WE HAVE REACHED CAPACITY FOR THE CONCERT, SO PLEASE TUNE IN TO HEAR THE LIVE BROADCAST!
'Tis the season! This year's KNKX Holiday Jam Concert and Live Broadcast will take place on Monday, Dec. 2 from 7-8 p.m. in a new location—the Meydenbauer Center Theatre in downtown Bellevue. Also new this year: the free concert features music from the timeless and light-hearted holiday classic, A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Renowned Northwest pianist Bill Anschell and his trio (with Chris Symer on bass and Brad Boal on drums) will put their own spin on Vince Guaraldi’s score, plus some other holiday favorites. KNKX makes it a point to include students in its holiday productions and this year is no exception. Bellevue High School’s vocal jazz group, the Bellairs, will sing “Christmas Time is Here” as part of the Charlie Brown program, and a jazz combo from Bellevue High School will warm up the stage prior to the event. KNKX jazz host Abe Beeson is the master of ceremonies. Doors open at 6 p.m. The KNKX Holiday Jam will be broadcast and streamed live.
If you already have tickets, please note that seating is not guaranteed so arrive early.
KNKX is once again partnering with Northwest Harvest on our Winter Fund Drive (Dec. 11-12) and we will be accepting donations of non-perishable food items at the Holiday Jam event.
The theater is on the second floor — when you exit the elevator, it’s on your left.
Meydenbauer Center is located at 11100 N.E. 6th Street in Bellevue. Get information about parking and directions here.
Hear the Holiday Jam on 88.5 KNKX or stream it live at knkx.org. (We are preempting that Monday's encore edition of KNKX's Sound Effect program in order to air the Holiday Jam concert.) We'll rebroadcast the Holiday Jam on Christmas Day at 11 a.m.
ABOUT BILL ANSCHELL
"No matter where he plays on the keyboard, Anschell sounds like no other pianist." — JazzTimes
Pianist, arranger, composer, jazz author and humorist, and Seattle native Bill Anschellhas studied and performed across the country and around the world. He has a degree in Music from Wesleyan University, where he worked closely with saxophone great Bill Barron. During his years in Atlanta, Bill created JazzSouth, an internationally syndicated radio show and led his trio at events such as the 1996 Summer Olympic Games and the Montreux Atlanta Festival.
He also worked with vocalist Nnenna Freelon, serving as her pianist, arranger and musical director, performing at the North Sea Jazz Festival, Monterey Jazz Festival, the Kennedy Center and on six European tours. Bill’s piano work and arrangements were featured on Freelon’s 1996 Grammy-nominated Concord release, Shaking Free. His own CDs have received critical acclaim and have been included on lists of top jazz releases nationally.
In 2001, Anschell was selected by the American Composers Forum for its Composer-in-the-Schools program; his residency included a commissioned piece for chamber orchestra. Since 2003, his original compositions have received widespread cable and network exposure, appearing on programs including NBC’s "The West Wing," "NCIS: LA," HBO’s acclaimed series "The Wire," and HBO’s Bessie Smith biopic, "Bessie."
Bill has won five Golden Ear Awards (Earshot Jazz) including Northwest Jazz Recording of the Year for his 2011 CD, Figments. He’s well known as a jazz humorist, writing jazz vignettes and a monthly jazz etiquette column. His satirical essay, "Careers in Jazz," is the all-time most-read piece on leading jazz website allaboutjazz.com and was featured in a Wall Street Journal story on jazz audiences. In 2014, he won the inaugural Paul Desmond Award, allaboutjazz.com’s celebration of the funniest jazz artists.
