer) from a lame 90s indie rock band will be playing at 7 so it may be crowded.

4/22 hypnotic and intense Chinese-American chanteuse/new music composer Jen Shyu at the Atrium at Lincoln Center, 8:30 PM, free.

4/22 Australian art-rock/psychedelic legends the Church acoustic at City Winery, 9 PM.

4/22, 9 PM Malagasy chanteuse/songwriter Razia Said plays songs from her stunningly haunting new cd Zebu Nation at SOB’s – her label, Cumbancha is donating a portion of the proceeds from all cd sales to plant trees in Madagascar, which is very cool considering that the album reflects how adversely her native land has been impacted by global warming – adv tix very highly rec.

4/22 rustic Americana night at Barbes with the Plunk Brothers at 8 followed at 10 by the Debutante Hour

4/22 a cheap funkfest at Sullivan Hall, 9ish feat. the NY Funk Exchange, Rubber Skunk and others, $10, no idea who’s playing when but it looks all pretty good.

4/23 a really good roots/Americana night at Banjo Jim’s starting with an acoustic set by Charlene and Mo from Spanking Charlene at 6 followed by terrific country singer Drina Seay with ubiquitous guitar god Steve Antonakos at 7, then eventually the string band powerhouse Silk City with Danny Weiss at 9. And then Michael Daves, another first-class roots player at 11.

4/23 at the Bar Next Door Jacam Manricks (alto saxophone w Aaron Goldberg on keys and Joe Martin on bass), 7 and 9 PM

4/23, 8 PM at Barbes the oldtimey Miss Tess and the Bon Ton Parade followed by Cumbiagra at 10.

4/23 the NY Ska Festival at B.B. King’s, 8 PM, all ages feat. Hub City Stompers, King Chango, Bigger Thomas, Kofre, Beat Brigade, Skarioca, Floor Kiss and the Skarroneros, $15 cheap adv tix absolutely necessary, this will sell out. Wow.

4/23 rustic oldtimey country duo the Manhattan Valley Ramblers at Freddy’s 10 PM

4/23 kick ass Americana rockers Tom Clark & the High Action Boys at Lakeside 11 PM

4/24, 1 PM a free concert at Bargemusic, probably piano music; there’s also a free one on 5/1 at 1 also.

4/24, 7 PM NYC noir rock rocker/lyricist/legend LJ Murphy at Banjo Jim’s

4/24 snarling, smart Graham Parker-esque post-new wave rocker Mike Rimbaud at the National Underground 7:30 PM

4/24, 8 PM the Neel Murgai Ensemble offer their fresh take on North Indian music, performing the world premiere of “Reorientation Suite” feat. Neel on sitar, Mat Maneri on viola, Sameer Gupta (Marc Kerry’s Focus Trio) on tabla and Greg Heffernan (Paradox Trio) on cello. $10 at the door at Brooklyn Conservatory Concert Hall, 58 7th Avenue, Park Slope, Q/B to 7th Ave, 2/3 to Grand Army Plaza.

4/24, 8 PM Valery Giergiev conducts the NY Phil at Avery Fisher Hall: Stravinsky: Symphony of Psalms, Firebird, $34 tix avail.

4/24, 8 PM klezmer/Balkan trumpeter Ben Holmes’ Trio at Barbes.

4/24 imaginative avant cellist Emily Hope Price (of Pearl and the Beard) at the Postcrypt, 9:30 PM.

4/24, 10 PM darkly charismatic, theatrical, sometimes hilarious keyboard rocker Tom Warnick and World’s Fair at the Diving Bell, 45-15 Queens Blvd. at 46th St., Sunnyside, Queens, 7 train to 46th St.

4/24 haunting, hypnotic Balkan/Americana vocal duo AE, 10 PM at the Jalopy followed at 11 by the considerably louder but no less haunting Veveritse Brass Band

4/24 theatrical Greek party music monsters Magges at Mehanata 10 PM free before 10:30.

4/24 southwestern gothic rock with Tom Shaner at Lakeside 11 PM.

4/25, 3 (three) PM at Bargemusic the Clavier Trio (Arkady Fomin: violin; Jesus Castro-Balbi: cello; David Korevaar, piano) play Auerbach – Postscriptum; Schoenberg – Verklarte Nacht; Rachmaninoff – Trio Elegiaque, tix $35/$30 srs./$15 stud.

4/25, 4 PM Leon Botstein and the American Symphony Orchestra play Beethoven’s Fourth Symphony at Symphony Space, $30, stud/srs. $20 They play the Fifth on 4/27 at 7.

4/25, 5 PM the innovative all-female Contrasts Quartet at the Lounge at Hudson View Gardens, 116 Pinehurst Ave. and 183rd St., $10

4/25 smart, lyrical, soul/rock songwriter Dina Dean 7 PM at Bobo, 181 W 10th St. at 7th Ave., $10.

4/25 Amy Allison plays 8:30 PM at Banjo Jim’s – doing the hilarious Ballad of Amy Winehouse live for the first time ever live! – as part of Monica Passin’s evening of country/roots chanteuses.

4/26, 7:30 PM, free, the Loki Ensemble – Abigail Fischer, mezzo-soprano; Noah Kaplan, tenor sax; Wes Matthews, piano; Christopher Otto, violin; Kevin McFarland, cello plus pianists Inna Faliks and Edward Neeman perform works by Arnold Schoenberg, improvisations on those pieces, and music by Loki resident composers Nathan Shields, Reinaldo Moya, and William Cooper. At Broadway United Church, 2504 Broadway at 93rd St., 1/2/3 to 96th St.

4/26, 7:30 PM the Chiara String Quartet premiere Ivan Moody’s Nocturne of Light with pianist Paul Barnes at Symphony Space, tix $20/$15 stud/srs

4/26 steampunk siren Daria Grace and the Pre-War Ponies at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

4/27-28 at the Jazz Standard the Sean Jones Group feat. Sean Jones – trumpet; Brian Hogans – alto saxophone; Orrin Evans – piano; Luques Curtis – bass John Davis – drums, sets 7:30/9:30 PM, $25 adv tix rec.

4/27 Senegalese roots reggae juggernaut Meta & the Cornerstones followed by duskcore guitar star Vieux Farka Toure at le Poisson Rouge,10:30ish, tix still available…

4/27, 8 PM powerpop guitar monster Pete Galub and the Annuals at Union Hall followed eventually at 10 by Franklin Bruno, Village Voice scribe and decent powerpop songwriter

4/27 playful hokum blues with the Second Fiddles at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM.

4/28 the Sometime Boys – the brain trust of ferocious art-rockers System Noise – play acoustic blues/Americana tinged originals, 7 PM at the Delancey

4/28, 8 PM the Jessica Lurie Ensemble at Rose Bar in Williamsburg – Jessica Lurie – sax, accordion voice; Brandon Seabrook – banjo/guitar; Erik Deutsch – organ; Mathias Kunzli – drums/percussion

4/28, 8 PM at Symphony Space, the Christian McBride Quintet Plays Ellington $30 adv tix rec.

4/28 the Mikal Evans Band play powerpop at Spike Hill 10 PM.

4/28 banjo player/country chanteuse Hilary Hawke and her band at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM.

4/29 Jazz at Lincoln Center Ellington Band Alumni play Duke’s greatest hits at the Atrium at Lincoln Center, 8:30 PM, free

4/29 powerhouse psychedelic powerpop trio Devi plus killer guest keyboardist Rob Clores at Sullivan Hall 9 PM

4/29, 9 PM edgy, smart, somewhat devious  jazz-inflected pianist/singer Elaine Romanelli at Shrine

4/29 intense, smart noir psychobilly and Americana with the Reid Paley Trio at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM.

4/30 haunting rustic literate Americana duo the Whispering Tree play their cd release show at the American Folk Art Museum, 45 W 53rd (between 5th & 6th), 5:30 PM

4/30 intriguing, multistylistic latin/klezmer jazz pianist Carmen Staaf at Shrine, 7 PM. 

4/30, 7 PM Irish chamber pop star Pierce Turner at Joe’s Pub, $23 adv tix rec.

4/30, 8 PM Conspiracy of Beards – a 30-member male choir singing Leonard Cohen songs will be at Picasso Machinery, 45 Broadway at Wythe St., South Williamsburg, J/M to Marcy Ave. They’re also at Bowery Poetry Club on 5/1 at 9 PM and at the Highline on 5/2 for a 1:30 PM matinee, advance tix for that show highly recommended at the Highline box ofc.

4/30, 8 PM paradigm-shifting oud virtuoso/composer/bandleader Mavrothi Kontanis at Barbes.

4/30, 8:30 PM a blazing gypsy doublebill: oldschool brass monsters Zlatne Uste and the more fusion-oriented NY Gypsy All Stars at Hungarian House, 213 E 82nd St., $15, email for info

4/30 at the Mercury an interestingly psychedelic doublebill with the reggae/jazz/afrobeat Superpowers and Giant Panda Guerrilla Dub Squad, 10 PM, $12.

4/30 fiery electric bluegrass guitar and mandolin, cool Americana songs and maybe a twisted Madonna cover by Demolition String Band at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

4/30 conscious hip-hop with Queen Godis and DAM at Southpaw time TBA

4/30 Graham Parker & the Figgs at City Winery $25 standing room tix available.

5/1 haunting, hypnotic Middle Eastern golden age film music revivalists Zikrayat play the cd release for their long-awaited new cd Cinematic at Barbes with an allstar Middle Eastern lineup: Shusmo at 6, Zikrayat themselves at 7 and Falu at 8, the entire show simulcast on 91.1 FM WFMU.

5/1, 8 PM sitarist Shujaat Husain Khan (son and disciple of the late Ustad Vilayat Khan) at Symphony Space, tix $30/$18 stud.

5/1, 8 PM ethereal, minimalist, gorgeously moody Americana duo Arborea at Northeast Kingdom, 18 Wyckoff Ave. in Bushwick, L to Jefferson St.

5/1 El Pueblo play latin reggae/dub at Shrine, 9 PM; 5/28 they’re at Local 269

5/1 the Spinal Tap of brass bands, the Stagger Back Brass Band at Union Pool 9 PM

5/1-4 at the Vanguard the Bill Frisell Trio with Eyvind Kang and Rudy Royston; 5/11-16 his quartet with Kang, Hank Roberts and Jenny Scheinman.

5/1, 10ish an oldschool rooftop soul party with the One and Nines – a more Memphis version of what Sharon Jones is doing – at 51 Pacific Ave at Caven Point Ave, Jersey City: also “all night DJ’s will be spinning vinyl records of R&B, Soul, Reggae, Rock & Roll, Hip-Hop, Doo-Wop, and anything else that’s funky (no disco or house, sorry…..)”

5/1 NYC’s best blues band, Delta Dreambox at Two Boots Brooklyn 10 PM.

5/1 the ferocious, funny, charismatic, musically diverse anti-gentrification rockers – 2010’s version of the Clash – the Brooklyn What at Don Pedro’s, 11ish.

5/1 Chip Robinson, Kasey Anderson (who’s got an excellent new album out)and the Roscoe Trio have a twangfest at Lakeside 11 PM.

5/1 Top Shotta (ten-piece dub reggae band with horn section!) at Rose Bar in Williamsburg, midnight-ish.

5/2 ecstatic, cinematic, clever pan-Balkan string band Ljova and the Kontraband at the Museum of Natural History at the Silk Road exhibit at 1:30, 2:30 and 3:30pm. If you haven’t seen the exhibition yet, this is a great chance – and go see them too. They’re also here on 6/6 and 6/13

5/2, 3 PM a fascinating afternoon of new music put together by piano firebrand Kathy Supove including new work by Paula Matthusen; Rajas for John Cage by Rocco DiPietro, new compositions for toy piano and loops by Ranjit Bhatnagar; Gold Ocean by Ken Ueno/Du Yun; Neil Rolnick’s Numb and Mono plus post-concert discussion led by special guest moderator Cornelius Duffalo at the Flea Theatre, 41 White St. (Church/Bwy), free, early arrival highly advised.

5/2 John Doe & Exene Cervenka of X at City Winery 8 PM $22 tix. avail.

5/2 casually captivating, golden-voiced Americana-inspired chanteuse Robin Aigner plus a full band at the Jalopy 9 PM.

5/2 El Topo at Rose Bar in Williamsburg, 10ish “Acid-exotica septet from Brooklyn, NY. El Topo funnels influences ranging from Dirty Harry movies to Martin Denny, from classical Arabic music to Italian giallos. Combining the intensity of a psychedelic rock band with the jump-cut attitudes of film scores, El Topo conjures soundscapes for the dancer in your head.”

5/3 ferociously smart Americana siren Liz Tormes and her band play the Rockwood, 8 PM.

5/3, 9 PM latin guitar/cuatro god Aquiles Baez at Rose Bar in Williamsburg

5/4, 2 PM at Merkin Concert Hall the La Catrina Quartet play latin classical composers: Works by Emmanuel Arias y Luna, Joseph Haydn, Astor Piazzolla, Javier Alvarez, Felix Mendelssohn and Jose Pablo Moncayo, tix dirt cheap, $15.

5/4 jazz vibraphonist Mark Sherman at 55 Bar with Jim Ridl on piano, Tom Dicarlo on bass, Tim Horner on drums

5/5 at the Bell House the “Guactacular” guacamole contest/pigout/concert including free Tecate and Dos Equis 7-8 PM and a set by accordionist Alex Meixner, $12 adv tix available at the venue. Raffle, guacamole judging, general drunkenness and who knows what else.

5/5 celebrate Cinco de Mayo at Littlefield with NYC banda supergroup Banda Sinaloense de Los Muertos feat. Oscar Noriega & Chris Speed – clarinets; Jakob Garchick – Sousaphone; Jim Black & Vinnie Sperrazza – percussion; Patrick Farrell & Rachel Drehman ; Alto horn; Curtis Hasselbring & Brian Drye – trombones and many guest singers including Chicha Libre’s Olivier Conan, Jean Carla Rodea, Rana Santacruz and many more tba,  followed by the self-explanatory Cumbiagra. time TBA, tix cheap, only $10.

5/5 outlaw country throwback Hayes Carll followed by Dierks Bentley with his band the Travelin McCourys at Highline Ballroom, 8 PM, adv tix $25 highly rec.

5/5-6, 8 PM at Avery Fisher Hall Valery Giergiev conducts the NY Phil doing Stravinsky’s Petroushka, $31 tix avail.

5/5 indie/Americana legends the Silos at Lakeside 9:30ish.

5/5 retro country hellraisers the Jack Grace Band plays the cd release show for their new one, their best-ever Drinking Songs for Lovers at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

5/6, 6 PM the Joel Forrester Trio (Microscopic Septet pianist and Fresh Air theme composer) at Shrine, free

5/6 Pierre de Gaillande of the Snow’s amazing English-language Georges Brassens cover band Bad Reputation at Barbes 8 PM followed by the self-explanatory Cumbiagra at 10

5/6, 8 PM Monica Huggett, violin and Audrey Axinn, fortepiano play mostly early Romantics: Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert and Weber at the Abigail Adams Smith Museum Auditorium, 417 East 61st St., $25.

5/6 Ilamawana play hypnotic, dubwise, horn-driven roots reggae at Sullivan Hall 10 PM

5/6 Norden Bombsight – the missing link between Joy Division and Pink Floyd – at Matchless.

5/6 oldtimey chanteuse Miss Tess & the Bon Ton Parade at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

5/7 a rare Flugente trio show at Banjo Jim’s 8 PM – fearlessly intense frontman/lyricist Jerry Adler, guitar god Jeremiah Lockwood and Yuval Lion of Pink Noise on drums.

5/7, 9 PM for fans of the greatest rock band ever, “a tribute to the Church in celebration of Marty Willson-Piper’s birthday” at Luna Lounge-meister Rob Sacher’s latest venture, Satellite Lounge, 143 Havemeyer St., (S. 1st.& S. 2nd.), south Williamsburg, J/M to Marcy Ave. No idea if anybody is playing, but you know the songs are bound to be good.

5/7 latin accordionist Alex Meixner at Barbes 8 PM followed by the Jack Grace Band at 10

5/7, 8:30 PM former McCoy Tyner and Earth Wind & Fire tenor player Azar Lawrence’s Sextet plays a Tribute to Ali’s Alley: Azar Lawrence, tenor/soprano sax; Eddie Henderson, trumpet; Gerald Hayes, alto sax; Benito Gonzalez, piano; Ronnie Burrage, drums. At Tribeca Performing Arts Center at the BMCC, 199 Chambers St., tix $25/$15 stud/srs. Lawrence’s new album Mystic Journey was Rashied Ali’s final session.

5/7 haunting, genre-defying Syrian chanteuse Gaida and her great levantine band at BAM Cafe 9 PM

5/7 Americana guitarmeister Chris Erikson & the Wayward Puritans at Lakeside 9:30ish.

5/7 deliriously fun, danceable latin soul bugalu revivalists Spanglish Fly at Camaradas el Barrio, 2241 1st Ave at 116th St., 10 PM, $5

5/7 ominously funny bluespunk band the Five Points Band at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

5/7 golden age hip-hop legends EPMD at B.B. King’s, 11 PM – Erick and Parrish still making dollars after all these years.

5/8 stark, intense, fun violin-and-guitar-driven artsy indie band Bern & the Brights at Spike Hill, 8 PM.

5/8, 8 PM popular indie powerpop rockers Palomar, then the chick who used to drum for the Vivian Girls and then the Primitives (who were sort of the female Teenage Fanclub) in what might be their final US show ever, at the Bell House, adv tix $22.50 highly recommended

5/8 composer/trombonist Samuel Blaser – whose most recent album ranked high on our best-of list for 2009 – leads his Quartet at the Cornelia St. Cafe 8 PM with Todd Neufeld (guitar), Eivind Opsvik (bass), Billy Mintz (drums); they’ll also be at Zebulon on 5/9 at 9.

5/8, 8:30 PM Middle Eastern/groove/indescribable multistylistic world music orchestra Tribecastan invades Joe’s Pub feat. special guests trombonist Steve Turre, organist Al Kooper, Samantha Parton of the Be Good Tanyas, violinist Charlie Burnham, master percussionist Todd Isler.

5/8 la Sovietika get the crowd going tiki taka style at Shrine 9 PM followed eventually by the dub roots reggae of Konga I at midnight.

5/8, 10:30 PM haunting, ethereal, atmospheric art-rock ensemble Edison Woods at Joe’s Pub with a special cameo by noir cabaret legend Little Annie.

5/8 LES punk/surf/rockabilly legends Simon & the Bar Sinisters at Lakeside 10:30ish

5/8 at Glasslands Apollo Run, the Cheap Seats, Sonia’s Party and the
Rhodes – doors at 11, band play til 3 AM

5/9, 2VC – new music for 2 cellos and percussion feat. Jessie Reagen Mann and Gene Carr playing works by Derrik Jordan, Will Van Dyke, Jonathan Bell, Amanda Monaco, Ramon Tasat and Oded Lev-Ari “as well as some oldies but goodies” at 6th St. Synagogue, 325 E. Sixth Street (between 1st Ave. and 2nd Ave.) $15 adv tix, $8 stud/under 21.

5/9 at Banjo Jim’s a benefit for Sean Casey Animal Rescue (who knew that the former Red Sox first baseman was such an animal lover?) feat. Drina and the Deep Blue Sea, Liz Tormes, Alice Texas, Lorraine Leckie, Craig Chesler and others, $10 for a good cause.

5/9 10ish at Rose Bar in Williamsburg the reliably excellent, innovative Tim Kuhl Group feat. saxist Jon Irabagon and trombonist Josh Roseman, two guitars and more.

5/11 the Jack Grace Band followed by Luther Wright and the Wrongs at Rodeo Bar 9ish

5/12, 7:30 PM adventurous organist Gail Archer plays from her excellent new Bach cd at Central Synagogue.

5/12 adventurous multistylistic bluegrass band Frankenpine at Lakeside 9:15ish; they’re also here on 6/3 at 9.

5/13 the funnest band on the planet, surfy psychedelic cumbia rockers Chicha Libre on the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Half Moon, boarding at 7 at the FDR and 23rd St., adv tix $25 at the Highline box office highly rec.

5/13 country siren Drina Seay and Americana axemeister Steve Antonakos followed by crooner Sean Kershaw & the Terrible Two at 11th St. Bar, 8 PM. Antonakos plays solo at Banjo Jim’s the next day at 1 AM (actually, morning of 5/15).

5/13, 9/10:30 PM the Alan Ferber Nonet with strings at the Jazz Gallery $15/$10 for second set

5/14, 7:30 PM PM at Symphony Space Joydeep Ghosh plays classical and contemporary Indian compositions on the rare, ancient surshringar, sort of a bass sarod lute, tix $25/$18 stud.

5/14 jangly, anthemic Irish rockers the Saw Doctors at Irving Plaza, 9 PM, adv tix $35.

5/15, 8:30 PM string quartet Crucible (Cornelius Dufallo and Chris Otto, violins; John King, viola; and Alex Waterman, cello) will perform music from King’s new CD “10 Mysteries” at Roulette .

5/15 fiery, funny Americana punk band Spanking Charlene – whose frontwoman is one of the most powerful, compelling singers around – at Lakeside 11 PM

5/16, 4 (four) PM Larry Long plays Bach on the organ at the Church of the Epiphany, 1393 York Ave. and 74th St., $25.

5/16, 9:30 PM at Joe’s Pub Maria Raducanu, “one of the most original singers in Romania’s jazz history, together with her international trio feat. Krister Jonsson on guitar and bassist Chris Dahlgren play fado & Romanian traditional songs, cradle songs, Russian romances, jazz standards, Sephardic songs, tangos, bossa-nova,” $15 adv tix highly rec.

5/16, 11ish at Rose Bar in Williamsburg – Lucky Bastard: “An organic Brooklyn-blend of the Meters, Clapton, Ray Charles, and Steely Dan”

5/18 LES powerpop legend George Usher at Lakeside 9ish.

5/19, 7:30 PM organist Gail Archer plays selections from her upcoming Bach cd at Central Synagogue (123 E 55th St, Train E/V-Lex/55th St)

5/19 frequently funny Nashville gothic with Maynard & the Musties at Lakeside 9:30ish

5/20 an A-list songwriter summit: the soaring Americana-inflected Mary Lee Kortes of Mary Lee’s Corvette, 7 PM at Banjo Jim’s followed by the psychedelic tropicalia-inspired  Jenifer Jackson at 8.

5/20, 7:30 PM at Merkin Concert Hall an art-rock bill with Elizabeth and the Catapult (pianist Elizabeth Ziman and her band) plus sets by 101 Crustaceans’ singer/pianist Ed Pastorini and Gabriel Kahane, $25 adv tix avail.

5/20 clever, tuneful pianist/chanteuse Elaine Romanelli plays the cd release show for her new one The Real Deal at the Bitter End, 8 PM, $5

5/20 Devin the Dude plus the Coughee Bros. doing filthy Houston hip-hop at the Knittting Factory $15 adv tix highly rec.

5/21 Small Beast presents the Big Beast at the Orensanz Center, definitely the best bill of the year so far: noir cabaret legends Little Annie and Paul Wallfisch, haunting atmospheric art-rockers Bee & Flower; NYC’s best live band, the ferocious, gypsy-art-punk  Botanica ; noir atmospheric/gypsy instrumentalists Barbez, World Inferno keyboardist Franz Nicolay, and Brooklyn’s own haunting Balkan vocal choir Black Sea Hotel singing from the balcony!  Adv tix $20 available at the Delancey include open bar 6:30-7:30 PM.

5/21 twangy Steve Earle type stuff with the Mark McKay Band at Lakeside, 7 PM; the Boss Guitars play surf music at 11

5/21 Black Sheep and Naughty by Nature at the Brooklyn Masonic Temple, $28, early arrival advised

5/22 jazz trumpet icon Pam Fleming & Fearless Dreamer at Parlor Jazz, 119 Vanderbilt Ave (btw Myrtle & Park), Ft. Greene, Brooklyn, G or A/C to Clinton-Washington, $30, but includes open wine bar and snacks!

5/22, 8 PM, free, the American Composers Orchestra plays up-and-coming composers battling for a $15K commission at Miller Theatre, 116th and Broadway. Featured works by Matti Kovler, Hannah Lash, Eric Lindsay, Tamar Muskal, Ricardo Romaneiro, Christopher Stark, and Xi Wang. A working rehearsal on 5/21 at 10 AM is also free and open to the public.

5/22, 8 PM Sympho’s Tweetheart concert debuts at the Church for All Nations, 417 W 57th St. feat Singer-songwriter Jonathan Coulton, Haitian pop star Emeline Michel plus the SymphoNYC chamber orchestra. “The concert spans five centuries and multiple cultures, from commissioned and spontaneously created acoustic and electronic pieces to music by, among others, John Adams, Prokofiev, Bjork, Prince, Verdi, and Monteverdi.”

5/22 Hurricane Bells – Steve Schiltz of Longwave and Scout’s ethereal, jangly new band – at the Mercury 8 PM.

5/22 Senegalese roots reggae with the popular Meta & the Cornerstones 10PMish at Rose Bar in Williamsburg

5/22 rockabilly guitar goddess Rosie Flores at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

5/22 Tammy Faye Starlite’s hilarious Stones cover group the Mike Hunt Band at Lakeside 11 PM

5/23, 3 PM the Greenwich Village Orchestra plays a program they absolutely slay with: Brahms – Hungarian Dance No. 1; Brahms – Double Concerto; Rimsky-Korsakov – Scheherazade at Washington Irving HS Auditorium, cheap, just a $20 donation.

5/23 intoxicatingly hypnotic and danceable cumbia party stars Very Be Careful at the Highline adv tix highly rec.

5/23 rising Middle Eastern chanteuse Salma Habib with haunting, slinky golden-age Egyptian/Lebanese film music revivalists Zikrayat at Joe’s Pub, 9:30 PM.

5/23 Bjorkestra frontwoman Becca Stevens’ Band at 10ish followed at around 11 by up-and-coming trumpeter/jazz chanteuse Natalie John and her combo at Rose Bar in Williamsburg.

5/25 legendary LES psychedelic punks Band of Outsiders at Lakeside 9 PM.

5/25 virtuoso, fun hokum blues and oldtimey hillbilly songs with the Second Fiddles at Rodeo Bar 10:30 PM

5/26 haunting acoustic Nashville gothic band Bobtown at 68 Jay St Bar, 8 PM.

5/26 whoever’s left in the Yardbirds at B.B. King’s

5/27-28 Reverend Horton Heat at Highline Ballroom

5/27, 6:30 PM Face the Music (NYC schools supergroup of up-and-coming new music talent) play Nico Muhly’s Honest Music and How About Now followed at 7:30 PM by SIGNAL playing new Nico Muhly and Harrison Birtwhistle, at Merkin Concert Hall, $25 adv tix. avail.

5/28 Jello Biafra & the Guantanamo School of Medicine play the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Temptress boarding at 6:30 and leaving from 41st St. and the river, adv tix $30 at the Highline box office highly recommended, this will sell out

5/28 Tom Clark & the High Action Boys play their potently tuneful twangy Americana rock at Lakeside 11 PM

5/29, 10 PM indie guitar legend Thalia Zedek plus similarly legendary, recently reunited (and reinvigorated) LES noise/glampunk Chrome Cranks at the Knitting Factory $10 adv tix highly rec.

5/29 cool, funny garage punk with the Subway Surfers at Lakeside 11 PM.

5/30, half past noon-ish barrelhouse pianist Drew Nugent & The Midnight Society plus hot 20s jazz by Michael Arenella & His Dreamland Orchestra at Water Taxi Beach, 2 Borden Ave., Long Island City, $18 adv tix highly rec. if you live in the hood or can get there ahead of schedule.

5/30 funny alt-bluegrass band Cadillac Sky – who do a hillbilly cover of Video Killed the Radio Star – at Union Hall

5/30, 10ish low-register sonic heaven with the Moisturizer-esque Cuban groove of Gato Loco – baritone sax, bass, baritone guitar and tuba – at Rose Bar in Williamsburg

5/31 Alan Gilbert conducts the NY Philharmonic at 8 PM at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, 8 PM, free, get there early, program TBA.

5/31 politically charged latin/rock en Espanol powerhouse Among Criminals, MC5 co-founder Wayne Kramer and the Coup – the most relevant, lyrically state-of-the-art hip-hop group in the world – play the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Temptress, boarding at 6:30 PM at 41st St. and the river, adv tix $30 highly recommended at the Highline box office, this will sell out

The theme of this year’s Bard Music Festival upstate in Annandale is “Berg and His World,” Leon Botstein’s in-depth survey of music by Viennese modernist Alban Berg and his contemporaries, continuing for seven weeks starting in June. Too many concerts to list here: the entire schedule is here.

6/2 Toots & the Maytals at B.B. King’s – their new album Flip & Twist is available in special package with a “a joint-shaped USB drive loaded with Flip & Twist, a Toots Stash Box, the physical CD of the album, and a variety of other gifts.” Other gifts, hmmm…..

6/2, 9 PM soulful, pensive, artsy, distantly Wilco-ish Americana rockers the Smooth Maria at LIC Bar

6/2 catchy propulsive female-fronted powerpop with the Mikal Evans Band at Spike Hill, 10 PM.

6/3, 7 PM Inna Faliks plays Chopin, Schoenberg, Schumann, Beethoven and Pasternak at the Yamaha Piano Salon, $15.

6/3 a killer doublebill at Barbes starting at 8 with the rustic, gypsy-flavored, darkly atmospheric Kotorino followed by NYC’s best blues band, Bliss Blood’s Delta Dreambox at 10.

6/3, 8 PM a killer triplebill at Banjo Jim’s: Sabrina Chap, who “sounds exactly like a drunken fistfight between Scott Joplin and Phyllis Diller,” followed by sharply literate, often hilarious Americana charmer Robin Aigner at 9 and then the ferociously smart, energetically punkish, intensely charismatic banjo rocker Curtis Eller at 10.

6/3 sprawling, upbeat, imaginative bluegrass innovators Frankenpine at Lakeside 9 PM

6/3 fearless garage rocker Anna Anabolic and her band the Anabolics at Spike Hill, 9 PM.

6/3 imaginatively crosspollinating Brazilian/country/New Orleans band Nation Beat at Rodeo Bar, 10:30 PM.

6/4, 9 PM an A-list Middle Eastern supergroup – Souren Baronian – G-clarinet, saxophone, kaval, duduk, riq with Haig Manoukian – oud, Lee Baronian – darbukkeh, Mal Stein – drums, percussion, Sprocket Royer – double bass at Alwan for the Arts.

6/4, 10 PM the ever-increasingly more ghostly, more psychedelic oldschool latin ballad rockers las Rubias del Norte – whose new album is one of the year’s best – at Barbes

6/4 high-energy ska-flavoed Argentinian rock legends Los Autenticos Decadentes at B.B.King’s 11 PM

6/4 Wreckless Eric and Amy Rigby plus McGinty & White at Bowery Electric.

6/5, 7 PM dark garage songwriter Lorraine Leckie and Her Demons at Banjo Jim’s

6/5-9 The New York Art Ensemble moves its Ninth Annual Tribeca New Music Festival, a 4-concert series of cutting-edge new music to Merkin Concert Hall, shows each night at 8 PM. Performers include the New York Art Ensemble Monsters (pianists Geoffrey Burleson and Kathleen Supové, and violinist Mary Rowell), the JACK Quartet, Ted Hearne Band, Pamela Z and more, adv tix $20 per concert at the box ofc highly recommended.

6/8 first-class Irish folk instrumental/dance quartet New Time Ensemble (flute, guitar, fiddle and cello) play the Irish seisun at Dempsey’s, 8 PM; 6/10 they’re at the SoHo Gallery for Digital Art, 138 Sullivan St. at 8 PM, $15

6/8-13 Evelyn Evelyn AKA Amanda Palmer of the Dresden Dolls and Jason Webley do their conjoined-twin ukelele comedy/rock thing at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, time/price TBA

6/8 the Museum Mile Festival just gets shorter and shorter.This year the following museums are open for free 6-9 PM with Fifth Ave. turned into a pedestrian mall: El Museo del Barrio; The Museum of the City of New York; The Jewish Museum; Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, Smithsonian Institution; National Academy Museum & School of Fine Arts; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; Neue Galerie New York; Goethe-Institut New York/German Cultural Center; and The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

6/9 the Easy Star All-Stars – the crazy reggae crew responsible for Radiodread, Dub Side of the Moon and the reggae version of Sgt. Pepper – at Hiro Ballroom, adv tix. available at the Highline.

6/11 the Budos Band play the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Temptress boarding at 6:30 and leaving from 41st St. and the river, adv tix $25 at the Highline box office highly recommended

6/12-13 the Undead Jazzfest at le Poisson Rouge, Kenny’s Castaways and Sullivan Hall: an unbelievable lineup of A-list, adventurous jazz groups for an unbeatable price. The two-day pass for $30 – roughly a third of what you’d spend at the Blue Note for a single act – is your best bet. Acts include the Alan Ferber Nonet, Ben Perowsky’s Moodswing Orchestra, Burnt Sugar The Arkestra Chamber, John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble, Matthew Shipp, Roswell Rudd & Lafayette Harris and many more, the complete list is here.

6/13 Franco-Algerian punk/rai-rock legend Rachid Taha at Highline Ballroom.

6/15, 7 PM a craftbrewing competition at Union Hall, free, open to the public 21+ with tasting of home and craft brews from top microbreweries. First prize: your recipe will be made into a kit marketed by Brooklyn Brew Shop and you get a day observing at Sixpoint Brewery; second prize is a $50 gift certificate to the shop. “Union Hall will then host two additional homebrewing competitions in August and October. June, August and October winners will compete in a holiday competition in December, which will determine who will get to brew their own winning recipe on Sixpoint’s pilot brewing system alongside the brewers. The resulting keg will then be transferred to Union Hall, where it will be served to all your friends and family during a private party.” Limited space remains for homebrewers who wish to enter their bootleg product, first come first served: email your name, your “brewer” name, and name of your beer. Brewers must provide at least 48 ounces of homebrew (4 bottles), more if you want the public to weigh in on how good/awful it is.

6/16 British vintage funk/soul revivalists the Heavy with Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings at Bowery Ballroom

6/18, 8 PM the Jazz Gallery Allstars: Claudia Acuña, Ambrose Akinmusire, Lage Lund, Gerald Clayton, Kendrick Scott, Ben Williams, Pedro Martinez, Miguel Zenón at Symphony Space $15.

6/19 the NY Brewfest goes 3:30 until 8 PM on Governors Island, tix $55 all you can drink micros and gourmet beer (300+ vendors!) plus free music plus water taxi to/from the island , tix available at Heartland Brewery locations

6/26 desert blues titans  Tinariwen at Central Park Summerstage

6/27 Wintersleep at Bowery Ballroom – happy and jangly with your stereotypical off-key indie vocals, but a real lyrical menace and imaginative guitar/keyboard textures. If you wish the Decemberists could write melodies, you’ll love Wintersleep.

7/1 the Cannabis Cup Band play “a special tribute to the classic revolutionary vinyl lp reggae anthems of the ‘60’s & ’70’s” on the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Temptress boarding at 6:30 and leaving from 41st St. and the river, first hundred tix are $20, after that adv tix $25, highly rec. at the Highline box office

7/8 Phosphorescent – sort of the teens version of gently rootsy early Wilco – plays Pier 54 at 14th St., gates at 6 for the diehards or fans of early 70s style El Lay dad-pop band Dawes.

7/14 reggae crooner Barrington Levy at BB King’s

8/12 the creepy, artsy, extraordinarily popular Deerhunter at Pier 54 at 14th St., gates at 6, show starts at 7 with the richkid eunuch rock of Real Estate which you will have to stand through in order to see the headliners.

8/24 classic-style roots reggae with Groundation on the Rocks Off Concert Cruise aboard the Jewel, boarding at 7 at the FDR and 23rd St., adv tix $30 at the Highline box office highly rec.