December, Chris Botti

Creating a Christmas album is a great way to prove if you are a good musician or not. Everybody knows the songs and people hear this music constantly day after day from Thanksgiving to Christmas. Chris Botti and the musicians on his album, December, prove they are talented.

December features thirteen well thought-out arrangements. As Chris states in his liner notes, "At no other time of the year is there a wider array of emotions than the month of December. As I considered material and arrangements for this recording, I wanted to assure myself that in each instance the songs reach out to the joys and reflections of the season." This CD accomplishes this goal.

The album opens with The Christmas Song. The first thing you notice is the beautiful tone that Chris produces on trumpet. This is the true test of any player of a wind instrument. The arrangement provides a pleasant, mellow interpretation.

The nice thing about this set of recordings is that each arrangement reflects a different style. If you don't like one song, you will certainly enjoy some of the others.

December consists of the following songs, in the order of performance: The Christmas Song, Ave Maria, Winter Wonderland, The First Noel, Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!, Hallelujah, I Really Don't Want Much For Christmas, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Silent Night, Little Drummer Boy, O Little Town of Bethlehem, and I'll Be Home For Christmas.

Ave Maria is a beautiful haunting arrangement. The trumpet playing works well with the choir providing a nice backdrop.

Winter Wonderland is a classic! The band provides a great standard jazz interpretation. It is my favorite selection on this album. By the time you hear this selection, you'll realize that Chris is an accomplished trumpet player, well-versed as a jazz trumpeter.

While I enjoyed the complete album, certain songs caught my attention. I liked the interplay between the trumpet and piano in Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas provides a nice relaxing arrangement that puts you in the Christmas mood.

The one aspect of jazz that I really enjoy is the way musicians interpret and phrase melodies. Jazz is the melting pot of all music. It incorporates and warmly welcomes all styles. Santa Claus is Coming to Town features a great Latin, boss-nova arrangement with some really nice phrasing.

Silent Night has always been my favorite Christmas Carol. Chris Botti provides a nice interpretation with some really nice counterpoint played against the melody.

If you've ever played music before, you will know that the Little Drummer Boy is really a boring melody. It is a good test of a musician as an interpreter to see if they can make this set of notes interesting to listen to. I liken this melody to the traditional speeches that are boring that people need to make, for example, when a stewardess recites the safety rules, or when a person reads how the votes were tabulated on an awards show. You can make it interesting or just go through the motions to get the speech out of the way.

Chris and his fellow musicians make the Little Drummer Boy fun to listen to. They provide a nice funky arrangement.

December is a great ensemble CD. The musicians all play well together. If there weren't so many, I'd list them. Take my word though, they all are talented and they all hold their own. Quite simply, this is an excellent CD.

I hadn't heard of Chris Botti before listening to December. I'll certainly keep my eye out for other releases by him. For more information, please visit his website at www.chrisbotti.com. Every song is nicely done, the musicians are talented, and this album features some great arrangers. It is worth buying.