| Folks, greetings from SpragueLand. Off and running…
Some good news floating in through the supreme algorithm of the sky. Vocalist and songwriter Nina Francis makes the cover of the SD Troubadour! You may know her through concerts that we’ve played together over the years or maybe through her own shows or YouTube vids. She’s full of talent and I’m so happy to see it going well for her. Check out her story below…
Some sad news too, longtime jazz sax man Joe Marillo has left the planet. A bunch of us didn’t even know he was ill with cancer. It took him down and we’ll really miss him. He was such an important figure to aspiring jazz players of my generation. He taught my brother Tripp how to play sax. He shared his magic jazz scales and they’re still part of our improvisational wheelhouse even today. Joe organized concerts and paved the way for live music in San Diego. He talked up a storm, had attitude to spare, and had a generous and helpful outlook that included everyone in his hurricane. He was a good man indeed and may he blow 12 choruses of the blues up there in heaven… Here’s a recent article on him.  Joe and Peter at the Coyote Grill in Carlsbad a few years back. Last week, we had a super cool Encinitas Library hit with Beth!  Beth and Peter at the Encinitas Library. and a magic meeting of the oldsters at Dizzy’s with Bob Magnusson and Jim Plank!  Bob, Jim, and Peter playing trio music at Dizzy’s.
The theme of the piece is to sonically instill the idea of a safe haven, a sanctuary. This idea was galvanized after a concert Beth and I played for some teenage African orphans at a center in San Diego. This place was their sanctuary and they were rebuilding their lives after leaving dangerous situations in their homeland. They were an enthusiastic audience and afterwards we visited and I was inspired by their stories. Yes they were somewhat typical teenagers but I also sensed this deep appreciation they had for the fragility of life. They we’re starting anew. The name of the new composition is the Sanctuary Suite. It’s in three movements and it’s fast, slow, and faster. We’re having fun pulling it together (the final rehearsal is tonight) and I can’t wait for you to hear it. This week there are two opportunities to check it out, one in North County and the second is in Liberty Station in San Diego. Look to the GIG page for the details and hopefully we’ll see you there.  Camarada ensemble with Peter, Duncan, Beth, Fred, and Gunnar. OK good folks, that’s the rap for this week. Thanks for tuning in and hope to see you out there in realtime… all best, Peter |
OK, the big news for this week is the WORLD debut of a new extended composition of mine. The art ensemble Camarada with flutist Beth Ross-Buckley at the helm, last year commissioned me to write a big piece for them. The ensemble is Fred Benedetti on guitar, Beth on flute, Gunnar Biggs on bass, Duncan Moore on drums, and me on guitar.