Today’s “Fab 5”/ Selected NYCity Events – SUNDAY, MAY 04, 2014.

Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival (through May 8)
“This multi-venue event (starting May 4) pays homage to legendary Harlem venues past and present such as Minton’s, Monroe’s Uptown House, Small’s Paradise and the Apollo Theater.

There’ll be jam sessions hosted by Christian Sands and Antonio Hart, discussions of the legacies of Charlie Parker and James Baldwin, big bands led by Cecil Bridgewater, Bobby Sanabria and Arturo O’Farrill, and a free (yes, free) concert by the Vijay Iyer Trio at Aaron Davis Hall (May 9). The Harlem Stage Gatehouse also promises two intriguing nights with pianists Aruán Ortiz and Manuel Valera (May 7) and trumpeter Christian aTunde Adjuah (May 8).” (Village Voice)

Begins on Sunday with a Jazz Vespers service featuring the singer Brianna Thomas at Abyssinian Baptist Church, 132 Odell Clark Place, at West 138th St.
A full schedule is at harlemjazzshrines.com.
Sunday at 4 p.m., Abyssinian Baptist Church,  $20.
Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Harlem Stage Gatehouse, 150 Convent Avenue, at 135th Street, Hamilton Heights; $10 in advance

Fairview Baptist Church Brass Band
“A cornerstone of the brass band revival in New Orleans, formed in 1970 and originally organized by the banjoist Danny Barker, the Fairview Baptist Church Brass Band now counts among its members the trumpeter Kevin Louis, the trombonist David Harris and the tuba player Jeffrey Hills. For this special engagement, the band also welcomes one of its many distinguished alumni, the drummer Shannon Powell.“(Chinen-NYT)
Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, 60th St. and Broadway,
212-258-9595, jalc.org
At 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. / $30 to $45 cover, with a $10 minimum

Limón Dance Company
“Along with two of its founder’s finest and most enduring works—the poetic Chopin piece “Mazurkas” (1958) and the pain-filled “Psalm” (1967)—the company presents “Nocturnes for Ancestors,” a full-company première by Seán Curran, with a live score by the world-music chamber orchestra Manhattan Camerata. Roxane D’Orléans Juste, celebrating her thirtieth year with the troupe, dances a new solo by Dianne McIntyre, “She Who Carries the Sky.” (NewYorker)
Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Ave. at West 19th St.
at 2 p.m. / $10 to $59
212-242-0800 / joyce.org

Omar Sosa Quarteto AfroCubano/Melissa Aldana Quartet
“The magnetic Cuban pianist Omar Sosa explores the roots of his culture as if through a kaleidoscope, working with the new band he calls Quarteto AfroCubano, with the saxophonist and flutist Leandro Saint-Hill, the bassist Childo Tomas and the drummer Ernesto Simpson. Sharing the bill during this engagement is Melissa Aldana, an accomplished young Chilean tenor saxophonist, joined by Glenn Zaleski on piano, Pablo Menares on bass and Jochen Rueckert on drums.” (Chinen-NYT)
Blue Note, 131 West Third Street, Greenwich Village,
212-475-8592, bluenote.net
At 8 and 10:30 p.m. / $35 at tables, $20 at the bar, with a $5 minimum.

Shen Wei Dance Arts (last day)
“For its six-day run at Judson Memorial Church, the company brings back “Map,” a complex work from 2005, set to Steve Reich’s “The Desert Music.” The dance is divided into seven parts, each characterized by a particular style of movement, from bouncing to rotation of the joints to circular patterns. All are then recombined in the dizzying finale. For this “in the round” performance, the set has been re-configured as a hanging mobile made out of balloons of various shapes and sizes. In addition, Shen Wei performs a new solo, demonstrating the remarkable fluidity and meditative focus of his technique.” (NewYorker)
Judson Memorial Church, 55 Washington Square South, at Thompson St.
at 7:30 p.m / $25 to $60
866-811-4111 / shenweidancearts.org

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♦ Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm ticket availability, dates and times, as schedules are subject to change.

♦ NYCity is a big town with many visitors where quality shows draw crowds. Try to reserve seats in advance, even if just on day of performance.

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WHAT’S ON VIEW: Special Exhibitions @ 4 MUSEUMS (Manhattan’s WestSide)

‘A World of Its Own: Photographic Practices in the Studio’ (through Oct. 5)
‘Designing Modern Women 1890-1990’(through Oct. 5)
Museum of Modern Art: 11 W 53rd St. (btw 5th /6th Ave.)
(212) 708-9400 / moma.org.

Designing Modern Women 1890-1990:

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‘Out of Hand: Materializing the Postdigital’ (through June 1)
“If you haven’t quite wrapped your head around the concept of 3-D printing, or haven’t yet had a digital scanner wrap itself around you, now you can do both in this survey of computer-assisted art, architecture and design. The show looks at art made since 2005 and fills nearly three floors, including many irresistible interactive projects. Its ideas may not be entirely new; the Museum of Modern Art’s 2008 exhibition “Design and the Elastic Mind” covered much of the same territory, but there’s something to be said for this more down-to-earth, production-focused exhibition.” (Rosenberg-NYT)
Museum of Arts and Design, Columbus Circle,
212-299-7777,madmuseum.org.

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‘Capa in Color’ (last day)
“Robert Capa first worked with color in 1938, though he only began shooting regularly in color in 1941. This exhibition includes more than 100 contemporary inkjet prints, a fraction of the roughly 4,200 color transparencies held in the center’s Capa Archive. Sections of the exhibition include photographs of postwar Paris with spectators at the Longchamp racetrack, fashion models, people sitting in cafes. Black and white remained the standard for war photography as well as art during this time, however, and color during Capa’s period was still for commerce, amateurs, leisure — and stories featuring women.”
(Martha Schwendener-NYT)

‘What Is a Photograph?’ (last day)
“This exhibition is supposed to address a good question: What is photography in today’s digital age with its mind-boggling new smorgasbord of ways to create and disseminate machine-made images? It brings together works from the past four decades by 21 artists who have used photography to ponder the nature of photography itself. But it’s a strangely blinkered and backward-looking show. Most of what is on view has more to do with photography’s analog past than with its cybernetic future.” (Ken Johnson-NYT)
International Center of Photography, 1133 Avenue of the Americas, at 43rd St.
212-857-0000, icp.org
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The Art of the Brick by Nathan Sawaya (ongoing)
This exhibition by artist Nathan Sawaya is a critically acclaimed collection of intriguing and inspiring works of art made exclusively from one of the most recognizable toys in the world — LEGO® bricks. The Discovery Times Square exhibit is the world’s biggest and most elaborate display of LEGO® art ever and features brand-new, never-before-seen pieces by Sawaya. This show was named ‘One of CNN’s Ten Global Must-See Exhibitions.’
Discovery Times Square, 226 West 44th St. (btw 7th/8th ave)
866.987.9692 / http://www.discoverytsx.com

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For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in the right Sidebar: “Selected Events + Special Exhibitions : … …” dated (05/02) and (04/30).