New York City Jazz Performance Preview: Fall 2026

New York season includes the first fall programs from two recently opened midtown clubs—The Pocket and Jazzcultural and higher-profile shows for fine emerging performers such as singer Ekep Nkwelle and pianist/arranger Joe Block.

The preeminent departure is that of Wynton Marsalis who, after 30 years in the job, will lead his last season as the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Consequently, 2026-27 sees The House That Jazz Built programming an even bigger dose of Marsalisiana than usual, especially compositionally.

The season as a whole is studded with tributes to icons we lost this year, notably Sonny Rollins (the biggest celebration of whom is at the Cathedral of St. John on September 19) and to those who would have turned 100 in 2026, including still more fêtes for John Coltrane and Miles Davis.

The listing highlights more than 40 shows at roughly 15 leading New York jazz venues, running from mid-September to the end of the year. There's a main pick for each venue, plus one or two secondary choices.

These are personal picks (rather than official All About Jazz endorsements) that stand out as especially intriguing and noteworthy. (See this page for more on the criteria for what we're calling Paul's Picks.)

September and October dates predominate here, since many clubs are yet to announce their entire fall programs. The list will be updated at the end of October, then, primarily using new dates that the venues and artists have uploaded the Jazz Near You listings for New York City. This All About Jazz resource is a must for those professionals to use, and for city jazz fans who want to subscribe to learn about these and hundreds more local performances every year.

September 16-20

Steve Turre All-Star Sextet at Smoke Jazz Club

In the first of two successive weeks with bona fide all-star bands at the plush uptown jazz club. trombonist Steve Turre leads a sextet featuring Jon Faddis, James Carter, and ELEW. The following week (listed below) sees the premiere of a major new work commissioned through Chamber Music America's prestigious New Jazz Works.

Other Smoke pick

September 23-27, Walter Smith III Quintet, including Jason Moran and Bill Stewart.

September 18-19

Red Hook Records 5th Anniversary at Roulette

Two stellar nights at the Brooklyn venue to celebrate a Brooklyn label, featuring Andrew Cyrille, Wadada Leo Smith, Amina Claudine Myers, Jason Moran, and Qasim Naqvi.

Other Roulette picks

October 15: The Art of Solo, with James Brandon Lewis, Nicole Mitchell, and six other artists.
December 4: Matthew Shipp and William Parker in a rare duo concert.

September 22

Luther Allison at Jazzcultural

Best known for accompanying fine singers—Samara Joy, Ekpe Nkwelle, and Kate Kortum—30-year-old pianist Luther Allison steps into the spotlight with this trio date at the newish midtown club.

Other Jazzcultural picks

October 4: E.J. Strickland Quintet including Jaleel Shaw, Mark Shim, and Luis Perdomo.
October 6: Pianist Joe Block and his Open Heart Trio.

September 22-27

A John Coltrane Centennial Celebration at Jazz at Lincoln Center's Dizzy's Club

Curated by pianist Geoffrey Keezer, this Coltrane event stands out among the many this year for varying its focus and lineup every night. Keezer pays tribute to Coltrane's classic quartet, his association with Johnny Hartman, and to the Coltrane albums Impressions and Blue Train.

Other Dizzy's Club picks

October 22, Carl Allen's Messengers of Jazz, with an all-Art Blakey-Alumni band.
November 17: A birthday celebration of the late Sheila Jordan.

September 24

Darcy James Argue's Secret Society at The Pocket

This new 46th Street venue is making its mark, in part, as a home to big ensembles, including residencies by the Mingus Big Band (Mondays) and Arturo O'Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra (Tuesdays). Canadian composer and arranger Darcy James Argue brings his acclaimed 18-piece Secret Society to the club for what, as yet, is its only announced New York date for the 2026-27 season.

Other Pocket picks

September 30, singer Kelly Green with Steve Wilson and Scott Robinson.
October 13, Adam Birnbaum with Peter Washington and Kenny Washington.

October 6

Michael Brecker Quindectet Tribute at Birdland

Saxophonist Donny McCaslin and original member Meg Okura lead a reassembled version of Michael Brecker's Grammy-winning 2003 fifteen-piece band, which includes brass, woodwinds, and a string quartet.

Other Birdland picks

October 14-17, Ron Carter and Bill Frisell, part of Carter's customary October residency.
November 17-21, The Maria Schneider Orchestra, in her own perennial fall residency.

October 6-11

Marcus Gilmore's New Orchestra at the Village Vanguard

Drummer Marcus Gilmore's collaborative project, which for this engagement will feature the stellar talents of Joel Ross, David Virelles, and Ekep Nkwelle.

Another Village Vanguard pick

October 20-25, the Fred Hersch Trio supplemented by saxophonist Tony Malaby and trumpeter Ralph Elessi.

October 16-17

Chucho Valdés' 85th Birthday Celebration at Jazz at Lincoln Center

In JALC's biggest venue, Rose Hall, as part of the organization's last season under Wynton Marsalis, this show presents Cuban piano master Chucho Valdés celebrating a milestone birthday with help from the likes of Joe Lovano, Terence Blanchard, and Marcus Gilmore.

Other JALC (Rose Hall) picks

October 23-24, Wynton Marsalis and The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra explore connections between jazz and the African diaspora through selections from three of Marsalis's original suites.
November 13-14: A tribute to the late Latin jazz giant Eddie Palmieri, including longtime collaborators and other Palmieri alumni.

October 27

Branford Marsalis and Dianne Reeves at Carnegie Hall

A John Coltrane centennial celebration in Carnegie's biggest space, the Stern Auditorium. Branford Marsalis's quartet is joined by singer Dianne Reeves to pay tribute to the collaboration between Coltrane and vocalist Johnny Hartman, as well as other ballads from Coltrane's repertoire.

Another Carnegie Hall pick

December 18, Esperanza Spalding (Zankel Hall).

November 2-3

Elena Pinderhughes at the Blue Note

There's risk here, since it's unclear which musical side of Elena Pinderhughes will appear at the club. But when the too-rarely-seen flautist is in jazz mode—she also sings art-pop songs—her playing can delight with its fluidity and invention.

Other Blue Note pick

November 18-19: The Charles Lloyd Quartet featuring Bill Frisell.

November 6

Kris Davis, Ingrid Laubrock, and Tyshawn Sorey at Miller Theatre

This rare meeting—their sole recording together, Paradoxical Frog was released in 2010 —of pianist Kris Davis, saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock and drummer Tyshawn Sorey promises challenging abstraction along with moments of surprising delicacy. The show should fit well at a Columbia University venue known best for its championing of contemporary classical music, in which the genre-hopping Sorey maintains a parallel career to his jazzier endeavors.

Other Miller Theater pick

October 3, Alfredo Rodriguez Trio.

December 3

Patricia Brennan and Miles Okazaki at The Stone

The programming in the New School's jazz space is curated by full weeks, each one assigned to an adventurous artist. An especially intriguing evening of brilliant vibraphonist Patricia Brennan's week is a duet with Miles Okazaki a guitarist deserving of wider recognition with whom she has a special affinity.

Other Stone picks

October 7, Mark Dresser leads a trio with Ned Rothenberg and Sylvie Courvoisier.
November 19, Carla Kihlstedt with fellow violinist Johnny Gandelsman and four other string players, plus trumpet and woodwinds.

December 4-5

Simon Moullier at The Jazz Gallery

Simon Moullier is among the 2026 recipients of commissions for new work from this longtime, expertly programmed jazz space, as are the other worthy artists listed for the other shows below. Personnel for the project is as yet unclear, but this French vibraphonist has been a compelling musical presence on the bandstands of other leaders in recent years.

Other Jazz Gallery picks

September 18-19, trumpeter Mike Rodriguez in a commission premiere.
December 9-10, bassist Hannah Marks in a commission premiere.

December 15

The Westerlies & Vuyo Sotashe at 92NY

This show features an adaptation of composer-bandleader Maria Schneider's song cycle, "Winter Morning Walks," with lyrics by former U.S. Poet Laureate Ted Kooser. The version by the all-brass The Westerlies features the vocals of South African jazz singer Vuyo Sotashe. It promises an even jazzier result than on the recorded album by Schneider and soprano Dawn Upshaw, which won a classical music Grammy.

Another 92NY pick

October 16-17, a Miles Davis Centennial Celebration, featuring the acoustic Kind of Blue Band (October 16) and Miles Electric Band (October 17).