The setting was Criteria Recording Studios, where Estefan and Berg collaborated on her new album, "Estefan Family Christmas." The studio was busting at the seams with artists, staff, recording engineers, and media people—all a big family invited to partake in this extraordinary production.
Gloria elaborated on Shelly's producing style, adding, "Shelly has a treasure trove of talent at the Frost School of Music, and we incorporated musicians from the Henry Mancini Orchestra, amazing background singers with a magical vibe, and the Miami Children's Choir. He's also conducted the Budapest Scoring Orchestra and Choir, doing phenomenal work. As usual, I knew we would be in great hands with Shelly on board as orchestrator and conductor, but to have him contribute his masterful piano musicianship is the icing on the cake."
As she settled behind one of the luxurious vocal booths, everything about this family Christmas album made Gloria beam with pride (and a bit emotional at times). She observed that the songs, the place, the people, and the time were all in sync. Her husband Emilio Estefan stood by their daughter Emily's side as she prepped with the recording engineers at the mixing board. Their grandson Sasha rehearsed Berg's arrangement of "The Chipmunks Christmas Song" on a nearby couch, and time seemed to stand still, like a Hallmark moment.
The inspiration for this album came two years ago at the Estefan's traditional Thanksgiving dinner, which Gloria always hosts at their house. Gloria, Emily, and Sasha put together a little show for the family and performed it after dinner. Gloria and Emily encouraged Sasha to sing with them. When Sasha was eight years old, Gloria said, "We should write a little original chorus about the Holidays. We could sing and pass the microphone around so our family could each say what they were thankful for." This past Thanksgiving, they did it again, but Gloria noticed something interesting: Sasha's little child voice was changing. "I felt a pang of nostalgia knowing that soon he would be a teenager and on to different things," she said.
Before his voice changed, Gloria shared with him and Emily the idea of doing a family Christmas album to capture this special and unique time. Everyone agreed, and this past March, the three of them got together and finished writing the song they began two years ago, "Thankful," which was the inspiration for the album.
Gloria recalled when she and Emilio attended a University of Miami Trustee event and ran into Shelly Berg. The two artists already had a history of working together on Gloria's The Standards album (Sony Masterworks), for which Shelly garnered a GRAMMY nomination in the Best Arrangement Accompanying a Vocalist category for "What a Wonderful World" in 2013. In between spirits and caviar, she asked Shelly, "If I ever do another Christmas album, would you like to work on it?" He quipped, "I'd love it! Just say when."
Shelly got a call from Gloria this last spring. "Okay, I have an idea for an album," she said, and Shelly replied, "Okay, when do you want to start?"
Gloria described the dynamic between the four musicians, saying they felt safe to push back against one another to try to make the best version of whatever they were doing. She recalls how she, Emily, and Sasha chose the songs they wanted to sing and decided on a "vibe" for the record. They hopped on a Zoom call with Shelly, and the four began working on what became the "Estefan Family Christmas" album.
"I am very proud of this album," said Shelly moments later as he entered the studio and sat behind the mixing board next to Gloria, who joined him there. As spectators on a live recording show, those in the studio listened, marveling at the familiar banter between the two artists—showing the actual bond, pleasure, and joy of an old friendship. Gloria described Shelly as the "voice of reason" in the recording studio. She explained that the two of them often got lost in conversation about the minutia of a track but got right back in sync as they asserted that the musical partnership between them is what took their sound to the next level.
How did the two of you meet?
Gloria Estefan: [smiling] We would always run into each other at various UM Trustee events.
Shelly Berg: [to Gloria] Yes, I remember. That was when Dr. Phillip George was the chairman of the University of Miami's Board of Trustees. We had met at other UM events a few times, but that's how our whole musical relationship started.
Gloria: One night, at one of George's parties, they asked for Shelly to play something, and I told them I knew "Good Morning Heartache."
Shelly: I played something, and you came up to me and said, "You know, Emilio will tell you that I never sing at parties. But I'd like to sing a song with you." [smiles]
Gloria: That's right! [laughs] And I said, do you know "Good Morning Heartache" by Billie Holiday?
Shelly: And I said yes.
Gloria: That night, we talked about doing a Standards album together. I always wanted to do a Standards record.
Shelly: And we did a Standards record called "Gloria Estefan: The Standards."
So, how did the idea of doing a Christmas album together come about?
Shelly: We met at another party and began talking about a Christmas recording. And then, we moved forward with it. Gloria suggested a song list, from which we selected the songs for the album. I began working on demo recordings through the first part of June so we could record them by the end of the month. As the recording approached, I discovered there was a tight deadline for submission to Sony, so in the last week of June and the first week of July, I wrote the orchestrations, choral, and big band parts. Fortunately, Gloria and her daughter Emily liked my demos, so the process went smoothly.
The entire Estefan family: Gloria, Emily, Gloria's grandson Sasha, and Emilio (in his singing debut) sounded terrific! My favorite song on the album is "My Favorite Things" from Sound of Music. I've always loved this song and wanted to make it magical for this recording.
And how was the original idea for this album born?
Gloria: The idea came to me during the pandemic, over my family's Thanksgiving dinner. As we went around the table, giving thanks for everything and reflecting on life and how it just goes so fast. I realized then that this was the perfect time to do an "Estefan Family Christmas" album. My grandson, who has a beautiful voice, was at an age where his voice would soon change. Shelly and I were at the inauguration of the new Frost School of Music building and continued the conversation about doing another Christmas album. My last one was in 1993.
I told Shelly I wanted him to do it when the time came. But you know how things are . . . you talk about things, but you don't know until you sit down and do it. This year, seeing Sasha's voice changing pushed me to get it done. He was over at my house one day and said, "Tutu, I'm trying to read these notes, and I can't reach them . . ." I thought, "Oh, no, his voice is changing." That night, I called Shelly and asked him if he was serious about doing this album because I really wanted to do it for this Christmas, which meant everything had to be done by July. He said yes and soon began working incredibly hard on it. And boy, did he deliver!
You know, sometimes those timelines bring the best stuff because you can't overthink it. You just get in there and do it. Shelly was sending me the demos as he was making them. And I was telling him, "this is phenomenal, this is fantastic!"
How did you select the list of songs?
Gloria: Emily, Sasha, and I picked up all the songs we wanted to do, like the Chipmunk song. I loved it as a kid and introduced it to Sasha when he was a baby. So, we sent Shelly the breakdown of the list of all the songs; many of them had that old 50s sound with Elvis and Brenda Lee, who performed rockabilly, pop, and country music. We wanted those kinds of nostalgic sounds but with a modern twist, a rock and roll edge, and an orchestra in the background. We asked Shelly if he had any ideas on the arrangements he wanted to make. The three of us sat at the piano to pick keys. Sasha happens to be an alto, like us [Emily and Gloria]. He hasn't dropped down to his "adult" voice yet. So, again, I thought, we have to do this album now. And Shelly is just a beast! He delivered.
And what is it about a Christmas album that was so endearing to you?
Gloria: Let me put it this way . . . during Covid, all I did through that summer was play Christmas music. Because it transports me . . . it transports people. It puts you in a good place. And while I was cleaning out all my closets, which I always wanted to do but didn't have time to do, I listened to the music on the last Christmas record that I wrote for my son Nayib, "Christmas Through Your Eyes."
I remember writing that in the summer because you have to have it ready for Christmas. So, the summer, for me, it's when I always start getting nostalgic for Christmas. It's just such a special time, and we need it! We need some joy in our lives. Last Christmas, I didn't enjoy it because someone got Covid, and we had to cancel the family party. So, this year, we hope to bring that joy back, and to me, the best way was to get back in the studio. It's my favorite place—that behind-the-scenes space—prepping songs and making music. And to work with Emily and Sasha . . . well, that's. . . [she gets emotional].
You told us earlier that this studio held many memories for you…
Gloria: Yes, I have a picture of Sasha and me in that booth. [She pointed to the same vocal booth where she and Sasha had just recorded a song together]. In that photo, I held him in my arms in front of the mic while we recorded "The Standards." It was the song that I dedicated to him. For TikTok, they do those "that was then and morphs into now" shots . . . so before we left the studio, I wanted to take a picture in the booth carrying him. But I thought he could probably carry me now!
And your collaboration with Shelly… there was palpable chemistry and love there.
Gloria: Oh, yes, and with the "U." There's a lot of love there. That's my alma mater. I loved watching Shelly play because his face lit up. It was contagious in a really good way! I loved working with him. Everything that we did was seamless. I trusted him. Whatever he did, I knew that I was going to love it. Because on top of that, he's got that rock edge.
Shelly was nominated for an arrangement on your album, "The Standards." How was that experience?
Gloria: He had a GRAMMY nomination for "What a Wonderful World." But, that damn Bubblé! He took it! [laughs hard] What Shelly did with "The Standards" was magnificent. Those arrangements were phenomenal. Something about the art of the whole project with his musical vision was just amazing. We worked together really well.
When I write a song, I know what I'm feeling. I sit at the piano, and even though I don't play it, I hear what I want. And so, I admired his talent and his openness and ability to interpret what I heard in my head.
You and Emily's voices have very similar timbres, so when the two of you sing together, it sometimes sounds like the same voice.
Gloria: Yes, but she has so much taste. She loves the 20s time. My kids grew up listening to such eclectic sounds because Emilio and I listened to everything. And she plays everything. Her talent is really unique.
Will there be a vinyl?
Gloria: Right now, they released a bunch of vinyls from my old albums. Kids are collecting them. To them, it's nostalgic to collect these old records with the artwork on the album covers. The "Estefans Family Christmas" vinyl will come out next year.
Who was involved in the overall production, from vocals, musicians, choir, engineering, producers/production company, music label, etc.?
Shelly: I co-produced this recording with Gloria, wrote all the arrangements and orchestrations, and played piano and keyboards. The drummer was Frost alum Lee Levin, who has built a remarkable career. Professor Steve Guerra contracted an entire big band that consisted of Frost students, faculty, and alums for two songs.
We used a trio of two Frost students and a faculty member, Steve Gleason, to sing some background vocal parts. Frost faculty member, David Anderson, prepped and conducted a small group of gospel singers for the session. The Miami Children's chorus appeared on several songs, conducted by Frost Alumna, Liana Salinas. The lead engineer was Don Murray, the bassist was Carlitos del Puerto, and the guitarist was Dean Parks. They are all very important musicians.
Shelly, how did this album reflect everything that Frost School of Music offers?
Shelly: This album covered many stylistic grounds, from classical to jazz, to rock, to 1950s nostalgia. We teach our students to play and compose across genres and styles. That's why so many Frost students, faculty, and alums participated in the recording. They were well suited to making a world-class record for Gloria and her family.
Gloria, how do you hope to inspire your fans and UM, your alma mater, with this new family album?
My Alma Mater has always been with me in everything I do. I proudly carry the torch for the "U" in my heart, so it's all over this recording. But add to that the incredible contributions of Dean Shelly Berg, and it exemplified the professionalism, soul, and magic of UM. On the album, we wanted to celebrate family and the things that bring us together as human beings—like love, nostalgia, the holidays, and get-togethers with the special people in our lives. Through that, be able to inspire others during these difficult times all over the planet. If people can feel even half the love we felt creating this recording, we've done our job!
