Nils Landgren – Christmas With My Friends IX (ACT Music, 2025)
Swedish trombonist, singer, and producer Nils Landgren returns with the ninth installment of his biennial holiday project, Christmas With My Friends IX. The series began in 2006 and quickly became a European jazz favorite, supported by regular tours and steady releases every two years.
The new edition again mixes classic European and American Christmas songs with fresh compositions. Landgren leads a returning lineup: Jonas Knutsson (saxophone), Johan Norberg (guitar), Clas Lassbo (bass), and Ida Sand (piano, vocals), alongside vocalists Sharon Dyall, Jessica Pilnäs, and Jeanette Köhn.
Recording sessions took place at Stockholm’s Atlantis Studios, produced by Landgren with co-producer Johan Norberg. As a featured addition, the trombone section of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra appears on select chorales.
Landgren frames the project as an open-ended tradition. “As long as we celebrate Christmas, there will be songs celebrating the occasion in one way or the other,” he says, noting the ensemble’s close rapport forged across eight previous albums and ten tours.
A warm, alluring, acoustic approach remains the hallmark of the series, emphasizing skillful ensemble interplay and intimate arrangements. Cover artwork comes from David Ortins.
Trombones from the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra: Håkan Björkman, Mikael Oscarsson, James Kent, Martha Eikemo Andersen.
Track listing:
01 Trombone Choir 03:36
“Wie soll ich dich empfangen” – Weihnachtsoratorium No. 17 / Chorale No. 59
(J. S. Bach)
02 Christmas Is Here Again 02:25
(Johan Norberg)
03 Christmas with My Friends 03:52
(Sharon Dyall)
04 Dormi, Jesu 03:47
(John Rutter)
05 All the Things I Know About Christmas 02:50
(Johan Norberg)
06 Grown-Up Christmas List 05:20
(David Foster, Linda Thompson-Jenner)
07 It’s That Time of the Year 04:09
(Nils Landgren)
08 Some Children See Him 03:21
(Wihla Hutson, Alfred Burt)
09 Said Santa Claus to Mrs. Claus 04:11
(Sharon Dyall)
10 Winter Wonderland 02:49
(Felix Bernard, Richard Bernhard Smith)
11 Corpus Christi Carol 04:44
(Benjamin Britten)
12 Santa Will Sing the Blues 01:32
(Johan Norberg)
13 Music Speaks 03:04
(Jonas Knutsson)
Recorded by Niclas Lindström, March 3–4, 2025, at Atlantis Studios, Stockholm.
Trombones on #1 recorded by Hans Gardemar at KMH Kungasalen, Stockholm.
Mixed by Johan Norberg. Mastered by Klaus Scheuermann.
Produced by Nils Landgren & Johan Norberg.