Another morning of Grace

The morning of Sunday, August 31, was sunny and mild in bucolic Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania: a lovely, late-summer day that would top out at a comfortable 75 degrees. When Constant Companion Gayna, our friend Scott and I arrived at the First Presbyterian Church at 8:30, the place already was bustling: chairs being placed, programs being stacked, and all manner of other duties necessary for the impending service.

Nor would this be just any service for “The Church on the Hill,” even by standards firmly established by The Rev. Bill Carter, during his lengthy stint as pastor. As befits one of many music-oriented signs proudly displayed — a sax against a church window, alongside the motto “Jazz belongs in Church” — everybody was racing through final preparations for a 60th anniversary re-enactment of the Vince Guaraldi Jazz Mass, which debuted in San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral, back on May 21, 1965.

 

Longtime readers of this blog will recall that Rev. Carter — who cheekily bills himself as “preacher and pianist” — leads his own Presbybop Jazz Combo, which has released numerous albums of Carter's original compositions and jazz-hued liturgical music. Longtime readers similarly will recall that Guaraldi’s Jazz Mass also was revived a decade ago, for its 50th anniversary, also at the First Presbyterian Church of Clarks Summit.

 

I concluded my report of the 2015 service by noting that Rev. Carter expressed a strong desire to revisit the Mass at some point. While he has yet to “take it on the road,” as he suggested back then, he definitely made good on that early promise.

 

I also was on hand the previous morning, August 30, during a rehearsal involving Rev. Carter (piano), Michael Carbone (sax and flute), Tony Marino (bass), cantors Frank Jones and Kate Leahy, and half a dozen choir members (a modest sampling of the full choirs of First Presbyterian Church and Our Lady of the Snows, a nearby Catholic Church, both of which would be present in full strength the next morning). I immediately was struck by the rich sound coming from the church’s gorgeous new grand piano — donated a few years ago by a grateful individual who chose to remain anonymous — and the very much improved sound system and speakers, granting awesome depth to each note, song and chant, in every corner of the worship hall. (I know, because I kept moving around.)

 

I also helped Rev. Carter unpack the enlarged photos, facsimile 1965 Grace Cathedral programs and other vintage materials that he carefully had saved since they last were used in 2015.

 

Now, on Sunday morning, the choir members began to arrive and take their seats. Cantor Jones — who also serves as the church’s director of music, and supervises the sound system and recording equipment — bounced from one duty to another, repeatedly pausing to answer a quick question from a choir member, or confer with Rev. Carter. The latter, in turn, led his combo — now joined by drummer Tyler Dempsey — through a few brief passages of several portions of the Mass, clarifying a segue here, a transition there.

 

(Marino and Dempsey also were part of the quartet during the 2015 presentation of Guaraldi’s Mass.)

Once more, with feeling!

Holy Communion Blues!

In addition to being a monumental general announcement, this is a shout-out to Guaraldi fans who live in or near Pennsylvania.

Longtime readers of this blog will recall the marvelous summer of 2015, when not one — but two! — 50th anniversary presentations of Vince Guaraldi's Jazz Mass took place: the first, a concert event, in none other than San Francisco's Grace Cathedral; and the second, a worship service, at the First Presbyterian Church of Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania.

The latter was led by Bill Carter, church pastor since 1990 (!), who also — not coincidentally — has impressive keyboard chops, and has long headed his own Presbybop jazz combo. He spent the better part of a year transcribing Guaraldi's Jazz Mass (also detailed in this blog), since the music never had been written down. He also came to San Francisco for the concert version, the highlight of which was his impromptu four-hands keyboard solo with my good buddy Jim Martinez, the driving force behind that Grace Cathedral event.

(I've truly been blessed — since becoming Guaraldi's official biographer — by getting to know some special jazz folks, who've since become cherished friends.)

Well, hang onto your hats, folks ... apparently Bill wasn't satisfied with having overseen a 50th anniversary service; he has just announced a repeat for the 60th anniversay: 9:30 a.m. Sunday, August 31, once again at the First Presbyterian Church, 300 School Street, Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania. Check out the official announcement here.

As was the case a decade ago, the event will begin when I give a brief recitation of how Guaraldi came to write his portion of the Mass, and the not-quite-a-year of rehearsal that took place with the mixed adult/children's choir of St. Paul's Church, in San Rafael, California, back in 1964 and '65.

In anticipation of this diamond anniversary, Bill and I had a delightful chat for WVIA, the local NPR radio station; you can listen to that here.

Needless to say, this will be a banner event, and a terrific way to conclude the summer of 2025. (Pay no attention to the calendar; everybody knows that summer ends after the Labor Day weekend.) 

I look forward to greeting any Guaraldi fans ambitious enough to make the journey.

And of course I'll give a detailed report, after the fact.

Vince would be gob-smacked to know, after all these years, that his Jazz Mass continues to resonate to such a degree. 

Bits & bobs

Photo courtesy of Peggy Tillman

Ever more research resources continue to appear online, and each new discovery often adds a tantalizing nugget — or two, or 20 — to Guaraldi’s career. My most recent find is the California Digital Newspaper Collection, which seems devoted primarily to small, late 19th- and early 20th-century regional newspapers. But the database also includes a healthy number of high school and college newspapers, which delivered some nice nuggets. Several more stops on the Guaraldi/Sete Quartet’s October 1965 California college tour were added to my Guaraldi timeline, and — better yet — a few of the colleges publicized and reviewed the performances.

It’s always fun to see how Guaraldi was perceived at the time, and what he played, and — if interviewed — what he discussed.

 

The quartet performed at Sacramento City College on October 12. Five days earlier, the campus newspaper — The Pony Express — published an article to help promote the upcoming concert. Most of the information clearly was lifted from the publicity packet that the college received ahead of time, which must have been the source of this intriguing second sentence:

 

Pianist Guaraldi and Sete were ordered to combine their acts by “President” Dizzy Gillespie, after they appeared at the Monterey Jazz Festival in 1962.

 

I possess copies of several Guaraldi publicity packets, which became more informative as the 1960s progressed; I’ve never before seen that statement. It’s true that Gillespie “discovered” Sete in the spring of 1962, while the latter was performing solo at San Francisco’s Sheraton Palace. And yes, Guaraldi and Sete both performed at the fifth annual Monterey Jazz Festival, in late September … but separately. Sete subsequently joined Gillespie’s band long enough to be part of the trumpeter’s next album, New Wave. Sete then flew to New York City and fronted his own trio at the Park-Sheraton Hotel for four months. When that gig concluded, he returned to San Francisco and began a seven-week solo stint at Sugar Hill. According to Fantasy Records’ then-“official” biography of Sete, written by jazz critic Russ Wilson, that’s where Guaraldi caught up with Sete in July 1963.

 

No mention of Gillespie’s helpful “edict,” although it certainly could have been an encouraging suggestion, at some point.

 

Further along in the same Pony Express article, the anonymous author injects a bit of opinion:

 

Guaraldi rose to national attention after KROY (a Sacramento station) disc jockey Tony Bigg played the “Cast Your Fate to the Wind” track from a Guaraldi recording of jazz impressions of the film Black Orpheus.

 

The recording was surprisingly accepted by the teenagers who make or break popular records.

 

You gotta love that second sentence. “Surprisingly”?

 

The article concludes with the following promise of things to come:

 

Recently, Guaraldi composed music for a Mass at the Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, and he will soon complete another composition, “San Francisco Suite.”

 

Alas, we know that didn’t happen.

 

Photo courtesy of Peggy Tillman

The quartet’s performance was reviewed in The Pony Express — again anonymously — on October 21. The writer noted that the set list included “Cast Your Fate to the Wind,” two “Jazz Impressions of Charlie Brown,” a “delightful” rendition of the Jimmie Rodgers tune “The World I Used to Know,” and a “swingy waltz” called “Skating.”

That’s the only reference I’ve found, to “The World I Used to Know”; Guaraldi never recorded it on an album. But the presence of “Skating” is more of an eye-opener, as it likely means that sparkling jazz waltz was a regular part of the entire tour’s set list … a couple of months before it debuted for the world in A Charlie Brown Christmas.

 

One of the tour’s final stops — perhaps the final stop — was at Citrus College, in Glendora, on October 29. The performance was reviewed on November 5 in the Citrus College Clarion, and journalist Frank Cernelli combined that coverage with an interview with Guaraldi.

 

The lengthy article includes these tidbits:

 

[Guaraldi] also plays, but not professionally, the guitar and organ, and is building a harpsichord in his spare time. “I like putting things together,” he declared.

 

……..

 

After finishing a round of 26 California college concerts, [Guaraldi] will tour Oregon. He is also considering the possibility of touring England early next year.

 

……..

 

Summing up his musical philosophy, [Guaraldi] said, “I strive for freedom of musical expression, and clarity of thought.”

 

That final remark is a bit … well … pompous, and seems to have more to do with Zen meditation than performing jazz. But, whatever.

 

Building a harpsichord, eh? Could be true; if so, he may even have used it during local gigs.

 

He may well have toured Oregon in November 1965; I have absolutely no information about his movements that month. (I need to find a comparable Oregon digital newspaper collection!) But he definitely never made it to England in early 1966, or any time thereafter.

And that’s it for now. 

Number one no more

For more than half a century, it has been assumed true.

And — of course — we’ve wanted to continue believing it was true.

 

Alas … no.

 

When the Rev. Charles Gompertz contemplated the notion of a Jazz Mass to help celebrate the completion of San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral — the first major Anglican cathedral to be consecrated in the United States — he knew this notion was radical. Indeed — as he told me more than once, during our numerous interviews — to his knowledge, no American church had ever employed jazz in a worship setting. Gompertz was aware of only one earlier near-miss. Geoffrey Beaumont, a London priest, had composed a Jazz Mass in 1956: a work scored for a cantor and a jazz quartet. Beaumont and his composition made the news in 1957, but the vicar’s performances of this work always took placed after his regular services at St. George’s, in Camberwell.

 

During preparation and the lengthy rehearsals that went into Vince Guaraldi’s Grace Cathedral Mass, and thereafter for the rest of his life, Gompertz firmly believed that it was the first Jazz Mass presented during an American church service of any kind. During the extensive research for my Guaraldi biography, back in 2010 and ’11, I found nothing to contradict this belief.

 

Ah, but my good friend Bill Carter — reverend of the First Presbyterian Church in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania — had “inside tipsters” and access to better resources: most crucially, Derick Cordoba’s 2017 doctoral dissertation, Liturgical Jazz: The Lineage of the Subgenre in the Music of Edgar E. Summerlin, presented at the Graduate College of the University of Illinois, at Urbana-Champaign. 

 

Bill, this blog’s readers will recall, officiated a 50th anniversary presentation of Guaraldi’s Mass at his Clarks Summit church on September 6, 2015; the jazz elements were performed by his Presbybop Quartet: Bill (piano), Al Hamme (sax and flute), Tony Marino (bass) and Tyler Dempsey (drums). In addition to the lengthy rehearsals preceding this presentation, Bill also had spent many months transcribing the Mass: something that hadn’t ever been done (and a process made even harder by the fact that Vince never played the Mass’ music the same way twice, as proven by the few recorded excerpts that exist in addition to Fantasy’s At Grace Cathedral album).

Mass enjoyment

Music remains fresh and vibrant as long as it continues to be presented for public appreciation.

To that end, I'm delighted to learn that Guaraldi's Jazz Mass will be presented again this weekend: 6 to 7:15 p.m. Saturday, April 21, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Pro-Cathedral, 35 S. Franklin Street, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania 18701 (570-825-6653).

The service will be hosted by Bill Carter and the Presbybop Quartet. The musicians will include Carter (piano), Mike Carbone (flute), Joe Michaels (bass) and Tyler Dempsey (drums), along with the St. Stephen's choir, under the direction of Mark Laubach.

Regular readers of this blog will recall that Carter was involved with both of the 50th anniversary presentations of Guaraldi's Mass, which took place during the late summer of 2015. Plenty of further details about those events can be found here and here.

Pennsylvania residents -- and anybody close enough to participate —- are encouraged to join Carter and Presbybop, as they present  Guaraldi's Jazz Mass in this extraordinary setting. Written six months before his soundtrack for A Charlie Brown Christmas, the Mass is a highly melodic composition, and the first jazz mass ever performed as part of an American church service.

It debuted May 21, 1965, at San Francisco's Grace Cathedral. The music was recorded, but never written down. To mark the Mass' aforementioned 50th anniversary, Carter transcribed the music from original and unreleased recordings.

He remains just as excited today, as he was three years ago.

"We're looking forward to presenting Guaraldi's little-known Mass once again, in a worship setting," he said. "The invitation came from internationally known organist and church musician Mark Laubach. His parish is celebrating its 200th anniversary, and the church council wanted to do something unusual. So the church choir will sing 'Missa Marialis' from the old red Episcopalian hymnal, and Presbybop will supply Guaraldi's accompaniment.

"As I've been working through the material once again, I'm struck anew by its brilliance. Guaraldi's settings are quite melodic, and the harmonies are beguiling. The outstanding St. Stephen's choir is thrilled to sing this wonderful music, and I'm reminded of how important it is to keep this music in the air. 

"What a privilege this is!"

This is a rare opportunity to hear Guaraldi's composition in a worship setting similar to that where it first was conceived. All involved are pleased to offer this event during the 200th anniversary year of St. Stephen's.

For additional information, visit Presbybop or St. Stephen's Episcopal Pro-Cathedral.

Looking back Grace-fully

Rough drafts — whether of music, artworks or written material — generally deserve to be seen only by their creators. After all, the artist in question wishes to put the best foot forward, and it’s hardly fair to view warts-and-all preliminary efforts.

(Which is why, just in passing, I had absolutely no interest in Harper Lee’s Go Set a Watchman, when released in July 2015. Ample evidence existed, prior to publication, that it was an early draft of what eventually blossomed into To Kill a Mockingbird ... despite the efforts of opportunists who insisted, quite falsely, that it was a wholly different “lost novel.”)

All this notwithstanding, exceptions crop up every once in awhile; what follows is one of them.

Way back in the day, John Leydecker was one of many youthful members of the St. Paul’s Church choir, which rehearsed extensively with Guaraldi and later performed the debut of his Jazz Mass at San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral, on May 21, 1965. John’s mother Mary was a part-time journalist; several months after that event, she wrote an informative article about Guaraldi, the choir and the evolution and presentation of the Mass. Her article — and numerous photos — were submitted to both The Episcopalian (a monthly church journal published between April 1960 and March 1990) and the Marin Daily Independent Journal. If the piece appeared in the former, I’ve not yet been able to track it down; it did, however, get published in the latter on October 23, 1965.

What appeared in the Journal, however, is significantly different than Mary Leydecker’s original draft: something I’m able to state with certainty, since John kindly provided a copy of the original typewritten manuscript. It’s much more laid-back and conversational than the Journal version, and opens a charming window into those historic events.

Mary Leydecker’s version appears here, for the first time ever; it’s followed by PDFs of the quite opulent Journal spread (with lots and lots of photos ... a generous use of space that we simply don’t see in newspapers any more).

John also shared some additional photos that you’ll find below, all published for the first time.

Enjoy!

********

BEAUTIFUL, MAN!

By Mary Leydecker

The little jazz musician peered over the grand piano through a haze of smoke. He was dressed in an old sweater, jeans and tennis shoes. His mustache and sideburns almost covered the part of his face not hidden by immense dark glasses. Nearby a bass player leaned on his instrument, and a drummer grinned as there was a pause in the rehearsal.

However, these three were not in their native habitat of nightclubs or recording studios, but in a large wood-paneled music room of a suburban Episcopal church; sharing the room with them were rows and rows of bright-faced children, who followed intently the instructions of their choir director, a young man in a sweat shirt with a whistle hanging from his neck.

This scene was repeated many times this year, as this group of people of many backgrounds gathered to prepare a “new setting for the Holy Communion.” The product of their labors has been recorded and is now a nationwide success under the label Vince Guaraldi at Grace Cathedral.

The story of how this unusual musical undertaking came into being goes back many months. As Grace Cathedral in San Francisco was nearing completion of its building program, a committee was appointed to mark the occasion with a series of special events. The Rev. Charles Gompertz, a young priest who was at that time curate of a suburban parish, was one of the members. When another committee member suggested a “holy hootenanny” for the young people of the diocese, Father Gompertz presented a different idea.

Tidbits from the newspaper archive

Of late my good buddy (and fellow Guaraldi fan) Doug has been researching Dave Brubeck's early work, in the course of which pursuit he has spent considerable time with the newspapers.com archives. I buried myself in the same site while gathering information for my Guaraldi biography, but that was seven years ago; it's clear, based on Doug's explorations, that the site has added considerable regional content since then.

Not one to waste a subscription fee, Doug also utilized the same access to investigate Guaraldi on my behalf. The results came to me on a thumb drive that contained roughly 140 full-page scans from various newspapers. I'd already seen many of them (mostly from the Oakland Tribune and San Mateo Times), but the San Rafael Daily Independent Journal hadn't been among the newspapers.com holdings, back when I did my research. Some of the relevant articles, photos and ads duplicated items and events I'd already seen in other papers, but an impressive amount proved new ... and, in some cases, quite enlightening. I've already updated and amended entries in my Guaraldi timeline, and added a few entirely new ones, but some of the more engaging discoveries definitely deserve additional exposure here. I'll present them in chronological order; unless otherwise specified, everything comes from the Daily Independent Journal.

By far the best ad is the one at left, which ran October 1, 1964. I'd already known that Guaraldi had been booked to perform at this particular event, but hadn't seen an ad for same. It's definitely a blast from the past; can you imagine a similar ad running today, in a newspaper, for similar candidates? For that matter, can you imagine a jazz performer being the featured entertainer, at such a function?

The Santa Cruz Sentinel's early March TV listings show that Guaraldi was a guest on Lloyd Thaxton's afternoon chat/variety show, at 5 p.m. March 3, 1965. Similar TV listings two months later cite one of the fabled 5-minute "bumpers" that Guaraldi and his trio recorded, to fill 30- and 60-minute time slots on National Educational Television (NET) channels which — as the precursor to the nationwide PBS network — ran without commercials. I've included the listing here; you can see that Guaraldi and his combo performed a tune titled "Twilight of Youth" ... which (more's the pity) he never recorded on an album. It's one of a dozen or so compositions that he registered with the U.S. Copyright Office, and no doubt performed live on numerous occasions, but never found the time to include on an LP.

Additional 'Grace' notes

2015 was a big year for Guaraldi, with 50th anniversary celebrations of both his score for A Charlie Brown Christmas, and the May 1965 debut of his Grace Cathedral Jazz Mass. The latter prompted two commemorative presentations of the Mass: the first in a concert setting that showcased Guaraldi's music, and took place August 15 at San Francisco's Grace Cathedral; the second a "replica" liturgical service that took place September 6 at the First Presbyterian Church in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania.

St. John's Episcopal Church, Boulder, Colorado

Preparations for both were followed avidly by the Rev. Bruce Swinehart, rector of St. James Episcopal Church in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Bruce corresponded enthusiastically with Jim Martinez, who orchestrated the San Francisco event; Bill Carter, who mounted the Pennsylvania service; and me, contributing whatever I could from the sidelines. Bruce eventually revealed his own plans for a presentation of Guaraldi's Mass, also in a church setting: a development I've followed with great interest.

2015 got away from him, but — proving once again that there's no such thing as too many commemorative honors — Colorado's own Guaraldi Mass has been scheduled for this Sunday, June 19, the fifth Sunday after Pentacost, at St. John's Episcopal Church in Boulder. The Rev. Swinehart will be the guest preacher, drawing from the sermon given by the Rev. Malcolm Boyd back in 1965, during the original Grace Cathedral Mass. The music will be performed by the Eric Gunnison Trio, a well-known local jazz ensemble. The St. John's Choir will be directed by Tom Morgan, known for leading the 36-member Ars Nova Singers, a nationally recognized ensemble celebrating its 30th anniversary this season.

The Rev. Bruce Swinehart

Bruce has taken pains to use the same hymns — all still in the Episcopal hymnal — that were sung by the San Francisco congregation during that original service. "I got them from an original bulletin from the May 1965 service," Bruce explains, "which Charles Gompertz very generously gave me, when I met him last year. It even has his notations in the margins, indicating which pieces were to be included in the subsequent Fantasy Records album."

The anticipated program is as follows:

Prelude
Processional Hymn: "Praise to the Lord, the Almighty"
Collection for Purity
  + "Lord Have Mercy" (arrangement by Guaraldi)
Collection for the Day
Old Testament Lesson
Epistle
  + Gradual Hymn: "Come Holy Ghost, Our Souls Inspire"
Holy Gospel: Luke 8:26-39
Sermon by The Rev. Swinehart
  + "Nicene Creed" (arrangement by Guaraldi)
Prayers of the People
Confession/Absolution
The Peace
The Offerings of the People
  + Offertory: "Theme to Grace" (Guaraldi)
Doxology
  + "Lift Up Your Hearts"
  + "Holy, Holy, Holy"
Prayer of Consecration
The Lord's Prayer
  + "O Lamb of God" (sung by the choir)
  + Communion (accompanied by Guaraldi's "Holy Communion Blues")
     Hymnal #314: "Humbly I Adore Thee" (arrangement by Guaraldi)
Prayer of Thanksgiving
Blessing
Dismissal
Recessional Hymn: "Christ for the World We Sing!"
Postlude

The Eric Gunnison Trio

"The prelude and postlude may include other melodies by the trio," Bruce adds. "I'm not exactly sure what they're planning. After all, they're jazz musicians!"

I remember hoping that last summer's 50th anniversary events might generate additional interest in Guaraldi's Grace Cathedral Jazz Mass, along with more church and/or concert presentations of that music. Dare I hope further than this Colorado service will be the first of many more such tributes?

It's a nice thought.

A little of this, a little of that ... Take 4

With the flurry of activity leading up to the twin 50th anniversary events commemorating Guaraldi’s Grace Cathedral Jazz Mass, a few items were set aside for commentary at a later date. I guess this is that later date...

A view from the rear at the Fair Oaks Presbyterian Church, during the CD release party
for Jim Martinez's newest album. That's quite a crowd!

First and foremost, I’ve been exchanging some great notes with Louis Judson, who as a teen was a member of the trio — which included pianist Brian Mann and drummer John Terwilliger — that presented the Tamalpais High School “concert version” of Guaraldi’s Jazz Mass on December 13, 1966. Louis finally came across the lengthy blog post I devoted to that performance; when researching that essay, I’d only been able to reach Brian and John. Louis was able to add some details, most significant of which is the fact that he’s the one who recorded the event. His comments have been incorporated into the original post, albeit invisibly ... so you’ll just have to read the whole thing again. (Hey, it’s a great excuse, right?)

Speaking of the Guaraldi Mass, an enterprising fellow named Steve recorded the entire August 15 Grace Cathedral concert, and has posted his efforts. The concert is divided into two YouTube files — Part 1 and Part 2 — divided at the point Rev. Bill Carter gives his short sermon. Unfortunately, a portion of his talk is missing (no doubt when Steve had to switch to a second memory card). The video is reasonably stable — very little shaking — and the audio quality is quite good, given the camera placement. For those unable to attend in person, this will give a solid sense of the event.

Jim Martinez led the combo that performed at Grace on August 15, and he followed that with a combination CD release party — for his new album, Good Grief, It’s Still Martinez! — and post-Jazz Mass commemoration, which took place August 30 at the Fair Oaks Presbyterian Church (home of the choir that performed at Grace on August 15). It turned out to be quite a party, drawing roughly 800 (!) attendees. My wife and I weren’t able to make it, as we were traveling back east that day, but Jim assures me that A Great Time Was Had By All. He tells me the entire event was recorded, but thus far he has posted only one video clip: this performance of “Theme to Grace.” If it’s any indication, I can’t wait to see and hear more ... so get a move on, Jim!

We couldn't help noticing that Jim was placed next to a display case filled with vintage
Barbie dolls. What would Snoopy say?

We may have missed Jim on August 30, but we were able to catch his solo act Thursday evening, September 10, when he performed at Sacramento's California Museum during the grand opening of "Pigskin Peanuts," a traveling exhibit from the Charles M. Schulz Museum. The folks at the California Museum did a sensational job with the exhibit, which features football-themed Peanuts strips and memorabilia. Children can keep occupied at several interactive stations, and a few cute photo ops also are present. (My favorite gives everybody an opportunity to become a lifesize Peanuts-themed football trading card.) Jim played for two hours, blending tunes from his new album with classics from Guaraldi's Peanuts canon.

The final item comes courtesy of Keith Mason, who teaches world languages and culture at New Jersey’s Providence High School. He has written an ambitious article about Charles Schulz, Peanuts and Guaraldi, mostly themed around the upcoming 50th anniversary of the debut TV broadcast of A Charlie Brown Christmas. Mason has a strong interest in immersing grade-school children to the arts, and — in addition to giving some history and background on the three topics above — he offers numerous clever ways in which Guaraldi’s music for A Charlie Brown Christmas, and other Peanuts TV specials, can be integrated into interactive lesson plans. (Hey, Keith; where were you when I was in high school?) I applaud the imaginative effort here, and I hope teachers across the country adopt at least some of his suggestions.

And th-th-that’s all for now, folks!

East Coast Grace

September 6 dawned sunny and bright in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, with an early warmth that anticipated the day’s eventual climb to a humid 88 degrees. The sticky Sunday morning surroundings notwithstanding, things were cool and inviting in the city’s First Presbyterian Church — “The Church on the Hill” — when we entered at 8:30 a.m.

Indeed, as cool and inviting as Rev. Bill Carter’s welcoming smile.

We were an hour early for the morning’s events, knowing that some prep time was necessary. I was accompanied by what came to be known as my entourage: Constant Companion Gayna, our Boston-based friend Scott, and our D.C.-based friend Doug. The four of us unpacked the enlarged photos, facsimile 1965 Grace Cathedral programs and other vintage materials — recently used for Jim Martinez’s tribute concert (see previous post) — that I had shipped to Carter’s office. 

Armed with easels and other display materials, we set up a tableau in the church foyer, designed to give parishioners a sense of what it had been like for Guaraldi and his band, half a century ago.

This actually was my second visit to the church, following a brief appearance the previous morning, during a final rehearsal involving Carter (on piano), Al Hamme (sax and flute), Tyler Dempsey (drums), cantors Susan Kelly and Alan Baker, and members of the First Presbyterian Church choir. I hovered for roughly an hour, mostly checking sound levels and balance by sitting in different parts of the worship hall. The trio initially overwhelmed the choir a bit, so I encouraged Bill to enhance the gain on their microphones (which earned an appreciative smile from the singers). Jon Tichenor, affiliated with the local NPR station WVIA, spent that same time setting up recording microphones in front of all instrumentalists and vocalists.

No, we didn't plan it: Bill and I were amused to discover, at the Saturday morning rehearsal,
that we had worn the same Peanuts shirt: Schroeder at the piano, sporting dark specs,
beneath the phrase "It's okay, I'm with the band!"

(My understanding is that, at some point, portions of the Sunday morning service will be broadcast on WVIA as part of a new “Music from First Presbyterian” radio series; details will follow, as they’re verified.)

During my casual sound check, the band and choir ran through a couple of the hymns that Guaraldi had arranged for his Jazz Mass — “Come With Us, O Blessed Jesus” and the “Nicene Creed” — along with his original composition, “Theme to Grace.” Everything sounded excellent, reflecting the dedicated practice that had taken place during numerous earlier rehearsal sessions. Individual singers queried a couple of fine points, but otherwise Carter seemed quite pleased by the results, as well he should have been. I certainly was.

But back to Sunday morning:

At about 9:15, my little group took their appointed seats in the second row, while I followed Carter into the “ready room” behind the worship hall. We were joined by Hamme, Dempsey and bassist Tony Marino, the latter sharing the eye-watering details of some particularly volcanic salsa/marinara sauce that he had concocted, with hot peppers from his own garden. Carter smiled at the shared memory; I simply shuddered.

Mass appeal: Chapter 5

We’re approaching the final countdown on the second of this summer’s double-scoop celebration of Guaraldi’s Jazz Mass, with the second 50th anniversary event taking place Sunday morning, September 6, at the First Presbyterian Church of Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania. The jazz elements will be handled by Rev. Bill Carter and his Presbybop combo; during the past several months, Bill quite generously has shared the lengthy listening/transcription process that has been necessary, to replicate the original experience as closely as possible.

In case you’ve missed previous installments, you’ll find them here, here, here and here.

Meanwhile, I’ll once again turn this blog over to Bill, for his final analysis of How Vince Did It ... and how his mass’ rich legacy even extended to other projects!

********

Reflections on transcribing the Guaraldi Mass: The Instrumental Music

I had a revelation when I heard the Guaraldi Mass tunes in a different sequence. While preparing a reference CD for my quartet, I put “Sanctus” and “Agnus Dei” adjacent to one another, just as they’d be sequenced in an actual mass. I shouldn’t have been surprised to discover that they’re in the same key, with the same tempo and rhythmic feel. They belong together.

Similarly, “In Remembrance of Me” and “Holy Communion Blues” begin in nearly identical fashion. A repeated C in the melody is accompanied by a descending line in the left hand, before each tune develops in a different manner.

Both tunes were part of a long interlude, as the mass participants received the sacrament of communion. Rev. Chuck Gompertz recalls it took 30 minutes for everyone to be served, so Vince did what scores of church musicians have always done: He filled the time. And why not? If you’ve invited a jazz trio into your cathedral to lead a worship service, it’s best to let them play.

Only about half of that music is included on Fantasy’s recording of the event. Chuck spent a lot of time with the recording engineers, carving up identifiable segments into “tunes,” and even providing titles on Vince’s behalf. Sadly, the rest of that music has been lost to us.

An afternoon of Grace

“Mother never said there might be a day like this.”

First words out of my mouth. Couldn’t help it.

I had just been introduced — and quite warmly — by Grace Cathedral’s Rev. Canon Elizabeth Grundy, and all I could do was look out across the assembled multitude (officially 611 patrons!), and then up-up-up at the way-high ceiling, almost out of view.

Apparently everybody understood, though, because my awe-struck remark drew plenty of sympathetic chuckles.

But I’m getting ahead of things. Let’s start at the beginning.

Constant Companion and I arrived at Grace at about 10:30 Saturday morning; we had left home quite early, not wanting to take any chances with the San Francisco area’s notorious traffic (which, yes, can be ghastly even on weekends). As a result, we were first to arrive, and so killed some time by browsing through the cathedral’s gift shop. I couldn’t help noticing a counter-top rack of CDs that included several copies of Duke Ellington’s Concert of Sacred Music at Grace, recorded live September 16, 1965 ... but no sign of Fantasy’s recording of Guaraldi’s Mass, which had preceded Ellington by four months.

So I wanna know: What’s up with that?

(Ahem.)

We soon were joined by Marcia and Nancy Goodrich, two of the long-ago St. Paul’s Church choir members who, as children, had rehearsed with Guaraldi for roughly 18 months, while his Jazz Mass came together. They were excited, to say the least: positively bubbling with anticipation.

Mass appeal: Chapter 4

We’re one week away from the first of two Guaraldi Jazz Mass celebrations, with pianist Jim Martinez busily rehearsing with the Fair Oaks Presbyterian Church Choir each week. Last-minute preparations are being handled, from significant matters of musical fine-tuning, to the completely mundane (as in, have you ever tried to find a place to park in San Francisco?).

Somehow, though, all the details and hiccups will be worked out, likely at the last possible second: one of the great enigmas of the performance world. To quote Geoffrey Rush’s marvelous summation, delivered so well in Shakespeare in Love: “Allow me to explain about the theater business. The natural condition is one of insurmountable obstacles on the road to imminent disaster. Strangely enough, it all turns out well ... [but] I don’t know how. It’s a mystery.”

Meanwhile, at the other end of the country, the Rev. Bill Carter and his colleagues at the First Presbyterian Church of Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, are preparing for their similar tribute to Guaraldi, with an authentic church service setting of the Mass, to take place starting at 9:30 a.m. Sunday, September 6. Bill has labored intently for the past several months, working up Guaraldi’s jazz-inflected portions of the service by transcribing the few existing snippets of recordings. (Remember, Vince never wrote any of this music down.)

Bill has scored his transcriptions for jazz quartet (he’ll be on piano), two cantors (who will handle the trickier chants) and a small subset of his church’s choir.

He has generously shared details of his efforts in several earlier installments of this blog, and I’ll let him continue in that vein. Take it away, Bill!

Mass appeal: Chapter 3

The rehearsal began promptly at 10:45 a.m.; choir director John McDaniel runs a very tight ship.

I spent an engaging 90 minutes Sunday morning at the Fair Oaks (California) Presbyterian Church, watching and listening as McDaniel and his singers worked through numerous selections on the program of the upcoming Guaraldi Jazz Mass Tribute Concert, taking place at 2 p.m. Saturday, August 15, at San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral. The weekly rehearsals began July 5, and they’ll continue each Sunday morning through August 9, with a final dress rehearsal Thursday evening, August 13.

John McDaniel, standing on the riser, leads the Fair Oaks Presbyterian Church Choir in a
Guaraldi-inflected version of "Adore Devote (Humbly I Adore Thee)," while Jim Martinez
adds a swinging touch at the piano.

McDaniel’s all-adult choir is roughly 70 members strong, and their well-trained voices filled the large, classroom-style music room with a joyous sound. In a word, the group is terrific. After running through a couple of the jazzed-up hymns that Guaraldi arranged for his Mass, McDaniel surprised me — I was sitting quietly in the back of the room — by asking what I thought.

“Actually, it’s rather spooky,” I said, and his gaze adopted a puzzled expression, until I elaborated. “If I close my eyes, it’s like listening to the original LP recording. You all sound awesome.”

McDaniel smiled, clearly pleased. Gentle but undeniably happy laughter rippled through the crowd.

As the August 15 event is a concert, as opposed to a formal church service, McDaniel and pianist Jim Martinez are supplementing Guaraldi’s Jazz Mass elements with additional choral pieces. Thus, the Fair Oaks Presbyterian singers have been learning not only the Mass’ vocal selections — “Kyrie Eleison,” “Come with Us, O Blessed Jesus,” “Nicene Creed (I Believe),” “Adore Devote (Humbly I Adore Thee)” and the lovely background chant and “Hallelujahs” behind the primarily instrumental “Theme to Grace” — but also five other hymns: “Come to the Music,” “Praise God,” “Total Praise,” “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” and “Worthy to Be Praised.”

Martinez and his band, meanwhile, have been working up the Mass’ instrumental compositions: “In Remembrance of Me,” “The Holy Communion Blues” and the aforementioned “Theme to Grace.” Given Jim’s fondness for Guaraldi’s music, I’m sure he’ll also include a few other familiar tunes.

Homage to Vince

A new Guaraldi-hued album becomes available today, and you’ll definitely want it in your library.

Full disclosure demands that I acknowledge Northern California jazz pianist Jim Martinez as a friend; I wrote the liner notes for this album, and one of the tracks is dedicated to my own self. (It won’t be hard to figure out which one.) So yes, I admit to bias ... but that doesn’t make what follows any less valid.

Guaraldi has been gone for almost 40 years, but his signature themes are more popular than ever; all manner of jazz musicians have covered the “big three” — “Cast Your Fate to the Wind,” “Linus and Lucy” and “Christmas Time Is Here” — with more renditions popping up every year.

Martinez includes the first two on this album, which honors Guaraldi’s decisive musical influence on the neighborhood inhabited by Charlie Brown and the rest of Charles M. Schulz’s beloved Peanuts gang. But this isn’t a garden-variety collection of Guaraldi covers; eight of these 14 tracks are sparkling Martinez originals, all written and performed in Guaraldi’s larkish, Latinesque “Peanuts style.”

Martinez has Guaraldi’s facility for cute, clever melodic hooks that immediately sound familiar, even when heard for the first time. Better still, they’re catchy and instantly hummable, with the cheerful ebullience that always characterized Guaraldi’s performance style. You can’t help nodding in time to Martinez’s effervescent keyboard work; you also can’t help smiling.

He’s a generous leader, granting plenty of exposure to core band mates Josh Workman (guitar), Marcus Shelby (bass), and Tim Metz and Tony Savage, trading off on drums. Indeed, numerous tracks — such as Martinez’s “Chillin’ at the Warm Puppy Café” — feature engaging “duels” between Martinez and Workman, alternating vigorous solos and comping behind each other. (The title references the aptly named coffee shop adjacent to the Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, California.)

Workman’s deft guitar work also highlights the gentle, Brazilian-hued “Samba for Snoopy,” and the flamenco elements of the impish “Spike and the Cactus Club,” with its shifting time signatures; one imagines Snoopy’s rail-thin brother dancing with a rose between his teeth.

Shelby’s accomplished bass work powers the percussive “Bang!,” which Martinez fills with Guaraldi-esque flourishes; Shelby’s walking bass also drives the sassy “Blues for Beagles,” which gets additional snap from Lucas Bere’s smoldering tenor sax.

The lyrical “Waltz for Vince” feels very much like the style and delivery of Guaraldi’s early Fantasy albums, while “Schroeder Can Play” is a spirited finger-snapper granted plenty of swing by both Martinez and Shelby.

The band’s cover of “Cast Your Fate to the Wind” is slightly faster than Guaraldi’s version, with Martinez roaring through the lengthy improv bridge. “Linus and Lucy” also is up-tempo, with Metz’s propulsive drum work setting the stage for an initially faithful (but not slavish) adaptation that breaks away when Martinez takes the second bridge into entirely new directions. Guaraldi’s lively “Surfin’ Snoopy” is treated like a classic combo swinger, with Savage and Shelby setting the stage for vigorous solos by Bere, Workman and finally Martinez.

Martinez is equally adept at softer tempos, as with his worshipful handling of Guaraldi’s “Theme to Grace,” an interior theme from the Jazz Mass Guaraldi wrote for San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral in the mid-1960s. Workman and Martinez trade quiet, reverential solos in a manner evoking the latter’s numerous “Jazz Praise” albums. Similarly, Martinez’s “Thank You Sparky” is a hushed, heartfelt lament, with his keyboard backed solely by violin.

The album includes one vocal: a tender cover of Rod McKuen’s poignant title song to the 1969 film A Boy Named Charlie Brown, with Margie Rebekah Ruiz’s expressively soulful voice accompanied by Bere’s equally sweet sax solo and a string quartet.

The album is highlighted both by everybody’s tight solo and ensemble work, and by Martinez’s overall impish tone. Most of his original compositions are droll to begin with, and he enhances that exuberance with occasional quotes from sources as varied as Gershwin, “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and Guaraldi himself.

This album’s dexterous musicality certainly is a selling point, but — most of all — it’s fun. As with Guaraldi’s many albums, you can’t help wanting to play this one again ... and again and again.

So, what are you waiting for?

Mass appeal: Chapter 2

Continuing our updates regarding the approaching 50th anniversary Guaraldi Jazz Mass celebrations...

As mentioned in an earlier post, Pastor Bill Carter and his Presbybop band are mounting a re-creation of the entire Mass on September 6, accompanied by his First Presbyterian Church Choir in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania.

At the same time, and perhaps not entirely by coincidence — the network of “jazz worship” musicians likely being fairly intimate — Northern California pianist Jim Martinez and his combo are readying a concert-style tribute to Guaraldi’s Jazz Mass on August 15, at no less than Grace Cathedral itself. Jim and his band will be joined by the Fair Oaks Presbyterian Church Choir, along with a few members of the original St. Paul’s Episcopal Church choir who — as children — sang with Guaraldi’s band back in 1965.

The special guest list involved with this San Francisco event has expanded to include Charles Gompertz. As a young reverend, back in the day, he “hired” Guaraldi to compose and perform the Grace Cathedral Mass, and was on hand throughout the ambitious project’s 18-month gestation. He and Guaraldi became close friends, and Rev. Gompertz will share his memories of that long-ago event, during a pre-concert introduction.

Additionally, Bill Carter will fly westward, also to be part of the August 15 event at Grace Cathedral. Jim tells me that he’ll turn the keyboard over to Bill for at least a couple of tunes, although that detail hasn’t yet been firmed up. Meanwhile, Jim just set up an ambitious rehearsal schedule for the Fair Oaks Presbyterian Church Choir, with (so far) six sessions taking place weekly throughout July and early August, followed by a dress rehearsal on August 13.

As befits amiable colleagues, Bill and Jim agreed to divide the necessary transcription chores, and both have been quite busy with that sizable task. Bill very kindly sent along a detailed description of how that is proceeding, so I’ll turn the rest of this post over to him:

Transcribing the Guaraldi Mass is trickier than one might think. According to all accounts, Vince never played the music the same way twice, which is confirmed by the few existing recordings of the Mass. So I’ve worked toward a consensus, to ascertain “the mind of Vince,” knowing in advance that I probably will adapt the music in the moment of performance, just like any other jazz musician.

The three hymns are taken directly from the Episcopalian Church’s 1940 red hymnal. Only the melody is printed in that text, which grants great freedom to the jazz combo. While the melodies are sung rather strictly in unison, the instrumentalists offer a new harmonic setting for each hymn. In this way, the traditional melodies are blended with the jazz, and the congregation participates in the music-making.

Vince added a melodic commentary over each hymn, offering a flurry of notes in the piano’s upper register. His experience of backing up vocalists is obvious, and adds both energy and interest.

The opening hymn, "Come with Us, O Blessed Jesus," is based on the chorale of Bach’s “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring.” Only the first verse of John Henry Hopkins’ lyric is included in the hymnal, so everybody sings it. Back in the day, Vince improvised with his trio on the 32-bar form, and the congregation sang a reprise.

This may have been a first in recorded jazz history: a recording of a congregation sharing a tune with a jazz musician. Thelonious Monk did record “Abide with Me” and “Blessed Assurance,” but no congregation was in his studio! In the larger context of Christian hymnody, Vince is part of a venerable tradition. Good organists often have played interludes between hymn verses, sometimes improvising as they go ... although, alas, improvisation has largely become a lost art in the church.

Before the trio begins, the organist introduces the first hymn by playing it straight, right out of the hymnal. I chuckled at this, having survived a number of classically trained organists who were (to put it mildly) uncertain about the inclusion of jazz in the liturgy. When the trio enters with the choir, we immediately hear more energy and delight.

Vince takes the melody, written in the key of F major, and undergirds it with a G minor tonality. The opening note (A) is the ninth of the G minor chord, which is so Guaraldi! He loved the ninth of the chord as a melody note (which is the final melody note on “Christmas Time is Here”). He keeps the harmony static: a G minor for six measures, adjusting the major 7th, the 7th and the 6^th, to keep it moving. Measures 17-24 are on a C pedal tone (a single bass note). The whole piece is approached as an A-A-B-A jazz tune.

“Come, Holy Ghost,” the second hymn, sounds like a processional, with its steady beat and repeating eight-measure melody. Vince again translates the major key melody — this time in C major — to G minor. As with the first hymn, he offers a harmonic counter line, raising the fifth of the chord (a D) to an augmented fifth, then to a sixth, and back down. This hymn has no solo, although Vince’s fleet-fingered piano fills add a chattering commentary.

I chose not to transcribe his improvisations. That’s a personal matter for most jazz musicians. A transcription of a solo is for the sake of learning and understanding a musician’s style, not for the sake of replication or re-creation. And I’m certain that when my band members play his arrangements, they’ll create new solos of their own. That’s the fun of playing jazz.

The jewel of the three hymns is Thomas Aquinas’ communion hymn, correctly titled as “Adoro Te Devote.” Vince has squared off the flowing chant, in the key of D major, into easily sung quarter notes. The harmony is gentle, moving from D major to E minor to D over a F-sharp bass, and then to a G minor chord — again, such a Vince sound! — before a rapid cycle of fifths returns to a D chord.

The middle of the tune shimmers in a suspended chord over an A in the bass, before returning to the initial sequence. It’s a very satisfying harmonic sequence, and perfectly balances the experience of receiving the bread and wine of holy communion. Vince put it together perfectly. No wonder it was chosen as the flip-side for the 45 single Fantasy Records released to highlight “Theme to Grace”!

The translation of the Aquinas text is stilted and stiff; during our September presentation, my congregation will replace the words with the fresh translation in the new Presbyterian hymnal, under the title, “Thee We Adore, O Hidden Savior, Thee.” Once again, a blend of faithfulness and creativity will push the music forward, which is the promise of jazz within the liturgy.

In upcoming articles, I’ll report on Vince’s adaptations of the liturgical chant, and his introduction of three original compositions for the Mass.

*******

Work hard and practice well, gentlemen ... August and September will be upon us before you know it!