Jingle Bells is one of the best known and commonly sung Christmas songs in the world. Written as a children’s song by James Lord Pierpont using a very simple tune and structure, it is not often given the musical gravitas that it deserves.
Jingle Bells is one of the best known and commonly sung Christmas songs in the world. Written as a children’s song by James Lord Pierpont using a very simple tune and structure, it is not often given the musical gravitas that it deserves. Arturo Sandoval, the Cuban trumpet player famous for playing with Maynard Ferguson, recorded a version of this song with Big Band on the Latin Jazz Christmas album in 2003, which was earlier released for Playboy magazine under the title ‘Playboy Latin Jazz Christmas, A Not so Silent Night’. This arrangement is inspired wholly by the Jingle Bells on that album, with blistering trumpets, syncopated trombones and additional Mambo drum kit patterns to create a Big Band style piece. In the middle there is also a written-out trumpet solo with optional improvisation true to Arturo’s famous rapid CuBop playing. After the solo a cheeky contrasting section with sleigh bells, calypso style trumpets and bass trombone moments cuts in. This then segues into a tuba bass line breakdown, more and more parts building up gradually with ostinatos and patterns until the huge key change and the final melody to take it home with every part going with full throttle. This is a tremendously exciting finishing number or encore for any Christmas programme.
