Multiple Tampa Bay musicians and ensembles visited the WUSF Performance Studio to share a special holiday song for the 2023 festive season. Listen to each song that will be released from December 21 to December 25 below.

Lineup:

Dan Bremer - 12/19/23

Jeremy Carter Group - 12/21/23

Matthew Roxas - 12/23/23

The House Cats - 12/25/23

"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" | Dan Bremer | 12/19/23

About Dan Bremer: A freelance musician in NYC for 40 years. Plays bassoon, clarinet, sax and piano. Played venues from the Staten Island Ferry to Lincoln Center and everything in between. Taught at Wagner College and Staten Island Community College. As a woodwind player performed with the Staten Island Chamber Music Players, the Staten Island Symphony, 7th Army Band, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. As a legit pianist, he worked as an accompanist for soloists, choirs, community theater, musical director for Staten Island Children's Theater. As a jazz pianist, he played clubs, hotels and restaurants, including Birdland, the 21 Club, the Riverside Cafe. 

Dan retired and moved to Clearwater in 2016. He was doing a series of programs at local libraries in Pinellas County called The Great American Songbook, performing with vocalist Catherine Costa and which included stories, anecdotes and a bit of history about the composers, lyricists and performers of the music from the American Songbook. The Covid pandemic ended that series. YouTube channel: @danielbremerpianoplayer418 

"Christmas Time is Here" | Jeremy Carter Group | 12/21/23

Jeremy Carter is a true study of Jazz music, Nebraska native, and understudy of the Southeast’s best professors and musicians.  Jazzy funk riffs, screaming over the sounds of the BSP is truly a spectacle, for the ears and the eyes.  If you find yourself stop dancing in a dropped draw fashion, it is probably because of Carter’s riffs, his soul pouring over the speakers like sand.  Carter has recorded with numerous national acts and has performed, recorded and produced solo albums and cameo appearances too many too list.

Personnel:

Jeremy Carter - saxophone

Elias Tona - bass

LaRue Nickelson - guitar

Rod Alnord - drums

"Fantasia on Greensleeves" | Matthew Roxas | 12/23/23

Born and raised in Leawood, Kansas, Angelus Matthew C. Roxas began playing piano at the age of three, and after a couple of years, he studied under Ms. Ying-Yu Emily Yeh. He began competing at a young age, and his passion and determination led him to perform four times at Carnegie Hall in New York, an invitation to perform at the Royal Albert Hall in London, England, and a performance at the Auditorium Parco della Musica, Teatro Studio, in Rome, Italy. He obtained a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance Degree in 2022 at the University of Missouri - Kansas City Conservatory where he studied under Dr. Thomas Rosenkranz. Matthew is currently studying under Dr. Svetozar Ivanov as he pursues a Master of Music in Piano Performance Degree at the University of South Florida with an accompanying assistantship. Matthew teaches as a piano instructor at the USF Community Music Project. Outside of the piano, Matthew enjoys photography and making coffee.

"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" | The House Cats | 12/25/23

Travis Van Bumble and Stephanie Ruscito are The House Cats: a husband and wife, guitar and vocals duo, playing straight ahead-jazz, bebop, and swing. Travis and Stephanie grew up near Clearwater, and have been playing music together for over ten years. Travis’ walking baselines and chord melodies give The House Cats a big, swinging sound, but as soon as they play a ballad you’ll feel the mood shift, and see the two’s chemistry shine. The House Cats pull inspiration from many of the greatest names in American jazz including Ella Fitzgerald, Joe Pass, Wes Montgomery and Sarah Vaughan. Their repertoire consists of timeless tunes from The Great American song book; the pair hopes to breathe new life into these songs with original and inspired arrangements.

Personnel:

Travis Van Bumble - guitar

Stephanie Ruscito - vocals