IT’S been a very busy week for everyone’s favourite Colchester-based Hollywood film composer, horror aficionado and performer.

That’s Jason Frederick, who has written pieces for Hollywood films, television adverts, and once topped the rock charts in his home country of Canada, before moving to Colchester more than eight years ago.

Since then, as well as continuing his work composing, Jason has performed a number of ‘live’ projects including his Mods and Coppers big band show which includes music from such films as Bullitt, Get Carter and Dirty Harry, a special horror night, explaining the soundtracks used in scary films, which in turn led to him presenting the Colchester Arts Centre’s season of classic horror movies, the latest of which is Christopher Lee in To The Devil A Daughter.

It took place on Thursday at the Church Street venue.

After that, Jason is off to the Royal Albert Hall, where he will be performing his homage to the music of Vince Guaraldi, the man who composed the music for A Charlie Brown Christmas.

The gig made its premiere at the Colchester Arts Centre last year and was such a hit not only has it been picked up by one of the biggest venues in the world it’s making a return visit to the arts centre on Sunday.

“It’s a proper thing over there,” he tells me. “Every Christmas people sit down and watch the half hour episode, without fail, but for me it was another of those moments when I was first introduced to the combination of music and image.”

Vince Guaraldi scored more than a dozen Peanuts TV specials in what was the ultimate musical sleight of hand by making parents and kids bob their heads and tap their feet along to jazz without knowing they were even listening to it.

“I think people love Charlie Brown,” he continues, “because despite whatever life throws at him he’s one of those guys who keeps on getting back up to bat.

“What’s so great about it for me is the music, which was just so different to anything that had been done before at the time. Mixing West Coast jazz with an animated series was revolutionary and so cool as well.”

On the night of its TV premiere, A Charlie Brown Christmas was seen by almost half of the American population. It also made Snoopy one of the most visible and beloved characters in American popular culture.

In Jason’s show the first half features music from A Charlie Brown Christmas, plus two brief films about Vince and his Peanuts music. The second half comprises Vince Guaraldi-style Christmas tunes and, to end the evening, a swinging sing-a-long 12 Days Of Christmas.

A Charlie Brown Christmas: is at the Colchester Arts Centre this Sunday. Doors open at 7pm and tickets are £14, £12 for concessions with a family ticket priced £20, available from the box office on 01206 500900.