| Jazz, Noël |
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9! Believe it or not, we’ve arrived at the ninth edition of ACT’s holiday institution, “Christmas with My Friends.”
For nearly two decades, the Swedish trombonist and vocalist Nils Landgren has turned what might have been a one-off studio experiment into a seasonal ritual cherished well beyond his native Scandinavia. The man with the trademark red trombone once again presides as master of ceremonies, surrounded by an ensemble of longtime collaborators who now feel as much like family as fellow musicians.
What began in 2006 as a modest recording project has quietly grown into one of the most enduring holiday series in contemporary jazz. Each album, released under the German ACT label—a house that has long positioned itself as Europe’s answer to Blue Note—draws together players rooted in classical training but shaped, ultimately, by jazz’s openness and elasticity. Landgren’s genius lies not in grand reinvention but in curation: his ability to choose the right mixture of hymns, carols, and secular pieces, and to shape them with arrangements that emphasize warmth, intimacy, and swing.
That curatorial sensibility is especially evident this year. Christmas With My Friends IX leans more decisively into jazz than some of its predecessors, opening up space for improvisation without losing the crystalline, acoustic purity that has become the series’ signature. At times, one forgets Landgren’s stature as an instrumentalist and is reminded instead of his rich, understated baritone, a voice that seems to carry equal parts joy and melancholy. The balance is key: this isn’t an album trying to dazzle with vocal acrobatics or technical fireworks. It’s about mood, generosity, and, as Landgren himself puts it, “putting our hearts and souls into every Christmas album.”
That sense of continuity is part of the project’s charm. In conversation, Landgren is often asked whether there comes a point when the world simply runs out of Christmas songs. He chuckles at the question. “The answer is simple: no, not at all. As long as we continue to celebrate Christmas, there will always be songs for the occasion, in one way or another.” For him, the ninth installment is not repetition but renewal, another chance to re-examine familiar melodies, discover overlooked gems, and test how a jazz vocabulary can breathe new life into tradition.
Recording traditions matter too. As in previous editions, the ensemble convened in Stockholm’s fabled Atlantis Studios, a space that has hosted everyone from ABBA to Swedish Radio’s top jazz orchestras. True to ritual, the sessions begin not with scales or charts but with coffee and cinnamon buns, a convivial prelude that underscores the project’s foundation: friendship. From there, Landgren, guitarist and co-producer Johan Norberg, saxophonist Jonas Knutsson, bassist Clas Lassbo, and pianist-singer Ida Sand, along with vocalists Sharon Dyall, Jessica Pilnäs, and Jeanette Köhn, build a program that bridges continents and centuries.
This time, Landgren added another layer: the trombone section of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. Their choral passages lend a haunting, almost ecclesiastical weight to the album, a reminder of how deeply brass instruments can evoke both solemnity and celebration. It’s an inspired choice, and one that expands the palette without overwhelming the project’s trademark intimacy.
The broader context is worth noting. Holiday albums are notoriously tricky; for every timeless classic, there are countless forgettable entries designed more for commerce than for genuine musical exploration. Landgren and ACT have sidestepped that pitfall by treating each “Christmas with My Friends” not as product but as a seasonal letter, handwritten and delivered with sincerity. Over time, these albums have become a parallel chronicle of European jazz’s maturity: global in its references, comfortable in its eclecticism, and quietly confident in its ability to reinterpret traditions without irony.
What makes Christmas With My Friends IX resonate is precisely this duality. It is festive but not saccharine, reverent without being pious, and unabashedly joyful while still allowing for moments of reflection. Listeners allergic to overt religiosity will find refuge in secular gems like “Trombone Choir” and “Christmas Is Here Again,” while those seeking tradition will be rewarded with tender renditions of European and American classics.
And then there is the chemistry: the ease of musicians who have toured and recorded together for decades, who know when to step forward and when to recede, who listen as intently as they play. That camaraderie infuses the music with an almost tactile warmth, as if the listener were seated in the studio among them, coffee in hand, cinnamon buns on the table.
In the end, Christmas With My Friends IX is more than an album, it’s a seasonal gathering, an invitation to pause amid December’s chaos and lean into something quieter, more human. It is, quite simply, a story of friendship told through music, a reminder that even in a fractured world, the act of making music together can still embody peace and joy.
If you’re searching for a soundtrack for your winter evenings, one that carries a distinctly European perfume but speaks universally, this record might be the one you’ve been waiting for.
Thierry De Clemensat
Member at Jazz Journalists Association
USA correspondent for Paris-Move and ABS magazine
Editor in chief – Bayou Blue Radio, Bayou Blue News
PARIS-MOVE, September 25th 2025
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Musicians :
Nils Landgren trombone & vocals
Sharon Dyall vocals
Jeanette Köhn vocals
Jessica Pilnäs vocals
Ida Sand vocals & piano
Jonas Knutsson saxophones
Johan Norberg guitars
Clas Lassbo bass
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)
Trombones from the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
Håkan Björkman, Mikael Oscarsson, James Kent, Martha Eikemo Andersen
Recorded March 3–4, 2025, at Atlantis Studios, Stockholm
Recorded by Niclas Lindström
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