Notes on the Beach to bring music history to Rehoboth Jan. 31

When professional bassist Jeff Cooper retired to Ocean View in 2013, he said he thought his days of playing music were over. 

But in 2016, Cooper and his longtime friend and bandmate, pianist Glenn Pearson, couldn’t resist the urge to perform. They formed Notes on the Beach, a jazz-influenced band that appears locally.

“Initially, I had no intention of playing down here,” Cooper said. “But I thought that I would love to bring our style to the area. We are not, what you’d call, your standard beach fare.”

The two began playing together in high school in Washington, D.C., back in 1968. They both attended Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, Md., and from there, they continued their careers as musicians.

Pearson played for audiences that included former presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and even kings. Cooper played for Broadway productions and worked for the Kennedy Center and National Theater. 

With more than four decades of playing the D.C. circuit, Pearson and Cooper decided to scale things back to a two-piece band that performed a collection of programs.

“We never got away from what we loved doing together,” Cooper said. “Though we both did other things, we always ended up playing together… I’ve met plenty of great pianists down here, but I wouldn’t do these programs with anyone else.”

Cooper said the program is a combination of storytelling, little-known facts and music, based around great American songwriters like George and Ira Gershwin, Irving Berlin and Harold Arlen. A trip down memory lane, of sorts, with a bit of knowledge to walk away with, he said.

Notes on the Beach are also known for their banter. “The part that makes the program so fun is the humor between us. We don’t plan anything, but we’re best friends, and we’re just having a good time,” Cooper said. “We just want to entertain and share some little-known trivia about the artists.”

Notes on the Beach will bring its Tin-Pan-Alley-inspired concert to Rehoboth Beach Library at 6 p.m., Friday, Jan. 31.

For more information about the show, contact 302-227-8044 or go to rehoboth.lib.de.us. For more information about Notes on the Beach, visit their Facebook page.