Photo: José de Holanda

Trombonist, vocalist, and member of the Trey Anastasio Band, Natalie Cressman, along with her significant other, guitarist Ian Faquini, have partnered with the Nancy Langhorne Foundation to release a new limited edition Christmas EP, Brazilian Nutcracker. The set will be available for order on November 13 in exchange for donations, and uploaded to streaming sites on December 5 via GroundUp Music, just in time for the holiday season, with all proceeds benefiting the Association of Black Gastroenterologists and Hepatolists and Eastern Virginia Medical School’s Hopes Clinic in remembrance of saxophonist and TAB member, James Casey. 

The six-track collection finds the couple invigorating Tchaikovsky’s classic Nutcracker Suite with Brazilian verve. The pair co-opt rhythmic patterns and traits associated with the South American nation’s musical traditions, which derive from Faquini’s own path, born and bred in Brazil. Titles like “March” and “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” will drum up familiarity for those close to the ballet and orchestral arrangements, as well as “Dance of the Mirlaton,” “Trepak,” and “Tea,” yet, sonically, they are a departure from their expected Russian origins. 

“The idea for a full EP of all pieces from the Nutcracker Suite was born out of our last NL Foundation project, where we devoted the entire Side B of the vinyl to our revamping of ‘Waltz of the Flowers’ as a Brazilian samba,” Cressman told Relix. “It started out as us just goofing around with the material after hitting a bit of a wall with the arrangement, but we found that there was actually a lot of room to innovate Tchaikovsky’s original material and infuse the classic melodies with Brazilian rhythms without changing fundamentally the harmony or form of the original pieces. So we wanted to explore that with more pieces from the ballet. It became a fun puzzle of trying to marry these well-loved themes with unexpected rhythms, to take music arranged for full orchestra and make it work for just guitar and trombone, and because some of the movements are so short, we were able to squeeze a lot of music onto a 7-inch vinyl.”

The limited-edition pressing, capped at 300 copies, will be hand-numbered and decorated in album art by illustrator Nate Cepis. Brazilian Nutcracker will be available in a standard pistachio colorway, an aquamarine variant, and a signed pink offering paired with a custom sticker sheet on the cover. 12/23 Records come from The Nancy Langhorne Foundation, “A Virginia and Brooklyn-based nonprofit that raises money for cancer research and free cancer screenings for the underserved.” 

“Ian and I have always loved Christmas music, so we were instantly into the idea of partnering with the Nancy Langhorne Foundation for a Christmas release the first time around. But the charity aspect of the project took on special meaning when one of our best friends, James Casey, passed away from cancer while we were in the process of releasing the first album. So we jumped at the opportunity to release another project that honors James’ memory by raising money for some great cancer charities. It feels very fulfilling to put our creative energy into something that brings good into the world in the form of free cancer screenings and life-saving research,” Cressman told us. 

Since its start in 2017, the organization has raised and donated over $85,000 between Eastern Virginia Medical School, Colorectal Cancer Alliance, Sloan Kettering, and The Medical College of VA, through record releases and its annual Norfolk, Va., benefit. Previously, Cressman and Faquini delivered An Old Fashioned Christmas in 2023; other participating artists in musical givebacks include Kendall Street Company, Todd Herrington, and Dusty Ray Simmons (Cris Jacobs Band), and members of Butcher Brown.

In 2022, the Nancy Langhorne Foundation assisted in the creation of A Little Something for Everyone with James Casey, prior to the beloved saxophonist passing from colon cancer in 2023. Brazilian Nutcracker will be available on 1223Records.com, Thursday, Nov. 13, at noon EST in exchange for a donation. The album will be released digitally on December 5 via GroundUp Music. 

For those interested in making a financial donation to the Nancy Langhorne Foundation, you can do so here.

Track Listing: 

1. March 

2. Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy 

3. Chocolate (Spanish Dance) 

4. Tea (Chinese Dance) 

5. Dance of the Mirlitons 

6. Trepak