They’ve got it down! The 15th edition of “It’s a Jazz Christmas” brings top area jazz talents to Universal Preservation Hall Friday, Dec. 20 and Proctors GE Theater Saturday, Dec, 21.
This well-loved holiday musical favorite features the same cast of musicians and others as last year, including horns, a singer and a genial host. These join the original trio version of the jazzy holiday celebration Gleason first cooked up around pianist-composer Vince Guaraldi’s music for Peanuts holiday specials.
David Gleason. All photos supplied.
Gleason and then-chief of the Massry Center at the College of St. Rose Sal Prizio presented the first area Guaraldi-based holiday show, “…wrapped in the guise of a live old time radio show,” as Gleason has explained, a format that has endured.
Over time, as he explained, Gleason added musical and spoken elements to his long-running Art D’Echo trio of bassist Mike Lawrence and drummer Pete Sweeney. Trumpeter Chris Pasin, reeds player Brian Patneaude and trombonist Ben O’Shea joined the line-up, plus singer Hannah Amigo and Mike McCord as the show’s radio host, expanding on Prizio’s original script.
Art D’Echo Trio, from left, Mike Lawrence, bass; David Gleason, keyboards; and Pete Sweeney, drums
“Like most young musicians, I poked around at Christmas music every December,” Gleason has explained. He mastered “Jingle Bells” on his own before lessons brought additional holiday classics including “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” – now a vocal/piano duet in “It’s a Jazzy Christmas” – into his repertoire.
Gleason suggested when we spoke about last year’s edition of this annual favorite, that this is more than just “jazzy,” like the adjective. It’s essential. He said, “It’s actual jazz…with plenty of room to stretch out.” He said, “We have full choruses of improvised solos, and each of the horn players has a feature.” Those features draw inspiration from jazz greats. They play a John Coltrane-style version of “We Three Kings,” for example, that trumpeter Chris Pasin arranged. Pasin is also a composer and arranger of note, a respected bandleader and valued sideman in his own right. So are all these players; they perform in and/or lead various ensembles.
The “It’s a Jazzy Christmas” horns, from left, Brian Patneaude, saxophone and bass clarinet; Chris Pasin, trumpet; and Ben O’Shea, trombone
Gleason began the project by adapting Guaraldi’s tunes to the Art D’Echo trio’s style, but soon arranged “Hark The Herald Angels Sing” into Oscar Peterson’s prolific attack. Also early on, he made a rhapsody of “Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel;” so, in this way, familiar tunes evolve. Now, “Jingle Bells” is a mambo and “The Grinch” theme a low rumble.
“Each year we add something new,” said Gleason last year.
This year, he promises, “Lots of Vince Guaraldi ‘Peanuts’ holiday tunes and my arrangements of classic holiday tunes.” He said, “There’ll be a few new things added since last year, but a lot of it is the same.” Gleason noted, “We are trying to do little things to change the show each year, but it’s essentially close to the same each year. The audience seems to like a little bit of both!”
In fact, the audience likes it in droves: Tickets are selling briskly for both shows.
The Proctors Collaborative presents “It’s a Jazz Christmas” Friday at Universal Preservation Hall (25 Washington St., Saratoga Springs) and Saturday at Proctors GE Theater (432 State St., Schenectady). Show time for both: 7:30 p.m. Tickets: $35 adults, $15 for children 17 and under. Box office: 518-346-6204.
Hoke's Jukebox 