Berklee Shares a Global Holiday Greeting with “December”
Berklee brings musicians from several locations together for a holiday performance of Earth, Wind & Fire’s “December.” The video presents a familiar musical language through a collaborative greeting, with voices and instruments contributing to a shared arrangement.
The institution’s official upload identifies the participating communities as Berklee College of Music, Boston Conservatory at Berklee, Berklee Valencia, Berklee NYC and Berklee Abu Dhabi. That source establishes the collaboration’s international scope without requiring assumptions about where every individual shot was recorded.
The description also identifies “December” as based on “September.” This distinction matters because the performance is a holiday interpretation of existing repertoire, rather than evidence that the students invented a new song title for the occasion.
Several featured vocalists appear in the source credits, including Keeme Tajudeen, Keisha Sanchez, Ivonne Fernandez, Wajd Bou Said, Cybèle Fasquelle and Ike Moemeka. The listed contributions make the performance a sequence of connected musical roles rather than a single solo presentation.
The instrumentation supports that sense of variety. Berklee’s credits include drums, congas, bass, guitar, keyboards, piano and a horn section. These resources provide different ways to establish rhythm, support the singers and add a contrasting musical color.
Watch the performance
The rhythm section supplies a foundation for the arrangement. A repeated groove gives the voices and other instruments a shared reference, allowing different contributions to feel connected. Its consistency is especially important in a performance built around several featured musicians.
Horns bring another recognizable dimension to this kind of repertoire. Their short attacks and collective phrasing can add definition around a vocal passage. The audience can listen for how those sounds complement the rhythm section rather than simply following the lead melody.
Multiple vocalists also change the presentation’s character. Each singer brings a different tone to the shared material, while the arrangement provides continuity between them. The performance can retain its musical direction without asking every voice to sound identical.
The official credits include the vocal group Pitch Slapped as well. That additional ensemble contribution fits the broader idea of the video: a holiday greeting can become an opportunity to present several kinds of musicianship within the same musical frame.
The collaboration is interesting as a listening experience beyond its seasonal context. Viewers can follow how separate parts support one another, noticing the relationship between lead voices, accompanying vocals and instrumental punctuation. Familiar music makes those relationships relatively easy to identify.
Its international participation gives the greeting a further dimension. The listed campuses and programs contribute to a common presentation, turning the video into a record of musical connections across the institution. The source credits keep that scope concrete.
For students of arrangement, the clip suggests useful questions about balance. Which instruments provide movement? Which elements support a singer without covering them? How can a transition introduce another voice while preserving the continuity of the groove?
Those questions apply to collaborative performances in many settings. When several musicians share a piece, the arrangement must give them room while maintaining an overall direction. A clear rhythmic foundation can help make that balance possible.
The holiday format provides an accessible reason for the collaboration, but the performance’s structure remains musical. The voices, instrumental parts and ensemble contributions must work together regardless of the greeting’s occasion. That shared work gives the presentation its substance.
Listeners familiar with “September” can enjoy recognizing the musical connection, while others can approach the video as a complete ensemble performance. Both perspectives allow attention to the arrangement and the interaction among its credited contributors.
Berklee’s “December” video brings that interaction into a festive setting. Its official credits identify an international group of participants, and its arrangement gives their different voices and instruments a common musical direction within a recognizable Earth, Wind & Fire song.
More videos to explore
Earth, Wind & Fire’s official “September” video supplies the familiar musical reference behind “December.”
Berklee’s Bernard Jonathan Collective presents another performance of “September,” offering a separate ensemble interpretation.
Further reading: Performance background and source.
