The holiday season usually brings an expected harvest of albums. But, every once in a while, a seasonal release seeks to surprise, delight and refresh our love for the music of snow and celebration in a new way.

Grammy Award winning multi-instrumentalist, arranger, and composer Ted Nash and singular singer/songwriter Kristen Lee Sergeant have brought something of this high caliber to the party in Holidays, a markedly distinctive record for the season.

Ted Nash is well known as a bandleader and as a member and arranger for the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. He is paired with Kristen Lee Sergeant, a vocalist and songwriter who has been singled out for her intelligent lyrics and dramatic styling of song.

Nash and Sergeant aren’t just occasional partners on the bandstand (Nash has appeared in several of Sergeant’s releases), they are partners in life with all that entails, including a collaboration in wine called Two Notes, now in its fourth vintage.

The gifts given in this recording are many — the diverse band in assembly is a joy to hear, and the dialogue between Nash’s unmistakable voice as soloist, arranger and bandleader is meshed in duet with Sergeant’s taste and sensitivity in voice and word.