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Jana's American Indian Christmas is filled with the familiar and the unexpected. The ten tracks are all familiar holiday favorites, but on an album entitled American Indian Christmas, that traditional song selection is somewhat unexpected. Although the songs are not Native American numbers, each track is sung in a different tribal nation's language (Navajo, Kalispel Salish, Arapaho, Lakota, Cherokee, San Juan Tewa Pueblo, Oneida, Ojibwe, Chiricahua Apache, Lumbee), and that is certainly surprising. Finally, I assumed that a release called American Indian Christmas would likely feature low-key, sparse instrumentation; instead, this is a lush, fully orchestrated CD with the accomplished support of the SAGA Native Orchestra (as well as traditional Native American instruments).

The singer is Jana Mashonee, a Lumbee tribe member (the second largest tribe east of the Mississippi River) and a talented, beautiful woman who is fiercely proud of her ancestry. Describing herself as "Urban Indian," Jana possesses a powerful, clear voice that is somewhat reminiscent of a young Barbra Streisand or perhaps Mariah Carey. Singing with excellent control and range, the artist is impressive, reflecting maturity beyond her years.

American Indian Christmas has an elegant, easy-listening, pop music feel. Jana's renditions are respectful, yet joyous. The album is on the short side (35 minutes), but contains a nice variety of mostly sacred ancient carols. Interestingly, the fact that these pieces are presented in various Native American tongues provides at least two benefits; first, I find myself listening more attentively to each word, hearing the lovely lyrical quality of the languages, and second, this approach makes me focus with more intensity on the true meaning of each number. My favorite cuts include the sweetly-executed and heartfelt "Silent Night" (sung in Arapaho), and the exquisite, emotive "What Child Is This" (sung in Cherokee). Best of all, "Amazing Grace" (sung in Jana's own Lumbee) closes the album with stellar simplicity (and amazing grace!), finishing with Jana's crystalline a cappella vocal. Nice!

Jana's American Indian Christmas is a cross-cultural experience that is completely accessible to a very broad range of audiences. Although the languages are not familiar, the music certainly is, and the overall experience is delightful.

--Carol Swanson
(Reviewed in 2005)

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From the liner notes:

Vocals by Jana Mashonee
Keyboards by Alex Salzman except piano on "Amazing Grace" by Etienne Lytle

Orchestral performance by SAGA Native Orchestra

Executive Producer: Ray Halbritter
Produced, arranged, engineered, and mixred by Stephan Galfas and Alex Salzman

Music has the power to unify the world's people. American Indian Christmas is a thread that brings us together during this season of caring and hope. Jana's rendition of holiday standards in Native tongues touches us all and increases respect for Native cultures. She breathes new life into endangered American Indian languages and gives the gift of a greater understanding of Indian people to all.

Most importantly, it is the music. Christmas has always held special meaning for me. The songs on this album remind me of family, friends, and holidays past. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
--Ray Halbritter (Oneida Indian Nation)

Christmas is an important time to me. I love the music of this season, and I've always wanted to make a Christmas album, but wanted to make it very special. With the vision of Ray Halbritter of the Oneida Indian Nation, I believe we have created a unique musical journey into the spirit of Christmas. We have chosen ten traditional Christmas songs and have sung them in ten different Native American languages. To my knowledge, this is the first time this has ever been done. The preservation of our languages is extremely important to the culture and vitality of our people. I am so proud and honored to be able to sing to you in the beautiful sounds of these languages. It is my hope that you enjoy oistening to these songs as much as I have enjoyed singing them.
--Jana

J

American Indian Christmas

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Track List