We were tasked with creating two arrangements of Burl Ives’ Holy Jolly Christmas, one for a jug band and the other for a mariachi band whilst using the original vocals. The overall approach was to create a musical mashup that didn’t feel linear but rather more raw and not too polished. We arranged and recorded live players of our two versions of the full song to allow the director and editor to choose which scenes to cut between after the shoot. We approached the jug band version in a typical grassroots style with a plodding double bass, janky banjo, washboard and raucous clarinet. To nail the authentic mariachi style, our arrangement comprised of brass stabs on trumpets and loose violin with the vihuela and guitarron supporting in a syncopated tressillo rhythm.
