December 17, 2025
About the Author: Reuben
December is the best month to be a pianist.
Whether it’s carols, chart-toppers or jazz classics, there is a wealth of repertoire available for pianists of all levels to play.
For jazz pianists, the Christmas period allows us to apply everything we have learned throughout the year to a familiar set of tunes.
Many jazz artists throughout the years have taken the time to make Christmas albums, and these collections of musically simple tunes present very honest reflections of the artist.
I’ve found many of these albums inspiring, and when not studying the contents they also make for excellent easy listening.
Here are five Christmas jazz piano albums that every pianist should listen to.
1. A Charlie Brown Christmas – Vince Guaraldi
Vince Guaraldi is not a name familiar to everyone in the jazz world, but his soundtrack for A Charlie Brown Christmas is arguably the best Christmas album of any genre.
In a career defined by intermittent obscurity, Guaraldi adopted a playful and simple style on the piano.
This album sees signature renditions of ‘O Tannenbaum’ and ‘Greensleeves’, as well as numerous self-penned tracks, all offering material that is both easy to listen and easy to transcribe.
Pianists looking to use this album in their own playing should look at the simplicity of arrangements used.
There is no unnecessary flair, no track is longer than adequate, and this makes for renditions that are easy to remember and understand.
Guaraldi’s solo on ‘O Tannenbaum’ is a useful study in motific development and clearness of statement.
Considering this was recorded as a cartoon soundtrack, this album is a must-listen for all jazz pianists!
2. An Oscar Peterson Christmas – Oscar Peterson
Oscar Peterson remains one of the most respected and recognisable figures in jazz piano.
The biggest issue pianists have when attempting to study Peterson, is that his virtuosic style and extremely busy arrangements can often present an insurmountable task for the average player.
This album, however, does not suffer from this problem.
Recorded in 1995, at a time when an aging Oscar Peterson was not at full speed anymore, this album gives us an invaluable look at the language of Peterson in a way that would not be possible in earlier recordings.
His trademark blues licks are still everpresent, and Peterson’s brilliant ear for voicing can be heard clearly in every track.
‘Santa Claus is Coming to Town’ is where Peterson brings out his most trademark soloing, but again in arguably the most transcribable form of any recording of his.
This album is ideal for anyone trying to adopt the language of Peterson without the technical nightmares!
3. A Dave Brubeck Christmas – Dave Brubeck
This one is for the solo piano enthusiasts, from maverick jazz icon Dave Brubeck.
Unlike a lot of his more popular works, this album does not feature odd time signatures or complex arrangements.
Brubeck follows what seems to be a recurring theme with jazz Christmas albums, in sticking to simplicity and accessibility.
He uses stride technique on ‘Santa Claus is Coming to Town’, but on the other tracks his style is heavily influenced by classical techniques, which helps to lay down a snow-like blanket of soft piano.
There is a lot to be gained from transcribing this album, such as the application of pedal points in ‘Joy to the World’, or the reharmonisation techniques used in ‘Away in a Manger’.
Using the self-sufficient medium of the piano, and the uncomplicated source material of Christmas songs, Brubeck made an album that is perfect for quiet easy listening, and a study in subtlety.
4. Holiday Soul – Bobby Timmons
Hard Bop pianist Bobby Timmons was one pianist of his era who was a perfect candidate for making a Christmas album.
His funky, playful style lent itself to simple tunes and easy listening jazz, and so his album Holiday Soul is a great showcase of an underrated artist.
The album consists entirely of piano trio arrangements, all with their own merits.
Heavy shuffle arrangements of tunes such as ‘Winter Wonderland’ strut the hard bop background of Timmons, while the latin vamp for ‘Deck the Halls’ provides a unique take on another popular Christmas song.
There is plenty worth transcribing in this album for the sake of blues language as well as block chords and bop riffs.
The arrangements are all as simple as can be, as if the band decided to jam Christmas tunes for an hour, so there may not be much to take from these, but this also makes the whole album very easy to listen to and recreate on your own should you wish to spice up your next gig!
5. Christmas Songs – The Eddie Higgins Trio
Veteran pianist Eddie Higgins in many ways shares a lot of the language of the artists in the previously mentioned albums.
This album however provides some very interesting arrangements of Christmas tunes, as well as being another showcase in tasteful handling of the source material.
The opener ‘Let it Snow’ sums the album up quite well, with a perfect balance of nuance in the arrangement, flair in the improvisation, and faithfulness to the simple tune at the centre of it.
In general this album is brilliant to listen to, and gives plenty of inspiration to the careful listener!
Time spent at the piano during Christmas is never wasted, as the time for playing these songs is always too short, and the simple nature of many of them makes them very quick to pick up.
You don’t always have to be looking to expand your repertoire or playing more challenging pieces; sometimes the best marker of improvement throughout the year is how you play your favourite Christmas song.
I would recommend listening to all of these albums, and if they teach you anything about jazz piano, it’s that simple and subtle is enough even for the best!
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