If the holidays are as much about warm nostalgia as religious and seasonal celebration, then George Winston’s Boulder Theater show could hardly be better timed.
The Grammy-winning new-age pianist has never stopped moving forward over his nearly 40-year career, but he’s most closely associated with his seminal seasonal albums “Autumn,” “December” and “Winter Into Spring,” all of which he reissued this year on his own Dancing Cat Records.
He’s also noted for his love of Vince Guaraldi, who penned the ubiquitous, jaunty tunes for the “Peanuts” TV specials (think “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown”). In fact, last year’s “Love Will Come: The Music of Vince Guaraldi” was Winston’s second volume of songs from the late composer.
We caught up with the thoughtful, bearded songwriter in advance of his Tuesday concert. (Winston will donate 100 percent of his merchandise sales to the Salvation Army, which will be accepting donations of canned food.)
Q: What originally inspired albums such as “Autumn” and “December”?
A: I grew up in eastern Montana, with no TV and only one radio station, so really, the seasons were all of the entertainment. There weren’t really even special events or movie theaters. So when it’s autumn, we rake the leaves, and in the winter we go sledding, and in the spring there’s baseball, and in the summer there’s swimming. It was very much dictated by the seasons, and they were very distinct and different from each other there.
Q: How did you translate that into music?
A: I just thought of music as seasonal, like “This is a summer song, this is a winter song.” I thought of everything that way. It came natural. If it sounds like a certain song to me, then it is. It might not be to somebody else, but that’s all I’ve got to go on. There are certain ragas in India that could be a hot summer day tune, but I might I say, “No, it’s a cold winter night.” And all listeners are correct. There’s no good or bad, just what you feel like listening to at that moment.
Q: Some critics have called “December” the mother of all solo instrumental albums, and it’s stood up exceedingly well over the past few decades. Would you agree with that?
A: Ha … No, it’s one of the grandsons, because the mother is Vince Guaraldi’s “A Charlie Brown Christmas” soundtrack. Certainly, that’s an inspiration for “December,” but I wanted to do my Vince Guaraldi album, my winter album. And it was a very seasonal album because of the nature of the material — and a lot of Vince’s songs are seasonal too. The first six Charlie Brown soundtracks were all seasonal-related.
Q: You’re very calm on stage, even going as far as to not wear shoes when you play. Does that help keep you centered, or is it more of a performance choice?
A: Oh, it gives me better pedal control. Foot noise is more the reason than anything else. Some stages are kind of hollow and you hear “Boom, boom, boom!” It helps my feet feel the pedals better.
Q: From covers and seasonal albums to New Orleans R&B songs, you’ve covered a lot of ground over the last four decades. Do you ever set out to write a certain kind of album?
A: I’ve never composed something on purpose. It just happens sometimes. If you want to say something, you’ll find the means to say it, whether it’s someone else’s music or something you write. There’s always a way to do it. It’s like watching the sunsset. “You say, ‘OK, now I pick up my camera.”
John Wenzel: 303-954-1642 or jwenzel@denverpost.com
GEORGE WINSTON. Instrumental piano music. Boulder Theater, 2032 14th St.Tuesday.7 p.m. $31.50-$53.50. 303-786-7030 or .
