Let's Misbehave
Let's Misbehave
Friday, February 7, 2025
8:00 PM
Carnegie Hall, Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage
Steven Reineke, Music Director and Conductor
Tony DeSare, Guest Artist (piano/vocals)
Bria Skonberg, Trumpet and Vocals
John Manzari, Tap Dancer and Vocals
Anything goes at Carnegie Hall when The New York Pops performs the songs of Cole Porter. Tony DeSare and his guests Bria Skonberg and John Manzari join the orchestra to give their fresh spin on such hits as “Night and Day,” “I Get A Kick Out of You,” “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” “It’s De-Lovely,” “You’re the Top,” and many more.
This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
The New York Pops Carnegie Hall Subscription Series is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
About the Artists
Tony DeSare performs with infectious joy, wry playfulness and robust musicality. Named a Rising Star Male Vocalist in Downbeat magazine, DeSare has lived up to this distinction by winning critical and popular acclaim for his concert performances throughout North America and abroad. From jazz clubs to Carnegie Hall to Las Vegas headlining with Don Rickles and major symphony orchestras, DeSare has brought his fresh take on old school class around the globe. DeSare has four top ten Billboard jazz albums under his belt and has been featured on the CBS Early Show, NPR, A Prairie Home Companion, the Today Show and his music has been posted by social media celebrity juggernaut, George Takei. DeSare has also collaborated with Youtube icons Postmodern Jukebox.
DeSare's Lush Life recording, debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard Traditional Jazz Chart and he released Song Diaries Vol. 2 in early 2022, now streaming on all platforms.
Notwithstanding his critically acclaimed turns as a singer/pianist, DeSare is also an accomplished award-winning composer. He not only won first place in the USA Songwriting Contest, but has written the theme song for the motion picture, My Date With Drew, several broadcast commercials and has composed the full soundtracks for the Hallmark Channel's Love Always, Santa, Lifetime's Nanny Nightmare and Lifetime's new A Welcome Home Christmas. His sound is romantic, swinging and sensual, but what sets DeSare apart is his ability to write original material that sounds fresh and contemporary, yet pays homage to the Great American Songbook. His compositions include a wide-range of romantic, funny, and soulful sounds that can be found on his top-selling recordings.
DeSare’s forthcoming appearances include the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony, Nashville Symphony, Virginia Symphony and Artis-Naples/Naples Philharmonic.
DeSare releases new recordings, videos of standards and new originals regularly on his YouTube channel, Apple Music and Spotify. Follow Tony on Facebook, Instagram and subscribe on YouTube to stay connected.
Tony DeSare is a Yamaha Artist.
Bria Skonberg is a Juno-award winning artist, 10x Downbeat Rising Star, Jazz at Lincoln Center Swing! Awardee, and the 2022 recipient of the "Legend" Award by the Society for the Preservation of the Great American Songbook. The trumpeter, vocalist, and songwriter has been called the "shining hope of hot jazz" (NY Times) and is considered "one of the most versatile and imposing musicians of her generation." (WSJ) She has been a featured artist at hundreds of festivals and stages the world over, including New Orleans Jazz & Heritage, Kobe, Monterey, Breda, Newport and Montreal Jazz Festivals, and once sang the “Star Spangled Banner” at Madison Square Garden for a NY Rangers game. Her debut LP on Sony Masterworks reached #5 on the Billboard Jazz charts. Her upcoming seventh studio album “What it Means” was recorded in New Orleans with the Crescent City’s finest and is set for release in 2024. The daughter of teachers, Bria was introduced to jazz by a spirited public school band program and local festival in her hometown of Chilliwack, British Columbia Canada. A professional band leader since her teens, she moved to Vancouver and obtained her degree in Trumpet Performance from Capilano University. Since arriving in New York in 2010 she has been at the forefront of a revival of classic American music as both a performer and educator, programming concerts and workshops for students of all ages on behalf of Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Louis Armstrong House Museum, Jazz House Kids and more. She is a co-producer of the NY Hot Jazz Camp, an annual immersive learning experience for adults in the heart of Greenwich Village, as well as the Gotham Jazz Festival musical marathon. Bria is an active mentor in the Women in Jazz Organization, a Bach Conn-Selmer artist, a board member of the International Trumpet Guild, and became a mother in 2020.
John Manzari is an Ovation Award and Helen Hayes Award nominated dancer, singer, actor, choreographer, and teacher. Stage credits include the Broadway revival of Funny Girl, The Tap Dance Kid, Ayodele Casel: Chasing Magic, 42nd Street, Maurice Hines: Tappin’ Thru Life, The Wiz is 40: A Celebration in Dance and Music, and Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies. Television credits include Law & Order SVU, the PBS specials Black Broadway: A Proud History, A Limitless Future and The Kennedy Center at 50, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, Good Morning America, The View, Michael Feinstein at the Rainbow Room, The Jerry Lewis Telethon and So You Think You Can Dance. Concerts include NYPopsUp, Spoleto Festival, Fall for Dance, Amelia Island Dance Festival, and Gold Coast Dance Festival. John can be seen in the documentary about his mentor Maurice Hines: Bring Them Back, the award winning short film Slip, and Leonard Soloway’s Broadway.
Header photo by Richard Termine. Photo of Tony DeSare by Matt Baker. Photo of Bria Skonberg by Shervin Lainez.