Natale Italiano: A Christmas Playlist

Begin with Ambrogio Sparagna, move through Italian Christmas songs, then give Laura Pausini and Mina a turn. This ten-recording playlist is arranged for an evening at home: a small opening, a stretch for company and a final three songs. Italian performers connect the selection, while the repertoire crosses languages and Christmas traditions.

Each title below links to a particular recording. Keep the performer and edition together when adding it to your own music app: albums with the same name can carry different tracks, guest singers or remasters. The sequence is yours to assemble, shorten or rearrange; a service may require an account, and its available catalogue can differ by country.

The order at a glance

Use the three parts as stopping points. Play the opening while people settle in, keep the middle together if you want a short selection for company, or save the last three recordings for a separate listening moment. There is no need to time a course or an activity to the end of a song.

An opening: folk repertoire and Italian songs

Ambrogio Sparagna’s Fermarono i cieli project draws on religious folk songs for Advent and Christmas, alongside his own compositions. Its stage ensemble includes zampogne and ciaramelle. The zampognari guide introduces those instruments and the traditions around them; the recording chosen here is identified by its album, rather than by an unnamed “traditional Italian Christmas” collection.

1. Pastorale di San Vito: Ambrogio Sparagna

Start with Fermarono i Cieli (2006) and open Pastorale di San Vito on Apple Music. Let Sparagna open the sequence before the familiar Christmas titles arrive. This first choice connects the evening with a named musician’s folk repertoire.

2. Tu scendi dalle stelle: Andrea Bocelli

Choose the linked My Christmas (2009) recording: open Tu scendi dalle stelle on Spotify. This is an Italian Christmas carol associated with Sant’Alfonso Maria de’ Liguori. Put it beside the next song to make a small pair of Italian Nativity titles.

3. Caro Gesù Bambino: Andrea Bocelli

Stay with the same 2009 My Christmas edition and open Caro Gesù Bambino on Spotify. Let someone who knows the song introduce it to the table. A remembered Christmas melody can start a conversation about the people who first played it at home.

4. Astro del ciel: Laura Pausini with the Patrick Williams Orchestra

Move to Laura Xmas (Deluxe), the 2017 edition, and open Astro del ciel on Spotify. Laura Xmas first appeared in 2016. Use this selection to close the opening before the middle group begins; you can also stop here for a short sequence of four.

For company: three Pausini selections

5. It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas: Laura Pausini

Continue with the Patrick Williams Orchestra on Laura Xmas (Deluxe), 2017: open the recording on Spotify. Make this the beginning of a short, three-song selection for company. It gives the middle group a recognisable Christmas title of its own.

6. Jingle Bell Rock: Laura Pausini

Keep the same 2017 deluxe edition with the Patrick Williams Orchestra and open Jingle Bell Rock on Spotify. Keep this between the other two Pausini selections. The group can accompany arranging the table, with a pause afterwards when conversation takes over.

7. Feliz Navidad: Laura Pausini

The third choice in this group also comes from Laura Xmas (Deluxe), 2017, with the Patrick Williams Orchestra: open Feliz Navidad on Spotify. Leave room after this third choice for a guest’s suggestion. Ask for the interpreter as well as the song title, so you can find the version they remember.

A final three: Mina

8. Let It Snow: Mina

For Mina, use Christmas Song Book Mina, the 2025 remastered edition, and open Let It Snow on Spotify. Give the final part to another Italian voice. Choose all three Mina recordings together when you want a separate, compact selection rather than the full evening’s queue.

9. White Christmas: Mina

Continue with the 2025 remaster on Christmas Song Book Mina and open White Christmas on Spotify. Another evening, try the same song by a different singer and ask what changes in the interpretation. Here, keep it beside Mina’s other two selections to give the final part a single interpreter.

10. Silent Night: Mina

Finish with Silent Night, Remastered 2025, from the same album: open the recording on Spotify. Let this be the last title in the queue. Afterwards, choose between another song, a story for the screen or an evening left to conversation.

Make the sequence fit your home

Before guests arrive, put the recordings in this order and check the titles in the app you use. Turn off shuffle if you want to keep the three parts together. If a particular recording is unavailable to you, keep its title on your list and choose an accessible version deliberately, noting its performer rather than silently treating it as the same recording.

For a meal, let the music fit the room and the people talking in it. The Christmas table guide can help with the setting, while the children’s Christmas activities offer a small listening-and-drawing moment. Either is a reason to select a few tracks and leave space around them.

The songs and films guide pairs musical starting points with stories for the screen. Use it when you want to continue beyond this sequence, or return to the Christmas in Italy guide to follow a place or tradition. Keep a note of one song suggested by somebody at your table: that can be the first choice for your next playlist.