Jerry Navarro, a Franklin-based musician, produce and composer, has put together a special performance playing the soundtrack to “A Charlie Brown Christmas” at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 22 at the Historic Artcraft Theatre. He and his jazz trio will be joined by up-and-coming artist Brooklyn Elle and a choir of local children, as well as other artists from the area.
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“A Charlie Brown Christmas” is a cultural icon for so many reasons.
The classic characters, the critique of the holiday’s commercialism, the refocus on the true reason for the season — each has made the classic cartoon resonate with generation after generation.
But nothing may be as enduring and endearing as the music that fills the beloved Christmas special.
“The music is lighting in a bottle,” said Jerry Navarro, a Franklin musician, producer and composer. “They captured the times of what was going on, and they just got it right.”
Longtime Peanuts fans and music lovers alike have a chance to hear the holiday special’s iconic soundtrack in its entirety, as the Jerry Navarro Trio takes the stage at the Historic Artcraft Theatre for a special concert on Dec. 22. The group will be joined by Nashville recording artist Brooklyn Elle and a choir made up of local children as they play composer Vince Guaraldi’s classic songs from “A Charlie Brown’s Christmas,” as well as other Christmas favorites.
A handful of other musicians are also set to play that evening.
The concert should prove to be a fun chance to enjoy a beloved work of music, while discovering the breadth of talent percolating in this area, Navarro said.
“We’re going to render the whole record for everyone, and hopefully everyone has a good time,” he said.
Navarro, a Franklin resident, is an accomplished bassist as well as a music producer and composer. He moved to the area from Nashville, Tennessee, where he had studied music performance and composition at Belmont University before becoming ingrained in the famed city’s music scene.
He was involved with the Nashville Jazz Workshop, and became a core member for Pit Boss of the MuzikMafia, an informal collection of artists pushing back against the overcommercialization of music. Navarro has shared the stage with artists ranging from Bon Jovi to Dave Matthews to George Clinton.
Moving to central Indiana in 2020, he started working with the membership-based studio and rehearsal hall, SoundSpace, and forming Indiana’s first member-based record label, Frequency Spot.
During his transition to Indiana, Navarro became familiar with the Artcraft Theatre and the organization that operates it, Franklin Heritage.
“I was looking for studio space of my own, and Franklin was it,” he said. “I struck up a friendship with the city of Franklin and Rob (Shilts, executive director of Franklin Heritage), who offered his space. He couldn’t offer me a studio, but he could offer me a space for my artists to play.”
On a regular basis, Navarro would have artists on his label perform at the Artcraft in informal concerts. His first year here, he suggested bringing a tradition he started in Nashville to Franklin: playing “A Charlie Brown Christmas” soundtrack on stage.
“We did it about eight or nine years annually in Nashville, and it sold out every year. It was a huge to-do,” he said. “I figured I may as well continue the tradition here in Franklin, Indiana.”
Shilts loved the idea, and for the first time last year, Navarro and his musicians put on the show. They had a good response from the community, even though everything came together in about two weeks and had limited advertising.
“Most people know and love and cherish Vince Guaraldi’s version and his music of ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas,’” Navarro said.
For this year’s show, Navarro has planned a bigger, better version of the performance. He, along with Isaac Velasquez on drums and Walter Scott on piano, will play all of the classics, from “Linus and Lucy” to “Christmas Time is Here” to “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.” He has lined up a group of artists to join the show, led by Elle, an up-and-coming vocalist drawing attention from major music labels. Some other newer acts will be showcased around the Artcraft as well.
“It will kind of be a circus of artists spread out the first half hour after doors open up,” he said.
To add more depth and whimsy to the show, Navarro has invited a group of Johnson County choir students to perform as well.
His wife, Heidy Navarro, is a small business owner, having founded Royal Room Salt Spa. She will be sponsoring a free raffle for goods and services from local Johnson County women business owners, and the Royal Room Salt Spa.
All of it comes together to get the public gathered for a special holiday event.
“I believe in bringing community together. Music is a powerful way to do that,” Jerry Navarro said.
