For more than 30 years Local 802 member Bobby Short and his orchestra have been charming patrons of the Café Carlyle with elegance and style. This self-described saloon pianist and singer appears five nights a week at the famed Carlyle Hotel nightspot, from April through June and October through December.

Like his talents, Short’s accomplishments and interests are impressive. The two-time Grammy Award nominee has appeared in films, television and radio, national concert venues, and has performed at the White House for nearly every President since Nixon. Besides being the premier cabaret entertainer in the world and keeper of the classics of Cole Porter, the Gershwins and many others, he is also a recording artist, author and lecturer. But even legends need some accompaniment – and the Bobby Short Orchestra is the top!

Once accompanied by bass and drums, the band has expanded to include a full horn section. Among the 802 members appearing nightly are Loren Schoenberg, John Eckert, Virgil Jones, Bobby Pring, Patience Higgins, Jack Stuckey, Jay Brandford, Michael Campagna, Ken Peplowski, Eddie Bert and others.

Bobby Short and his orchestra aren’t the only New York institutions appearing at the Carlyle. The hotel features live music at the Café Carlyle and Bemelman’s Bar throughout the year. Barbara Carroll has been a fixture at Bemelman’s Bar for many years, as have Earl Rose, Michael Devine and Peter Mintun. On Monday evening the Café Carlyle presents Woody Allen with the Eddy Davis Dixieland Band.

Despite the recent economic slowdown in the hotel industry and the events of Sept. 11, the Carlyle has not only maintained its commitment to presenting live music, but remains one of the few hotels that actually promote live music. A recent change in ownership and management has not altered that commitment. We wish every New York hotel recognized the contribution that fine artists, like those pictured in Allegro, make to the lives of their guests and to their profit margins.