A Charlie Brown Christmas

About this event

Jeffrey Bützer trio performs Vince Guaraldi's A Charlie Brown Christmas with special guest The Home Alones

“Isn’t there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?!” Charlie Brown exclaims in A Charlie Brown Christmas. “Sure, Charlie Brown, I can tell you what Christmas is all about,” Linus answers in a quiet, matter-of-fact tone. For many people, A Charlie Brown Christmas and Vince Guaraldi’s accompanying score answer Charlie Brown’s question perfectly.

Jeffrey Bützer has been performing Guaraldi’s score to A Charlie Brown Christmas since 2008, making this the 19th year of the annual holiday tradition. This year, Bützer will be joined by Francisco Lora on upright bass and Christo Case on piano, along with singer Audrey Gámez.

The group approaches Guaraldi’s music with a balance of reverence and improvisation, staying faithful to the warmth and character of the original score while leaving enough room for the music to breathe as jazz. There is perhaps no better Christmas album than this compact, deeply memorable score, full of quiet beauty, melancholy, humor, and warmth. Songs like “Christmas Time Is Here,” “Skating,” “Linus and Lucy,” and “O Tannenbaum” have become inseparable from the season itself.

As in years past, the performance also includes a few additional holiday surprises beyond the original score, making each year’s version of the show a little different.