GO US:For musicians, artists, performers or plain old culture punters, New York will always be the centre of the universe, writes LAURENCE MACKIN
NEW YORK IS said to have been given its nickname by jazz musicians. Back in the 1920s the most lucrative regular gigs for musicians were to be found in the emerging unofficial capital of the US, and many players would hope and pray for a regular session in one the city’s many clubs or shows, their own little bite from the Big Apple.
The city has lost none of its musical edge, and music bars, clubs and venues seem to stud every street corner in some of the livelier districts. The Blue Note might be the first words on everyone’s lips when they talk about New York jazz, and Birdland might be immortalised in song, but for my money the best jazz club in the city remains the Village Vanguard. For more than seven decades this joint has been packing them into an elegant basement that has attracted all the leading jazz lights to perform and record.
Perhaps it’s the triangular building that protects the sound; perhaps it’s the fact that it has outlasted nearly every club in the city; or maybe it’s because the founder, Max Gordon, left the club to his wife, Lorraine, who can be found there almost every night, making sure that no one misses a beat. Whatever the secret, this is the best jazz gig in town, so take a trip down the steps and soak up some of that special Vanguard atmosphere.
Around the corner, and of a less traditional hue, is Fat Cat, a sprawling subterranean bar, with pool, foosball tables, air hockey, beat-up couches, wrecked chairs, cheap beer and some of the best music in the city. A typical evening will see three bands take to the stage, with jam sessions kicking off at 12.30am and rumbling on until the small hours.
The strip around Ludlow Street is always a safe bet for a night out, and one of the best music bars on it is the Cake Shop. Part patisserie, part music club, part vinyl treasure trove, it has a wide selection of scrumptious goodies for the ear and belly.
Just next door is the Living Room, where the seats are comfy and the focus is on the performers. It tends to attract a more singer-songwriter crowd than the slightly more raucous Cake Shop, but there is something quintessentially Lower East Side about solo players passing the hat around after a song session to get a few bucks for their next beer.
New York is, of course, much more than just Manhattan, and, across the river, Brooklyn is threatening to overshadow its island neighbour. The catalyst for several of my trips to New York has been to play with music ensemble 3epkano at the glorious Brooklyn Academy of Music. This is the oldest performing-arts institution in the US and is right in the heart of the hippest part of town.
As Manhattan loses a little of its local flavour (thanks in no small part to preposterous rents) Brooklyn is becoming the place for the artistic set. The ethos of Greenwich Village and the Lower East Side has crossed the Williamsburg Bridge, and the Bam, as it’s affectionately known, has always been there to welcome it. The Bam hosts more than 200 performances a year, and its four-screen cinema must be one of the most beautiful theatres in the city, while its opera house has something of cultural sanctity about it.
When it comes to galleries, most of New York’s pretty picture houses are located in a kind of golden triangle on the Upper East and West Sides. The Solomon R Guggenheim Museum is a brilliant kicking-off point; its swirling architecture still looks every bit as avant garde and ageless as when it was unveiled, in 1959. On my last visit the main space, swirling upwards from the ground floor on pirouetting ramps that are only properly appreciated when you are on your way back down, was given over to an excellent collection of work by the sculptor Louise Bourgeois.
The room is so impressive that it would overshadow most works on display, but not Bourgeois’s. She still lives in New York but has not left her apartment in years, because of agoraphobia. She is still one of the most innovative artists alive, however, and she invites artists to weekly salons at her home, to discuss and debate.
Downtown a little, and hugging the park, is the Metropolitan Museum of Art, or the Met, regarded as the finest art museum in the US. Like many museums of this nature, it has a staggeringly large collection; be sure to check out its excellent lecture programme to get an inside track on some of what’s on offer. The Cantor Roof Garden, which is open in the summer and autumn, has pricy drinks that you won’t even notice, thanks to the stunning views of the city.
Just south of Central Park is the Museum of Modern Art, or Moma to its friends. The recently renovated space is a stunning airy gallery with one of the best modern-art collections in the world. Don’t miss the excellent quirky design collection, but remember that if you have set your heart on seeing a particular piece, check in advance to make sure it is on display – Moma regularly sends some of its best pieces on tour.
Swinging around the park and heading back up town through the affluent West Side brings you to the American Museum of Natural History. Its enormous collection is housed in a beautiful building filled with raucous children who love the exhibitions, from the life-size blue-whale model and skeletal dinosaurs to the nature-themed Imax films and roaring mammals. The highlight could well be its new Rose Centre for Earth and Space, with its stellar Hayden planetarium. The shows are short but stunning; Cosmic Collision is an unmissable, thrilling treat.
Sticking to the West Side, there is another place I’ve been lucky enough to call home for a night: Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. It regards itself as the world’s leading performing-arts centre. Occupying six and a half hectares (16 acres) of New York real estate, it is home to the Lincoln Center chamber-music, film and jazz societies, the Metropolitan Opera, the Juilliard School, the New York City Ballet, Opera and Philharmonic, and the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, among many others. And it allows Irish music ensembles to take over one of its cinemas for live screenings and music once in a while.
The enormous Lincoln Center is a mixture of culture and the arts that it is hard to imagine in any other city. Its packed programmes, terrific facilities and sheer scale perfectly illustrate why New York, for musicians, artists, performers or plain old culture punters, will forever be the Big Apple.
Laurence Mackin travelled to New York as a guest of Aer Lingus
Go there
Aer Lingus (www.aerlingus. com) flies to Kennedy Airport, in New York, from Dublin and Shannon. Continental Airlines (www.continental.com) flies to Newark Airport, in New Jersey, from Dublin, Shannon and Belfast. Delta Air Lines (www.delta.com/ie) flies from Dublin to Kennedy Airport.
Where to stay, eat and go for New York cultural treats
Where to stay
Hotel Beacon. 2130 Broadway at 75th Street, 00-1-212-7871100, www.beaconhotel.com. A haven of comfort amid the bustling excitement of New York City. Located on the historic Upper West Side, amid tree-lined streets and landmark buildings. All rooms have a small kitchenette, making the hotel ideal for families.
The Fitzpatrick Hotel Group, 687 Lexington Avenue, 00-1-212-7842570, www.fitzpatrickhotels.com. Deluxe accommodation in the heart of midtown Manhattan, with a choice of the Fitzpatrick Grand Central and newly redesigned Fitzpatrick Manhattan.
The Wellington Hotel. 871 Seventh Avenue at 55th Street, 00-1-212-2473900, www.wellingtonhotel.com. Within easy walking distance of Broadway theatres and many fine restaurants, the Wellington stands out among Midtown Manhattan hotels.
Where to eat
Dean and Deluca @ The Rockefeller. 45 Rockefeller Plaza, 00-1-212-6641363 , www.deandeluca.com.
Over the past 10 years Dean DeLuca has grown across New York. Its comfortable and stylish cafes are located in several exclusive neighbourhoods.
Fitzers. 687 Lexington Avenue, 00-1-212-7842570, www.fitzpatrickhotels.com. A totally remodelled restaurant within the Irish-owned Fitzpatricks Hotel on Lexington, down a block from Bloomingdales. The Fitz restaurant combines traditional Irish, continental and new American cuisine. A favourite on the menu is the Irish breakfast, served from 7am to 10.30pm daily.
Carnegie Deli Restaurant. 854 Seventh Avenue at 55th Street, 00-1-800-3345606, www.carnegiedeli.com.
Dubbed the most famous deli in the United States by USA Today, this Midtown hangout opened in 1939 and has been slinging pastrami, corned beef, potato pancakes, smoked salmon, chopped chicken liver and matzo ball soup ever since.
Where to go
Brooklyn Academy of Music. 651 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, 00-1-718-6364100, www.bam.org.
Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1000 Fifth Avenue, 00-1-212-5357710, www.metmuseum.org.
Museum of Modern Art. 11 West 53rd Street, 00-1-212-7089400, www.moma.org.
Solomon R Guggenheim Museum. 1071 Fifth Avenue, 00-1-212-4233500, www.guggenheim.org.
American Museum of Natural History. 79th Street and Central ParkWest, 00-1-212-769-5100, www.amnh.org.
Cake Shop. 152 Ludlow Street, 00-1-212-2530036, www.cake-shop.com.
Living Room. 154 Ludlow Street, 00-1-212-5337237, www.livingroomny.com.
Village Vanguard. 178 Seventh Avenue South, 00-1-212-2554037, www.villagevanguard.com.
Fat Cat Billiards. 75 Christopher Street at Seventh Avenue, 00-1-212-6756056, www.fatcatjazz.com.