Palos Verdes has its very own maestro, David Benoit. If you don’t know David Benoit’s name, you most certainly do know his music (along with Snoopy, Linus and Lucy). An accomplished jazz pianist, three-time Grammy nominee and producer, Benoit has worked with Ann-Margret and Connie Stevens and graced the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Charts not once but five times. Benoit’s most recognized work may be that of Charles M. Schulz and The Peanuts Movie but his passion is working with our local youth. Benoit (pronounced: Ben-Wah) has charted over 35 albums since 1980. Raised in a home infused with guitar, piano and impromptu ‘jam sessions’ Benoit’s parents ingrained music as an essential part of life.

By 17, Benoit was playing professionally, chasing a dream, a calling. Remarkably, he never went to music school, just hit the streets and played in clubs. “Around 1970-71, there was a club called The Polynesian Room on the Redondo pier. I knew the bass player who was in a Top 40 band and looking for a keyboard player. I was in high school [Mira Costa High School] and I got the gig playing every weekend.”

In 1976 Benoit began his career as a musical director and conductor for Lainie Kazan, then to similar roles with singer-actresses Ann-Margret and Connie Stevens. In 1987, his debut GRP Records album, Freedom at Midnight made it to number 5 on Billboard’s Top Contemporary Jazz Albums Chart. By 2000, many chart-topping albums later and after the death of Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz, Benoit released Here’s to You, Charlie Brown: 50 Great Years. The album made it to number 2 on the Top Jazz Albums chart. Fast forward to 2015 and Benoit was asked to be a part of the acclaimed feature film, The Peanuts Movie. “We were honored to work with David Benoit on The Peanuts Movie. He came to play the iconic and beloved “Linus and Lucy Theme” for the film’s opening titles, by Vince Guaraldi. He brought the Guaraldi legacy and touch,that won the hearts of Charles M. Schulz and his partner, Lee Mendelson to be a key part of the series,” shares Danielle Diego EVP/ Head of Music, 20th Century Studios.

It was 2001 when Benoit embraced dedicating himself to the Pacific Vision Youth Symphony (formerly the Asia America Youth Symphony], which is one facet of the umbrella organization- Asia America Symphony Association.
The Pacific Vision Youth Symphony provides qualified young musicians up to age 18 with an innovative training program to develop their talents and prepare them for multi-faceted careers as orchestral musicians. Benoit’s vision was to open artistic and cultural borders by fusing the music of East and West with classical and jazz performances. The orchestra’s first performance on April 28, 2002 was to a sold-out audience.
Since 2002 the Asia America Symphony Association has debuted many new programs, such as“Notes Bring Hope” which provides ukulele group music instruction with participants getting to keep the ukuleles. There are other highlights including Justin Klunk, who started playing saxophone with the orchestra in the seventh grade. Klunk has now toured with Ariana Grande, Lindsey Stirling and many others.
Stoic in his commitment to our Peninsula community , Benoit recently performed for PVE Neighborhood Watch’s 40th Anniversary celebration.

“This orchestra that I founded in 2001, as a labor of love, was to encourage young musicians to play in an orchestra with all kinds of musicians and play in different styles from classical to jazz. We want to encourage soloists to play with the orchestra as well as motivate young composers.”

To keep the young musicians engaged during quarantine, Benoit recently recorded with them at a local studio in Gardena [Black Light Studios]. Alison and Dan Jamele, members of ASA board, approached Benoit about doing a recording with the kids in sectionals. “I liked the idea of recording with the woodwinds and then the strings as it is very much how a lot of professional orchestras record in layers. The good thing was I had a chance to be in front of them. We have kids as young as 12 years old, who still need a little direction. This was a great way to get them in front of me. It was supposed to be a gap year for me, but who knew COVID would hit. The acting director, Joe Marino, was already preparing the season. So, we each picked a tune to do with the kids,” explains Benoit. Taking a two-tiered approach , Benoit and team started with a fun, easy and recognizable tune the “James Bond Theme” and it proved to be a good choice. It is short, under three minutes and didn’t stress the orchestra out. The final recording sounded exactly like a legitimate final mix with the addition of a few older alumni playing on the recording as well.
The second piece chosen was by Leroy Anderson. A challenging “Serenata” around four minutes. However, “Serenata” was written for a large orchestra and with Pacific Vision only having 40 kids Benoit needed to instill the musicians with confidence and was incredibly patient as the musical engineer pulled off another wonderfully recorded track. The end result: “James Bond” is a fun popular track and “Seranata” is the classically-oriented more orchestral track.
“This was almost like working with a professional group. They had their pencils out and were ready to make the necessary changes. This is all the more reason it’s important for the kids to have someone working with them- guiding them,” say Benoit. While some consider him one of the founding fathers of smooth jazz due to his prominent spot in rotation on 94.7 The Wave, for David Benoit, his greatest life work has been working with our kids- developing their love of music, instruments, self-expression, creativity and confidence. Just like Snoopy, music makes him happy.

We encourage new members for the Pacific Vision Youth Symphony. Upcoming season auditions are in January.
For more on David Benoit and Pacific
Vision Youth Symphony visit, AASymphony.org.