by Kevin McLaughlin
Originally published on Cleveland.com
Cyrus Chestnut is good company for the holidays. On Friday, December 8 he seemed genuinely delighted, even a little surprised, to have so many people in attendance in Mandel Hall at Severance Music Center to hear him play.
“Wow,” he said, walking onstage with his trio, “So many people!” And, though he didn’t actually say it, he probably thought, “Well, as long as you’re here, do you know the Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack? It goes like this…”
Chestnut is an endearing presence onstage. His shyness and slightly awkward patter are kept out of the squeamish zone by the grand virtuosity of his piano playing. The minute after telling the story about his fame in high school for his ability to play the Charlie Brown song (Linus and Lucy) and then forgetting the next song on his setlist, he promptly whirled around to summon magnificence from the keyboard.