{"id":966837,"date":"2026-07-29T13:10:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T13:10:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/966837\/"},"modified":"2026-07-29T13:10:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T13:10:13","slug":"inside-the-pocket-where-generations-of-jazz-musicians-share-the-stage-in-new-york-city","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/966837\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside The Pocket: where generations of jazz musicians share the stage in New York City"},"content":{"rendered":"

When 14-year-old Xander Rosenblum slipped through The Pocket\u2019s dimly lit dining room, squeezing between linen-covered tables on his way to the stage, he looked slightly out of place among the adults gathered for a night of jazz.<\/p>\n

But once the teenage drummer started playing, he hit every beat, effortlessly providing the rhythm for the band. He was in a rhythm himself, the kind of \u201cflow state\u201d musicians often refer to as \u201cbeing in the pocket.\u201d<\/p>\n

The performance just so happened to take place inside The Pocket Jazz Club on 46th Street in Manhattan. The club opened in May and is owned by Martin Porter and Grant Gardner, who had been working on the project since 2020.<\/p>\n

The Fat Cats were the opening act that night for Arturo O\u2019Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, which was entering the eighth week of its residency at The Pocket. O\u2019Farrill designed his set as a journey exploring the countries and cultures that inspire his music.<\/p>\n

From the Afro-Andean beats of Peru to the complex sounds of Brazilian jazz fusion, O\u2019Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra\u2019s set was curated to send a message.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>The Pocket Jazz Club brings generations of jazz players to the stage.Photo by Jack Bulik<\/p>\n

\u201cJazz is not just an American adventure,\u201d O\u2019Farrill said.<\/p>\n

\u201cJazz is an inheritance from a total disaster called the slave trade, but that took place in all of the indigenous lands in Latin America,\u201d he continued. \u201cWherever the slaves were brought, they brought that magic, and it crashed into the music of the colonizers.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said he intentionally chose music from living composers rather than relying on dead composers from a previous era.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re not careful, you can embalm this music,\u201d O\u2019Farrill said. \u201cI make sure I play the music of living composers, including my own music \u2014 I mean, I don\u2019t think I\u2019m that bad.\u201d<\/p>\n

O\u2019Farrill told amNewYork that clubs can make quick money by focusing on familiar classics rather than modern compositions. But he trusts the owners of The Pocket to run their club the right way.<\/p>\n

Porter and Gardner met at the Jazz Standard. When the club closed its doors during the COVID-19 pandemic, the two men were flooded with questions about what its future would look like.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>The Pocket Jazz Club brings generations of jazz players to the stage.Photo by Jack Bulik<\/p>\n

\u201cWe didn\u2019t want that idea to die, of an amazing place with the best music in the city and food that you\u2019d be proud to serve,\u201d Porter said.<\/p>\n

Porter said The Pocket serves as a \u201cspiritual successor\u201d to the Jazz Standard.\n<\/p>\n

The two owners divide the club\u2019s day-to-day operations. Porter oversees the music, while Gardner manages the food and beverages.\n<\/p>\n

Gardner drew on experience in Michelin-starred kitchens to build a menu featuring ribeye, smoked salmon and a New Orleans muffuletta.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThe people who opened The Pocket are committed to the art form,\u201d O\u2019Farrill said. \u201cThey ran the Jazz Standard, which was my favorite club of all time, because they had established musicians while also giving a platform to younger musicians.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>The Pocket Jazz Club brings generations of jazz players to the stage.Photo by Jack Bulik<\/p>\n

That commitment to placing established musicians alongside younger performers was visible throughout the night.<\/p>\n

After the final set, O\u2019Farrill came down from the stage to congratulate Rosenblum. O\u2019Farrill was complimentary, but the praise seemed to bounce right off the young drummer.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Farrill told amNewYork that Rosenblum\u2019s demeanor was comparable to that of a young Tony Williams, who is regarded as one of jazz\u2019s great drummers.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cHe seems to have the right vibe because you tell him he\u2019s going to be one of the greats and it just flies right past him,\u201d O\u2019Farrill said. \u201cI really believe if you spoke to Tony Williams when he was young, he\u2019d have the same vibe.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information, visit thepocketnyc.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When 14-year-old Xander Rosenblum slipped through The Pocket\u2019s dimly lit dining room, squeezing between linen-covered tables on his…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":966838,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5122],"tags":[5229,10607,241602,975,388385,405,403,5226,5225,5228,5227,388386,388387,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":["post-966837","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york","tag-america","tag-jazz","tag-jazz-music","tag-music","tag-music-club","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-newyork","tag-newyorkcity","tag-ny","tag-nyc","tag-the-pocket","tag-the-pocket-jazz-club","tag-united-states","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-unitedstates","tag-unitedstatesofamerica","tag-us","tag-usa"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/117003436667958998","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/966837","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=966837"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/966837\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/966838"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=966837"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=966837"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=966837"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}