The vacation season all the time brings with it a craving for heat, familiarity, and pleasure, and Allan Palacios Chan’s newest album, Christmas is Right here, delivers all that and extra. Launched on November 29, this vibrant six-track assortment by the famend Italian-Mexican tenor appears like a love letter to Christmas, fantastically sprinkling timeless vacation classics with a cinematic contact that feels each nostalgic and recent.
Co-written with producer Leo Z—whose portfolio contains collaborations with Andrea Bocelli, Josh Groban, and Tina Guo—Christmas is Right here is a mesmerizing mix of operatic grandeur, pop magnificence, and theatrical magic. Allan Palacios Chan expertly attracts from his intensive expertise in opera, jazz, theatre, and church music, crafting a vacation album steeped in nostalgia. It conjures photos of snowflakes falling gently, festive gatherings crammed with laughter, and fires crackling warmly—recollections that really feel each common and deeply private.
The Soul of the Album: “Christmas is Right here (Il Natale é qua)”
The title observe, “Christmas is Right here (Il Natale é qua),” serves because the album’s coronary heart. Co-written with Leo Z and lyricist Franco Marino, the track epitomizes Chan’s distinctive capability to weave Italian musicality right into a festive soundscape, “evoking a way of nostalgia and—dare we are saying—sentiment,” that feels each timeless and novel. Adorned with lush cinematic and operatic components, the observe is each a celebration of Italian heritage and a nostalgic nod to Chan’s snowy childhood Christmases in Jersey and Northern Virginia.
Incorporating a kids’s refrain—carried out by Chan’s nieces and nephews—the observe exudes an intimate heat that’s as joyous as it’s reflective. The Italian chorus, “Il Natale é qua,” encapsulates the common spirit of the vacations, providing listeners a heartfelt second of connection. “This track encompasses every little thing we wished for this album,” Chan explains, “a mixing of pop, cinematic, theatrical, chant, and operatic components.”
He elaborates on the observe’s Italian roots, sharing:
“We wrote this specific track in Italian due to a number of issues. One, Leo is initially from Bologna, Italy, so it’s his first language. I’ve additionally studied in Italy through the years and have made a profession singing Italian music, primarily the outdated bel canto repertoire, to not point out that ever since I used to be a child, I’ve had an affinity for Italian music and tradition…particularly the meals.”
Reimagining Vacation Classics
Past the standout titular gem, Christmas is Right here reinvents beloved seasonal classics with Chan’s signature aptitude. His rendition of “O Holy Evening” highlights his hovering tenor, infusing the acquainted hymn with reverence and emotional depth. In the meantime, “Little Drummer Boy” takes on a brand new dimension by its accompanying brief movie, shot within the Philippines with the T’boli tribe. This poignant visible collaboration honors the Dream Weavers’ heritage, enriching the track’s narrative with cultural storytelling and making a deeply shifting expertise.
Different highlights embrace the hauntingly stunning “Coventry Carol,” a medley that first earned Chan recognition as a 2023 single, and “Oh Come, Oh Come, Emmanuel,” each of which mix operatic precision with cinematic grandeur. Every observe reinvents the acquainted into one thing extra profoundly shifting and fantastically modern. —a must-listen expertise!
Immaculate Manufacturing
The luxurious preparations, led by concertmaster Mark Robertson and supported by Grammy-winning vocalist Helena Buscema, envelop the listener in a heat embrace, with Leo Z’s cinematic experience evident in each observe. The result’s an auditory expertise that feels as intimate as a hearth gathering and as grand as a vacation movie soundtrack, with every observe curated to really feel like a present, wrapped in heat and love, able to be unwrapped and savored.
A Private Journey, Universally Shared
Chan describes the album as “a journey by traditions, tales, and sounds which have formed who I’m as an artist (right now),” and this deeply private strategy is palpable in each observe. Its allure lies in its capability to evoke a way of residence and fireside whereas nonetheless transporting listeners to new sonic landscapes. Whether or not it’s by the stirring Italian verses of “Christmas is Right here” or the sweeping orchestral moments in “Angels We Have Heard on Excessive,” Chan invitations us to have a good time the vacations not simply as a season, however as a group of cherished recollections and traditions.
Ultimate Ideas
With Christmas is Right here, Allan Palacios Chan invitations us all to pause, have a good time, and revel within the magical moments that make the season unforgettable. It’s the proper companion for quiet evenings by the fireplace, energetic household gatherings, or just taking a second to replicate on the great thing about the season.
This album transcends the same old vacation fare, rising as a murals—nostalgic but modern, reverent but refreshing. From its Italian roots to its cinematic preparations, the album is a testomony to Chan’s immaculate versatility and keenness for music and storytelling. Whether or not you’re a fan of vacation classics or searching for a recent soundtrack on your festivities, Christmas is Here’s a must-listen.
It’s greater than an album—it’s an invite to immerse your self within the magic of the vacation season.
Stream the EP beneath:
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