Italian Christmas songs: 10 tracks for the music of your holidays

From traditional melodies to contemporary chart hits, Christmas has always had a very special bond with music. Just think about all the international songs, such as the classics White Christmas or Santa Claus is Coming to Town, real milestones of Christmas culture and played - both in the original language and in Italian translations - by many iconic voices of our music landscape.

We know, music is one of the top qualities of the Bel Paese and could be written page after page related to our masters of the matching of words and notes. Maybe, what only a few people know, however, is that there is an important Christmas music production in Italian. These are original pieces, written in Italian mostly for an Italian audience. Obviously, this doesn’t mean that our music can’t be appreciated all over the world!

Many typical Italian Christmas songs have roots from the popular tradition of the past, for example tracks such as Piva Piva (from Lombardia) or Natu Natu Nazzarè (from Marche), which by time have spread throughout Italy due to themed music collections.

However, there are also many contemporary songs taking inspiration from the different faces of Christmas: its magical and playful side, suitable for families - especially for children - as well as its intimate and reflective counterpart related to adults, without forgetting all those songs outside the box that make the irony on Christmas holidays their strength.

For you, dear readers, we have picked 10 made in Italy Christmas songs that we can't wait to listen to together! Here are the titles we have chosen, let's start.

A full Italian Christmas playlist shall begin with the classic of the classics: “Tu Scendi dalle Stelle”, also known as “A Gesù Bambino” or “Quanno Nascette Ninno”.

The song, which clearly focuses on the religious side of the holidays, was composed in the middle of 1700s by the bishop Alfonso Maria de' Liguori from Campania and is one of the most famous Italian Christmas songs ever. It has been played in many concerts and Christmas choirs and recently it was amazingly sung by the greatest voices of the Italian music scene.

No doubt about it, the most famous and exciting version was sung by Luciano Pavarotti: a classic that certainly deserves to be listened to, why not, staring at the beauty of the nativity scene.

Remaining on the Christmas must topic, “Astro del Ciel” certainly comes to mind right away; the original song in German is called “Stille Nacht” (1818), or “Silent Night” in English.

So it's not an original Italian song? It’s neither yes or no because the Italian version has a very particular feature: keeping the same base in terms of music, in fact, the lyrics is not just a translation from German but a brand new text by Mons. Angelo Meli from Bergamo (1937).

With no doubt is another great classic of Italian Christmas music, recently sung with great passion by the unique voice of Laura Pausini.

Can an advertising jingle turn into a Christmas classic? That’s for sure! “A Natale Puoi”, created as a song for the TV commercial of a well-known sweet food product, has become one of the most popular Italian Christmas songs, especially among the very young people of Generation Z.

The song comes to life thanks to the voice of a little girl, Alicia - nickname chosen by the record company that produced it - daughter of the author; she is now an adult, but the success achieved by this brand new Christmas classic remains. According to the author, never mentioning or refering to either product or brand was the key, thus giving it a great sense of authenticity.

Italian songwriting has always accustomed us to pieces of great depth and beauty. This is the case of "Natale" by Francesco De Gregori, a song which takes us at a sweet and a little nostalgic rhythm telling us about upcoming holidays through the eyes of adulthood.

The lyrics involve us into the evolving and changing society, made of people who are now going on faster and faster. The author opposes all of this with his desire to see or communicate with someone, at least by mailing, after a long time: that’s just a pinch of melancholy that sometimes, sweetly, hits by the Christmas holidays.

This song written by Morgan tells us about a Christmas time lived in such an atmosphere, in the middle of dream and reality, where we think back to what has been done during the year, the successes achieved and even the defeats collected.

But the Christmas holidays represent the perfect time, with the lights that illuminate windows and the city’s living streets, for a new opportunity to love the dearest people starting anew from there. “Canzone per Natale” conveys hope and tenderness, with the theatre-like style typical of the author.

We completely change genre now to get to hip-hop and the sarcasm of “È Natale (Ma io non ci sto dentro)” by Articolo 31, a song thinking outside the box that, despite the obvious references to the society and culture of the nineties, it always keeps relevant anyway.

This is certainly a weird Christmas song, which tells us about all the most ironic and stereotyped sides of Christmas holidays in Italy - specifically, those that some people hate. This is the perfect song for those who don’t like this festival at all and... look for understanding!

In the show business landscape, one of the VIPs that have recently catched the public attention, especially from a musical point of view, is certainly Elettra Lamborghini.

Her song "A mezzanotte (Christmas Song)" completely matches the canons of the typical Christmas music, giving us a joyful melody and a love themed atmosphere. With no doubt this is a song to listen to while sharing the company of your soulmate on holidays nights!

Following the same style as the previous song, “Cioccolata Bianca” matches the typical themes of Christmas music too and conveys positive emotions in the name of love and harmony in being together.

The track by DJ Matrix, made precious by the unique voice of Arisa, due to its highly catchy rhythm, its short duration and a well planned music video, represents a listening recommended especially for children - perhaps tasting some hot chocolate by the tree.

We are approaching the end of this 10 suggestions chart for your Christmas playlist with “Bohémien” by Pinguini Tattici Nucleari.

This song tells about Christmas from a different perspective, which is the one seen and experienced with the eyes of a young couple who just joined in cohabitation together and struggles with everyday life - especially with his mother and the neighbours who have already put the Christmas lights on, while they didn't yet!

Finally, here we come to our main proposal: “Natale allo Zenzero”, a song by Elio e Le Storie Tese, musically brilliant and absolutely funny in terms of lyrics.

Perfectly in the style of the band, this song tells about Christmas and all its symbols with great irony related to ginger, a spice that we all know and that, curiously, over the years has been connected with this festival.

The reason? Probably "the guilt" refers to the international spread of the famous gingerbread man, a well-known ginger biscuit in the shape of a little man - originally from the United Kingdom - which is typically prepared for the Christmas holidays.