David Benoit (musician)

David Bryan Benoit (born August 18, 1953) is an American jazz pianist, composer and producer, based in Los Angeles, California, United States. Benoit has charted over 25 albums since 1980, and has been nominated for three Grammy Awards.[1] He is also music director for the Asia America Symphony Orchestra and the Asia America Youth Orchestra. Furthermore, crediting Vince Guaraldi as an inspiration, Benoit has participated both as performer and music director for the later animated adaptations of the Peanuts comic strip, such as the feature film, The Peanuts Movie, restoring Guaraldi's musical signature to the franchise.

David Benoit
David Benoit performing at Jazz Alley on March 16, 2007
Background information
Birth nameDavid Bryan Benoit
Born (1953-08-18) August 18, 1953
Bakersfield, California, U.S.
GenresJazz, smooth jazz, easy listening
Occupation(s)Musician, composer, producer
InstrumentsPiano
Years active1976–present
LabelsAVI, GRP, Peak
Websitewww.benoit.com

Early life

David Bryan Benoit was born in Bakersfield, California, on August 18, 1953.[2][3] He studied piano at age 13 with Marya Cressy Wright and continued his training with Abraham Fraser, who was the pianist for Arturo Toscanini. He attended Mira Costa High School.[4] He focused on theory and composition at El Camino College, studying orchestration with Donald Nelligan, and later took film scoring classes taught by Donald Ray at UCLA. His education in music conducting began with Heiichiro Ohyama, assistant conductor of the L.A. Philharmonic, and continued with Jan Robertson, head of the conducting department at UCLA. He worked with Jeffrey Schindler, Music Director for the UC Santa Barbara symphony orchestra.

Career

He began his career as a musical director and conductor for Lainie Kazan in 1976, before moving on to similar roles with singer/actresses Ann-Margret and Connie Stevens.

His GRP Records debut album, Freedom at Midnight (1987), made it to number 5 on Billboard's Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart.[5] Benoit also says that it was his favorite album to produce, because it was when "everything came together," as he stated in an interview on SmoothViews.com. An earlier "live in the studio" (direct record, no mixing or overdubs) album on Spindletop Records, This Side Up (previously 1986), was re-released on the GRP label.

Waiting for Spring (1989) made it to number 1 on Billboard's Top Jazz Albums chart.[5] Shadows, from 1991, made it to number 2 on the Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart.[5]

Out of respect for one of his main influences, Bill Evans, he dedicated his 1992 album Letter to Evan to him.[6]

Many of his songs employ a string section, most notably on his American Landscape (1997) and Orchestral Stories (2005) albums.

In 2000, after the death of Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz, he released a memorial album entitled Here's to You, Charlie Brown: 50 Great Years. Collaborators included the chorus group Take 6, guitarist Marc Antoine and trumpeter Chris Botti. He also did the music for "Peanuts" in the later specials, after Vince Guaraldi's death. The album made it to number 2 on the Top Jazz Albums chart.[5] An earlier cover of Guaraldi's "Linus and Lucy", recorded in 1985 for the aforementioned album This Side Up, enjoyed notable radio airplay and helped to launch the smooth jazz genre.

Benoit has arranged, conducted, and performed music for many popular pop and jazz artists, including Russ Freeman and the Rippingtons (he was involved with the band in its formative stages, and they often appeared on each other's albums), Kenny Loggins, Michael Franks, Patti Austin, Dave Koz, Kenny Rankin, Faith Hill, David Lanz, Cece Winans, David Pack, David Sanborn, The Walt Disney Company and Brian McKnight. He paid homage to one of his chief influences, Leonard Bernstein, by playing, arranging, and performing on The Songs of West Side Story, an all-star project produced by David Pack which achieved gold sales status. Benoit contributed to the Rippingtons's debut album, Moonlighting, which was named the most influential contemporary jazz album of all time by Jazziz magazine.[7]

The Benoit/Freeman Project album was given 412 stars by AllMusic, the highest rating Benoit has received from the service, and the album made it to number 2 on the Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart from Billboard.[5][8]

Benoit's music can be heard during The Weather Channel's "Local on the 8s" segments. His version of "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" by Vince Guaraldi is included on the album The Weather Channel Presents: Smooth Jazz II (2008). In May 2011, Benoit began hosting a morning program at jazz radio station KKJZ in Long Beach, California.[9]

Benoit has performed at the White House for three U.S. Presidents: Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, and George Bush Sr. Other dignitaries he performed for include Colin Powell, Hillary Clinton, Al Gore, former Los Angeles mayors Tom Bradley and James Hahn, as well as Senator Dick Durbin.

On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed David Benoit (musician) among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.[10]

Awards and honors

Discography

As leader

YearTitleLabelNotes
1977Heavier Than YesterdayBlue Moon
1980Can You ImagineBlue Moon
1982StagesBlue Moon
1983DigitsBlue Moon
1983Christmas TimeBlue Moon
1984Waves of RavesAVI, Blue Moon
1986This Side UpEn Pointe/Spindletop
1988Every Step of the WayGRP
1987Freedom at MidnightGRP
1988Urban DaydreamsGRP
1989Waiting for SpringGRP
1990Inner MotionGRP
1991ShadowsGRP
1992Letter to EvanGRP
1994Shaken Not StirredGRP
1994The Benoit/Freeman ProjectGRPwith Russ Freeman
1995The Stars Fell on HenriettaVarèse Sarabandesoundtrack
1996Remembering ChristmasGRP
1997American LandscapeGRP
1999Professional DreamerGRP
2000Great Composers of JazzVertical Jazz/Fine Tune
2000Here's to You, Charlie Brown: 50 Great Years!GRP
2002Fuzzy LogicGRP
2003Right Here, Right NowGRP/Universal/Verve
2004The Benoit/Freeman Project 2Peakwith Russ Freeman
2005Orchestral StoriesPeak/Universal
2006Full CircleConcord/Peak
2006StandardsKind of BlueBrian Bromberg and Gregg Bissonette
2008HeroesConcord/Peak
2008Jazz for PeanutsPeak/Universal
2010EarthglowConcord/Heads Up/Peak
2012ConversationHeads Up
20152 in LoveConcordwith Jane Monheit
2015BelieveConcordDavid Benoit Trio, f. Jane Monheit & All American Boys Chorus
2017The Steinway SessionsSteinway
2017So NiceShanachiewith Marc Antoine
2019David Benoit and FriendsShanachie

As sideman

References

  1. Archived January 17, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  2. Gilbert, Mark (2002). Kernfeld, Barry (ed.). The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. 1 (2nd ed.). New York: Grove's Dictionaries Inc. p. 191. ISBN 1-56159-284-6.
  3. Yanow, Scott. "David Benoit". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  4. "Hall Of Fame | Mira Costa High School Alumni". miracostaalumni.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  5. David Benoit. - Charts & Awards: Billboard Albums. - AllMusic. - Retrieved: 2008-07-20
  6. Josef Woodard (April 8, 1993). "Dont Worry, Play Happy Jazz : David Benoit is sure to draw heavily on his latest album, 'Letter to Evan,' when he performs in Ventura on Saturday". Los Angeles Times.
  7. "David Benoit Biography". Boosey & Hawkes, Inc. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
  8. David Benoit. - Discography: Main Albums. - Allmusic. - Retrieved: 2008-07-20
  9. "Pianist David Benoit to host morning show at jazz station KKJZ-FM". Los Angeles Times.
  10. Rosen, Jody (June 25, 2019). "Here Are Hundreds More Artists Whose Tapes Were Destroyed in the UMG Fire". The New York Times. Retrieved June 28, 2019.
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