As this, the most wonderful time of the year, rolls around once more I find myself gravitating to one of my favorite genres: Christmas music … and one of the most heartwarming pieces of seasonal bliss for me is “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” I vividly remember sitting in the living room with my parents and younger brother in 1965 watching the beloved comic strip come to life as the delightful jazz stylings of the Vince Guaraldi Trio came through the tiny speaker on the Zenith television set.

A copy of the VHS version of that TV show was replaced two Christmases ago by the Blu-ray collection that includes “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” and “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” in crystal clear 1080p High Definition visuals and dazzling clean 5.1 Dolby Digital sound. And if you want to hear it live you should head over to The Waldo Theatre in Waldoboro on Dec. 23 to catch the Heather Pierson Trio as they present “A Charlie Brown Christmas” in a concert setting.

On Nov. 29 I reached out to pianist/vocalist Pierson at her home in Conway, New Hampshire, to chat with her once again to see how she and her other two musicians (Shawn Nadeau on bass/vocals and Craig Bryan on percussion/vocals) are doing as this holiday season gets underway.

Q: So, how are things going with you?
Pierson: Pretty good. We started the month-long Charlie Brown Christmas adventure last Sunday in Hopkinton, Massachusetts — it was a great turnout and a great crowd. And the music — it’s so fun to come back to it year after year just to kind of notice how have we changed, if at all, as musicians and how we approach it and how we present it. I just love it.

Q: Hearing you say that, I have to ask: Does it change much from year to year?
Pierson: Our arrangements have not changed but we also have little sets in the middle of the show where we share other Vince Guaraldi compositions, and there’s a new one that we’ve added this year to the show, which is fun. So, has it changed? Maybe a little bit here and there — I’m always looking for more interesting things to say in this improvisation but the arrangements are pretty much the same. It’s a nice touchstone to come back to it year after year.

Q: And, as the old saying goes: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I’m old, I can say that.
Pierson: (Laughter) Right, exactly — yeah, for sure. And it’s funny, people come up to me and ask the same question: “Can we buy the Heather Pierson Trio album of “A Charlie Brown Christmas’?” and I always say the same thing, “No, you should go buy the original because that’s the best one!” So many people have asked us if we’re ever going to record our versions of these things and each year I consider that question again and I just think, “No, there’s no reason to — there’s already this wonderful collection and we’re just bringing our own interpretation of it into these rooms to create an experience for people.” It’s not about the materialism of it, it’s about the experience.

Q: And that is reflected in the whole story behind that, as well.
Pierson: Yes, exactly! We all feel like Charlie Brown — I know I do from time to time this time of year — feeling kind of down, going into stores in October and seeing all the Christmas things up and “buy this!” and “buy that!” It’s not about that, for me it’s about gathering together creating a meaningful experience of joy and fun and reflection, and all of that.

Q: How far afield does the trio go for this particular show?
Pierson: It varies a little year to year, but this year it’s just staying in New England — the farthest afield we go is to Cranston, Rhode Island. So I guess the farthest points from one another are Cranston, Rhode Island and Bangor.

Q: That’s a spread, yup.
Pierson: (Chuckle) That IS a spread, yes. Oh, wait a minute, Cranston is closer to home than Southbury, Connecticut, is so Southbury would be the farthest afield.

Q: And the other problem is: this time of year Mother Nature can throw a monkey wrench into traveling plans, right?
Pierson: Yeah, that’s always a concern — is the weather going to hold, is it going to be alright?

Q: Now on Dec. 3 you had a couple of shows at One Longfellow Square, that venue must seem like a second home to you folks at this point.
Pierson: It does … I really love that venue, it’s great to keep coming back there year after year. They really have done such a great job in cultivating and maintaining a really great, intimate listening atmosphere.

Q: Are there any other venues that are on your list of great places to play?
Pierson: Well, I’m certainly looking forward to being back at the Waldo Theatre, that’ll be our second year there, that’s another beautiful space.

Q: Was your first time there last year?
Pierson: Last year was the first time, yup.

Q: Is there anything you’d like to pass on to the readers of this article about your upcoming show that Waldoboro theatre?
Pierson: Just like I mentioned earlier: I’m really looking forward to returning to that beautiful theater and creating this experience for folks. I want to let people know, also, that it really is a show for all ages — it is, very simply, a presentation of our interpretation of Vince Guaraldi’s musical work that he did for that particular TV special in 1965; and something that I have seen, and continue to see, is people bringing young kids and grandkids, and it really is a multigenerational show that anybody, I think, can connect with and have fun…and find that little spark of joy. I love this music, I never get tired of it, not even for a second, it’s beautiful.
Lucky Clark, a 2018 “Keeping the Blues Alive” Award winner, has spent more than 50 years writing about good music and the people who make it. He can be reached at luckyc@myfairpoint.net if you have any questions, comments or suggestions.

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