Dave Koz To Bring His Annual Holiday Christmas Show Back to Playhouse Square in December

Saxophonist Dave Koz, who’s released eight Christmas albums, will bring his annual Christmas tour to Connor Palace Theatre on Sunday, Dec. 8, to celebrate the tour’s 27th anniversary.

This year, the tour features singer-guitarist Jonathan Butler, saxophonist Vincent Ingala, guitarist Adam Hawley and singer Rebecca Jade. Koz and Hawley will perform their current Top 20 single, “Automatic,” during the holiday show.

An advocate for instrumental music and an unapologetic smooth jazz icon, Koz spoke recently via phone from his Los Angeles home.

Have you started rehearsing for the holiday tour?
Not yet. A few years ago, we would rehearse in a studio in Los Angeles and then do a dress rehearsal. Now, we do it all in one fell swoop. We do our rehearsals in Nashville. We are there for about a week. We have a big Thanksgiving family dinner with our road personnel. We get on a bus around midnight on Thanksgiving night and travel to the first city. Our first show this year is in Atlanta, and then, we’re off to the races.

How soon do you begin planning each year’s show?
Because there are a lot of moving parts, we do have to plan in advance. We have four band members and five artists and eight crew. It’s not possible to just start thinking about it a month out. We started discussing this tour in September and putting the pieces together and then worked together to build it. It’s very democratic, and whatever is best for the show wins.

This marks the 27th iteration of your holiday show. Talk about how this year’s show differs from other shows you’ve done in the past.
Every year, we mix it up with our artists. We have two brand-new artists who have never joined the tour before. Adam Hawley is a fantastic guitar player who I feel is the future of contemporary jazz guitar; he has amassed 16 No. 1 singles his short career. Vincent Ingala is one of these young whiz kids. He’s an incredible musician and fantastic entertainer. We have two musical veterans with us too. One of them is Jonathan Butler, who is like my brother. He’s probably done half the tours for the past 27 years. Rebecca Jade has been with us for the past three years. She is a great singer. Between us, we have put together something that is nostalgic and traditional and has some elements that people want to see every year. Because we come together every year with the intention to give people something they haven’t seen before, there is a healthy mix of new songs and new arrangements and things like Jonathan Butler singing “O Holy Night.” That is a staple of our show, and I think if we didn’t do it, there would be rioting in the lobby.

Talk about your new single with Adam Hawley and how it fits into the show.
It’s a song called “Automatic.” It’s not a Christmas song. The only year we did all Christmas music was last year. I’m not even sure why. This year, we’ll do hit songs from all the artists, and Adam and I will do our new hit song. It’s new and fun to play. It fits in nicely with where we are now. We’ve been through a brutal election. We’re looking for fun and high-energy and escape. Sometimes, when you can feel songs and get your body moving, this is the kind of escapism that we all kind of need right now.

I like how funky that tune is.
Adam is an amazing producer and has produced hits for himself and for other artists. I wanted to tap into that youthful energy. I’m 61, and he’s about 41, so it’s a big difference. I love collaborating and tapping into other people’s musicality and seeing where that takes me.

You’ve had a busy 2024. Talk about some of the highlights.
Well, we had a brand new cruise called Somma that happened in September and went along the Italian coastline. I also did a lot of traveling to places I had never been. One was to do a big TV show and live concert in Saudi Arabia. I went there for a week. That was a new experience that I really enjoyed and learned a lot from. Musically, the thing that inspired me the most and pushed me to the brink was working with the incredible Bob James. He’s an 84-year-old piano legend. We decided to do a couple of songs together and record them for our Somma guests. We loved the experience so much that we did a couple of more songs. We just finished that album this past week. It’s so different for both of us. It’s just us. It’s just piano and saxophone. It was a live recording, and there are no overdubs and fixing. It brought me to the edge of my own musicality. But the truth is that this was an exercise in dealing with my own imperfection. As a perfectionist, that is not easiest thing to do, but I loved the process and am so proud of this music. The album will come out sometime in the spring.

You also won a Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award for your charity work. Talk about how important that is.
These are the things I learned from my mom, who was an exceptional human being. Her heart beat for those who are less fortunate and in trouble. One of her favorite charities is Starlight Children’s Foundation. It’s kids who are in the hospital for a long time. These are fearless young people who are dealing with these often life threatening illnesses. I saw firsthand the work they do to brighten the lives of these kids and their families. When a kid is in the hospital, the entire family is in the hospital. We started raising money and raising awareness and doing silent auctions on our cruises. Over the last 25 years, we have quietly raised over two million dollars. That caught the attention of someone in the government. They told me they wanted to make this award, which is the highest award to a private citizen. They give about 100 a year. I was incredibly honored and blown away.

Cleveland has been a great market for this tour in the past. Talk about that a bit.
I think out of 27 years, we did about 25 in Cleveland. Cleveland is a music town and music appreciation is high on the list for everybody. We feel that. That’s a palpable feeling. Since we’ve been doing shows at Playhouse Square, that just helps the Christmas feeling. It’s part of the venue. When they walk through, they are ready. It’s also that sweet spot and about ten days or two weeks before Christmas. Thanksgiving weekend is sometimes early, but by the time we get to Cleveland, everyone is in that holiday spirit. We love playing for that audience, and I have loved it for so many years. As long as we do the tour, Cleveland has to be on the itinerary or I am not gonna show up. I can imagine people come to Playhouse Square multiple days to see a variety of shows, I’m honored that people come to see ours. I know there are lots of options. When they come out to see this show and bring so much energy and beauty and good vibes, we feel it on the stage, and that’s why we keep coming back there.

Dave Koz & Friends Christmas Tour 2024, 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 8. Connor Palace, 1615 Euclid Ave., 216-771-4444. Tickets:$45-$85, playhousesquare.org.

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