Banjo & String Bass

In 1976 Vince Giordano & the Nighthawks (originally known as the New Orleans Nighthawks) was formed. His dynamic band has been booked for black tie galas at the New York Public Library, the Waldorf Astoria, the Rainbow Room and many private events for the patrons of the NY Pops, NYC Opera, NYC Ballet and countless charitable organizations. Vince has also performed at the Smithsonian Institute, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Metropolitan Museum of Art and Jazz Festivals around the world. Early appearances with Leon Redbone and A Prairie Home Companion and then lending his musical and acting talents to Francis Ford Coppola’s film The Cotton Club, led to working with Dick Hyman’s Orchestra in half a dozen Woody Allen soundtracks, then acting as a bass player, most notably in Sean Penn’s band in Woody’s Sweet And Lowdown. He and the band have been both onscreen and in the studio for Gus Van Sant’s film Finding Forrester; in Martin Scorsese’s The Aviator; and Sam Mendes’ film Revolutionary Road. Other recording projects include soundtracks for Terry Zwigoff’s Ghost World; Tamara Jenkins’ The Savages; Robert DeNiro’s film, The Good Shepherd; Sam Mendes’ Away We Go; Michael Mann’s film Public Enemies, along with HBO’s – Grey Gardens and Todd Haynes’ HBO mini-series Mildred Pierce.

Most recently, Vince Giordano & the Nighthawks won a 2012 GRAMMY: Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media for their work on BOARDWALK EMPIRE Volume 1 – Music from the HBO Original Series CD. Vince and the band are heard and seen on Boardwalk Empire as well as USA Network series Royal Pains. In January they performed at the 92nd Street Y for the Lyrics & Lyricist “Makin’ Whoopee” with Christine Andreas, Jason Graae, Howard McGillin, Laura Osnes and Bolcom & Morris.

More than simply a performer, Giordano is a big-band historian and collector with more than 60,000 scores in his collection. In 2011 they performed at Turner Classic Movie Film Festival with an original score accompanying Buster Keaton’s silent film The Cameraman at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood. Also in 2011, Vince and the band were on the PBS series Michael Feinstein’s American Songbook, where Vince revealed some treasures from the Great American Songbook. Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks are renowned on the New York scene for their commitment to preserving and authentically presenting 1920s and ’30s jazz and popular music.