VALLEY WEEKEND : Tapping Into the Racing Pulse of a 2-Way Career : Jennifer York’s main job is broadcasting traffic reports from the KTLA news copter. Her other love is leading an all-woman jazz band.

Jennifer York is one fortunate woman: She has two careers and she loves them both.

Her primary vocation is in broadcasting. Weekday mornings, she’s in the air, flying over Southern California in a helicopter, giving traffic reports from 7 to 9 a.m. “That’s definitely incredible,” says York, a member of “KTLA Morning News,” the top-rated morning news show in Los Angeles.

“It’s very fulfilling to let people know what’s happening, alert them to danger, or ways to save time in traffic,” said York. “It makes me feel like I’m part of the heartbeat of L.A.”

York’s other career also finds her paired with a pulse, this time as the bassist-leader of the York Quartet, an all-female jazz band. York’s group includes Suzanne Morisette (drums), Jeannine del Arte (saxophone, flute) and Alexandra Caselli (keyboards). The band appears Friday at Tribeca in Encino and Sunday at La Ve Lee in Studio City.

“Music is the hardest thing I could pursue,” York said. “It takes other people to make it work, from the energy of the musicians to the people listening and enjoying. All that is necessary to create music.”

In broadcasting, in which she’s worked for 11 years--four of those in the air, covering everything from freeway traffic to the Northridge earthquake--York’s role is on-camera, front and center. In her band, her post isn’t as glamorous, but that’s OK, she said.

“My job is to be the backbone, hold things together, be a team player. It’s a bit humbling, but it’s fulfilling,” York said.

York, who was born in Covina and now lives in Studio City, started pursuing music as a pre-teen, then left it to study broadcasting. She renewed her musical interest in 1990.

Diversity reigns in a York show. “We play everything from straight-ahead mainstream to Latin and funk, with a lot of tunes having a contemporary feel,” she said. “The funky, Latin stuff is our most popular, but I don’t want to get away from straight-ahead swing. I feel we must educate audiences.”

York finds that music ultimately is difficult and rewarding. “I’m frustrated that my playing is not where I’d like it to be,” she said, “but that’s balanced by people who respond to what I play with joy. There’s always something to learn.”

* The York Quartet plays Sunday (and Dec. 10 and 17), 9:30 and 11 p.m. at La Ve Lee, 12514 Ventura Blvd., Studio City. Cover charge, $5, two-drink minimum. Information: (818) 980-8158. The group also appears Friday (and Dec. 15), 8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., at Tribeca, 17401 Ventura Blvd, Encino. No cover, no minimum. Information: (818) 386-1339.

Bird Was the Word: From the first moment alto saxophonist Gabe Baltazar heard a record by Charlie Parker, he was hooked. The famed musician’s riveting style grabbed Baltazar--then a teen-ager--and never let go.

“I walked into the Hawaii Music Store in Honolulu, where my family lived, and bought ‘Now’s the Time’ and ‘Billie’s Bounce’ on a 78 rpm Savoy label record,” said Baltazar, who’s now 65 and best known for his 1960s performances with Howard Rumsey’s Lighthouse All-Stars and Stan Kenton. “It turned me around completely. He was just fantastic, just the greatest.”

Baltazar won a scholarship to study at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore. While there, he traveled to New York in 1948 and heard his idol.

“Bird was playing at the Royal Roost (jazz club near Times Square),” he recalled. “He played tunes like ‘Ornithology.’ The feeling was great. He played with so much ease. The notes flowed out as if he were just telling a story. At intermission, I met him, and he was really nice. I was thrilled.”

Listen to Baltazar today, on a recent CD such as “Back in Action” on VSOP Records, or in person, say this Friday and Saturday at Chadney’s in Burbank, and you’ll still hear essences of Parker. But there’s new stuff there, too.

“You could call me a neo-bopper, or a post-be-bopper,” said Baltazar, who still lives in Hawaii but comes to the mainland to perform at least twice a year. “I try to keep myself fresh by listening to what the young guys like Steve Coleman and Kenny Garrett are doing, but I don’t copy. I try to have my own style.”

As for the importance of Parker and his innovations, Baltazar is adamant. “That music will go on forever,” he said. “It’s the stepping stone to what’s happening today. To really play jazz, you have to go through the Charlie Parker era.”

* Gabe Baltazar plays 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday at Chadney’s, 3000 W. Olive St., Burbank. No cover, no minimum. (818) 843-5333.