She Finds Composing a Real Tune-On : Local Jazz Keyboardist Peggy Duquesnel Is Focusing More Attention on Her Own Material

Orange County jazz fans know Peggy Duquesnel for her strong keyboard work, heard often in these parts with the bands of saxophonist Wayne Wayne, guitarist Ric Flauding, or the group N’Color as well as during appearances under her own name.

What’s less known about the 31-year-old musician is that, in addition to being a fine keyboard technician and improviser, she’s also a promising composer. She’ll concentrate on original material when she leads a quintet at El Matador in Huntington Beach tonight and Saturday.

“I wrote my first song when I was 12,” the keyboardist recalled recently at her home here. “I was performing at church, playing guitar, singing and leading the music, mainly for children’s masses. One of my girlfriends had written a poem and as soon as I heard it, I wanted to write some music to it. All of a sudden we had a song. That’s when I found out I had this gift.”

Duquesnel says this weekend’s shows will combine tunes from her two self-produced albums: “Old Friends,” an acoustic trio setting, and “Joyspring,” an electric outing done in conjunction with her guitarist husband, Dave Murdy.

“The ‘Joyspring’ pieces are a little more aggressive, almost on the fusion side with the guitar leads,” she explained. “And the arrangements are more oriented toward electronic keyboards.”

Composing, she said, comes easily to her. “There’s lots of different ways I write. I’ll be improvising at the piano and come up with ideas and develop them. I wrote a tune just last night, sitting at the piano improvising when I realized I had a tune going. Or I’ll be driving in the car and a melody or some lyric will start going through my head. When I get home, I’ll sit at the piano and put it on tape.”

Or, as in the case of the “Joyspring” material, the music is a collaborative effort with Murdy, to whom she’s been married for five years. “A Different Kind of Autumn” from the collection is a good example.

“Dave was playing (with) this idea one day and asked what I thought of it. I told him it was incomplete, that it sounded more like an introduction to a song, that it needed another section, something with a memorable melody. I had this melody that I’d written a long time ago but never figured out what to do with. It fit really well with what he’d done--it was as if missing parts had come together.”

Most of the material from the acoustic album was inspired by friends and family. “Trottin’,” a rock-steady workout, was written for longtime Larry Carlton keyboardist Terry Trotter, with whom Duquesnel studied while in college. “Kiwi Friends” is for New Zealand-born keyboardist, Alan Broadbent, also one of Duquesnel’s teachers.

“He was the first person who saw my talent and encouraged it,” she said. “He not only taught me a lot about technique, but he took the time to educate me in the history of jazz and the different artists. He also taught a lot about improvisation and harmony.”

“Carmen,” perhaps the recording’s most emotional piece, was written for a friend who died, Carmen Rodgers. “She was one of my closest friends. We did some benefits for children together, wrote a song together for one called ‘The Celebration of Love’ that was sung by a children’s choir. She was a very loving and giving person. I’ve tried to show some of her flair and zest for life in the song.”

“Few people are lucky enough to have an outlet for their feelings, they have no way to express their emotions like I do when I’m writing. It really helps.”

Duquesnel was born on Long Island and began piano study at age 7. “I always wanted to do music; I hardly thought of anything else when I was growing up,” she said.

Not long after her family moved to Orange in 1969, Duquesnel was leading a school band. She began jazz studies at Fullerton College even before graduating from high school. She eventually received a bachelor’s degree in piano performance from Cal State Northridge. While in college she was already playing original material with her own quintet as well as working with composer-arranger Ladd McIntosh’s big band.

In addition to working with such locally based musicians as Tony Guerrero, Phil Upchurch, Max Bennett and Brian Bromberg at venues like the Cafe Lido in Newport Beach, El Matador, and Bon Appetit in Westwood, the keyboardist has toured with singers Leslie Uggams and Lorna Luft, backed a touring version of the Platters for a local engagement and worked last year with Broadway composer Jerry Herman (“Hello Dolly!,” “Mame”) in a touring show that featured his music.

Duquesnel previewed much of her new material last August at Spaghettini in Seal Beach with rhythm-section help from bassist Dave Carpenter and drummer John Perett and guest soloists including cellist Melissa Hasin, fluegelhornist Guerrero and saxophonist Wayne.

This weekend’s appearance includes guitarist Murdy and saxophonist Greg Vail (both from the group Kilauea) as well as bassist Jerry Watts (an old friend from college days) and drummer Bob Harsen.

“I’m looking forward to any opportunity I get to perform my own music live, especially with musicians like David, Greg, Jerry and Bob.”

The Peggy Duquesnel Group, featuring Dave Murdy and Greg Vail, appears tonight and Saturday at 9 and 11 p.m. at El Matador, 16903 Algonquin St., Huntington Beach, (714) 846-5337.