Matt Wilson's Christmas Tree-O
The Athenaeum's jazz program returns to the San Diego studio of the Athenaeum School of the Arts (4441 Park Boulevard, San Diego 92116) for a performance by acclaimed NYC-based drummer Matt Wilson, joined by multireedist Jeff Lederer and bassist Paul Sikivie.
Wilson made his most recent Athenaeum appearance earlier this year in the contemporary jazz ensemble Trio M, co-led by Wilson with Mark Dresser and Myra Melford. He returns in the lead of a stellar mainstream jazz trio that takes a swinging, high-spirited, and often humorous perspective on the beloved yet sometimes well-worn standards of the holiday season. The New York Times recognized Wilson as "easily one of the best drummers of his generation," and DownBeat featured him as "one of the most in-demand and versatile musicians in jazz." Of his Christmas Tree-O, JazzTimes commented, "Wilson has a great sense of humor and invests even the most serious challenging music with a certain mischievous glee.
This trio powers its way through tunes traditional ('Hark the Herald Angels Sing') and contemporary ('You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch'). Wilson's populist nature allows him to take a hokey tune like The Chipmunk Song' and treat it like an Ornette Coleman standard. This is, in short, serious fun and possibly the most creative holiday jazz album to come out this year."