The Sounds of the Village: Recent Music Programs at Village Preservation
For decades, our neighborhoods have been hotbeds of musical innovation, creation, and collaboration. From jazz to folk to punk, countless musical styles and movements have been deeply touched by the people and venues in Greenwich Village, the East Village, and Noho.
At Village Preservation, we consistently produce programs that highlight our neighborhood’s significance within music, past and present. Today, we will take a look at a few of our recent program recordings that each provide a fascinating look into the significance of music and performance.
The History of Jazz in Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo
April 27, 2026
For decades, Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo have been epicenters of the jazz world, home to intimate clubs, daring experimentation, and trailblazing collaborations.
In this program, Keller Coker, Dean of the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, and Juan Rivero, Special Projects Director at Village Preservation, highlight VP’s newest, one-of-a-kind map that traces Jazz’s remarkable history through our streets, featuring the homes of legendary musicians and the sites of groundbreaking performances and recording sessions. Watch the program recording.
Positively Fourth and Mercer: The Inside Story of New York’s Iconic Music Club, The Bottom Line
December 16, 2025
In this program, award-winning music journalist Billy Altman was in conversation with Village Preservation’s Executive Director Andrew Berman to discuss Altman’s new book, Positively Fourth and Mercer: The Inside Story of New York’s Iconic Music Club, The Bottom Line.
In 1974, when young music promoters Allan Pepper and Stanley Snadowsky opened their nightclub, the Bottom Line, in an industrial area of Greenwich Village, no one could have foreseen either its long-term success or its impact on the musical and cultural landscape of New York City.
Over the next thirty years, while trends and tastes came and went, the Bottom Line throughout its fabled history remained true to its co-founders’ profoundly simple vision: that if you presented entertainers in an intimate setting where the focus would always be on what transpired onstage, both artists and audiences would treasure the experience.
The story of the Bottom Line, highlighted in this talk, is the tale of childhood friends who turned their shared dream into a reality – and, through determination, hard work, and, most of all, a belief in each other, made entertainment history and memories to last a lifetime. Watch the program recording.
Irving Berlin: From Penniless Immigrant to America’s Songwriter
December 2, 2025
In this talk, author and scholar Paul Kaplan takes viewers on a journey to learn about the most prolific of America’s songwriters, Irving Berlin. From his dramatic move, fleeing the pogroms against Jews in imperial Russia, to his arrival in the bustling immigrant communities of the Lower East Side, this talk looks at Berlin’s beginnings as a street performer and his rise as a Tin Pan Alley composer.
Kaplan explores the business of music song sheets and why they were once a very popular purchase, and follows Berlin’s ascendancy to Broadway and eventually Hollywood. This talk uses many fascinating original recordings and film clips, as well as rarely seen historic photos. Enjoy this program recording with acclaimed recording artist, performer, producer, author, and professor Richard Barone, the subject of Village Preservation’s most recent oral history. His lifetime of work has been profoundly influenced by, intertwined with, and a celebration of the musical history of Greenwich Village. Watch the program recording.
The Sounds of the Village: A Conversation with Richard Barone
October 28, 2025
In this program recording, acclaimed recording artist, performer, producer, author, and professor Richard Barone is interviewed by VP Executive Director, Andrew Berman. Barone is the subject of one of Village Preservation’s most recent oral histories. His lifetime of work has been profoundly influenced by, intertwined with, and a celebration of the musical history of Greenwich Village.
In this conversation, Barone shares his memories of his early encounters with one of his lifelong mentors, Tiny Tim, recounts stories of folk music history passed down from Tiny Tim, and explores the social and economic contours of Greenwich Village’s various music scenes in the 1960s and 1970s. Barone also details his own experiences as a working musician and his reflections on changes in the neighborhood’s cultural character and built landscape. Watch the program recording.
Vinyl NYC
October 14, 2025
In this lecture, acclaimed photographers James and Karla Murray talk about their newest book, exploring New York’s vibrant vinyl scene in a tribute to 33 1/3 of the city’s favorite record shops.
Spanning all 5 boroughs, the shops highlighted in this talk have become essential to the cultural fabric of the city, bringing together communities through a shared passion for music.
Featuring stunning new photographs by James and Karla Murray, it captures the vibrant exteriors, intimate interiors, and countless musical treasures that make these shops special. Watch the program recording.
You can view all of Village Preservation’s past program recordings HERE. Register for upcoming programs HERE.