Benoit offers jazz tunes, ‘Peanuts’ favorites

Jazz pianist David Benoit brought bright, upbeat holiday greetings to a small but appreciative Artemus Ham Hall audience on Saturday.

Benoit, who wrote several compositions associated with the "Peanuts" TV specials, performed some of these along with other jazz tunes he's written.

Working with a trio of musicians -- David Hughes on bass, Jamie Tate on drums and Andy Suzuki on saxophone and flute -- and, after intermission, the 18-member choir of Lawrence Middle School, Benoit exhibited skill at the keyboard.

The evening included many melodies that should have been recognized by anyone who knows even a bit of jazz, or who is a devotee of Charlie Brown programs. Benoit's "You're in Love, Charlie Brown," which opened the evening, included a familiar and oh-so-smooth saxophone solo, with some "you're in a jazz club" riffs.

He included a complex, free-flowing "Buggy Ride" by Wynton Marsalis, "Human Nature," first recorded by Miles Davis, and a grooving, deep "Freedom."

When the choir took the stage, it provided a syncopated background for "My Little Drum" -- a variation on "The Little Drummer Boy" -- as well as a clear, simple "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" and a pure "Christmastime is Here."

Benoit and his musicians returned for an up-tempo "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" and Benoit's rich, bright solo of "The Christmas Song."

The only problems with the evening were in relation to sound -- the evening started much too loud, then there was a competition between the piano and the other instruments -- and a fundamental flaw in the construction of the program itself.

Many of the holiday-themed selections, and the choir performance, were scheduled after intermission. There were children in the audience who may have been too young to enjoy the sophisticated jazz, unrelated to any cartoon, that dominated the first half. Perhaps Benoit could have reversed the program, opening with the Christmas tunes and the songs of the charming choir before letting loose with his general jazz skills.