Jingles, Bells, Covers, and Nostalgia: What Do We Want from Christmas Ad Music?

Christmas creeps into culture earlier and earlier every year, but nothing conjures the festive spirit quite as rapidly as hearing the opening chords of ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ or ‘Jingle Bells’. There’s no denying that getting the music right in an ad is essential, and the stakes rise even higher for Christmas spots. 

Which direction to go? There’s the straightforward nostalgia of a Christmas classic; a cover that takes the classic to a new dimension; a saccharine cover of a well-loved pop or rock track… The options are seemingly endless – is there a right answer? 

“The amount of variety between familiar and cliché is super broad with what we see every year and it seems like both worlds and the worlds in between will probably always have their place. The genres associated with Christmas are super varied too.. orchestral, choral, jazz and big band, blues, R&B, hip hop, contemporary/ pop.. To me, I think a big part of what separates something cliché from something familiar is the intention behind the use of music, the amount of holiday-leaning instrumentation (if any at all), and the context that the music's operating within,” says Houston Fry, head of music curation at Barking Owl.

Shai Caleb Hirschson, co-founder and creative director at IMAGINE, a creative studio powered by music, says that “for brands, crafting the perfect musical backdrop for holiday commercials means going beyond the expected and into the truly resonant. Holiday music for advertising isn’t just background ambiance; it’s an essential storytelling device that shapes how audiences connect with a brand. It’s the invisible thread tying a brand’s values to the audience’s emotions.” This year, IMAGINE collaborated with CoSK and director Mario Clement to bring OTTO’s holiday campaign, “Was schenkst du?” (“What will you be giving?”), to life. “Our approach? To transcend clichés and create an emotional landscape that captures the true spirit of giving in all its complexity,” says Shai. 

“We wanted to go beyond the classic sleigh bells and holiday jingles. Our goal was to find a track that had a message far broader than Christmas itself—a track that could bring meaning to OTTO’s holiday campaign without restricting it to just one season. That’s why we chose 'Gimme Some Lovin’ by The Spencer Davis Group. While the song’s lyrics don’t mention Christmas, its energy and message of love, excitement, and generosity underline the spirit of giving in a more universal way, creating a deeper and more lasting connection.

“To further elevate the track, we created a unique Motown-inspired version of 'Gimme Some Lovin’ that captures the original’s driving energy but with a touch of holiday magic. The new version blends Motown’s signature groove and soulfulness with a lively, playful sound, adding a festive yet timeless quality. This rendition maintains the track’s classic appeal, but its subtle holiday spirit and quirky vibe bring a fun, joyful twist that makes it feel fresh for the season while honouring its roots,” Shai explains. 

For Jacob Plasse, composer at Barking Owl, it’s what you do with a song that matters most, not what the song is to begin with. “As both Dead Prez and Bob Marley remind us, “One thing about music, when it hits, you feel no pain.” For us as composers, our job is to make sure the music hits—to create that powerful, visceral connection,” he quips, adding: “If you can breathe fresh life into something like ‘Jingle Bells’, making it feel new and beautiful again, it holds a unique power. It might even tap into that pure, unfiltered joy we felt as kids at Christmas-time. Some might dismiss the idea, thinking that ‘Jingle Bells’ is just ‘Jingle Bells’. But to me, that transformation is what makes all the difference.”

It seems like some familiarity is welcome, while sticking to a well-worn formula is out. Familiarity, however, can be achieved through sound as well as music, giving everyone a bigger playground in which to play. “For better or for worse, December just wouldn’t feel the same without the sound of sleigh bells jingling and children singing Christmas carols,” says Clio Leeuwenburgh, sync licensing manager at MassiveMusic. Those are effects that can be added to an existing song, taking something ‘untraditional’ and flourishing it with festive touches to create a sense of freshness and familiarity at once. Houston elaborates further: “Choice moments for a vocal ensemble of some sort, warm melodic brass or woodwinds, glistening chimes, metallic mallet instruments, harp flourishes, a triumphant horn section, a subtle sleighbell keeping the pace… quality and quantity seem to be the things that make the difference. Sometimes, the visuals and voiceover or dialogue and environmental sounds set enough of a holiday tone and music acts as a cohesive/narrative glue to fully realize the tone of the intended messaging. Finding the right balance is a fun process.”

A former choir-kid Justin Morris, senior music producer at Sonic Union, has a “soft spot for music with rich vocal harmonies reminiscent of caroling. Layering in glossy strings, jazzy piano lines, and the occasional glockenspiel can add just the right touch” to give a song that festive spirit. 

A word of caution comes from BUTTER Music and Sound ECD, Dan Zank, who advocates for a degree of restraint. “Unless specifically requested, go easy on the sleigh bells, and instead find harmonic approaches that help dial in that warmth and familiarity that we know and love from the more timeless holiday classics created in the mid-late 20th century. Chordal changes and harmony will do a lot of the heavy lifting here, so consider what made the classics 'classic', regardless of the genre or how contemporary the style, and don’t be afraid to channel your inner Vince Guaraldi!"

Clio points to two recent – and very good – Christmas spots with great use of music that avoid cliché. “Disney’s 2024 holiday short 'The Boy and The Octopus', which reimagined an orchestral version of The Little Mermaid’s ‘Part of Your World,’ is a perfect example of how a reworked classic can capture hearts in a new yet familiar context, all while steering clear of predictable tropes. Then there’s Target’s 2014 Alice in Marshmallowland commercial, an enduring classic, which featured a reimagined version of the ‘60s hit ‘A Marshmallow World’ – originally by Darlene Love – covered by Karen O of Yeah Yeah Yeahs. The quirky, playful spin added just the right amount of fun and creativity to the holiday season,” says Clio. 

At BBH, music supervisor Daniel Olaifa says the team “immerses ourselves creatively in the classic, traditional, and less conventional sides of Christmas music. However, what matters most to me is how the track complements the story. It’s in that harmony where perfection is found.” For Daniel, “the ‘perfect festive ad music’ happens when the music is interwoven into the campaign. Like a finely crafted scarf, enhancing every element around it, whether it’s something familiar or unexpected.”

Understanding what the client is trying to achieve with a particular campaign is essential as it’s not always as straightforward as ‘holiday cheer’. We’ve all seen over the last few years how abstract Christmas ads can get with many even depicting emotions like grief and loneliness. Justin echoes this: “It all begins with a creative call. This is where we align with our client’s vision: What sounds do they imagine? What instruments will shape the palette? Understanding their likes and dislikes ensures the final piece resonates with their brand and audience.” Yet sometimes the creative call is straightforward, and fun to boot. “Last week, a client introduced me to a fun word: holidazzle. They asked, 'Can Sonic Union holidazzle a track for the holiday season?' A perfect term for festive creativity—I knew exactly what they meant. Yes, we can absolutely elevate a track’s holiday cheer!,” adds Justin. 

“We all know what might be in the top ten Christmas songs—they ‘work’ because they embody the essence of the season. However, there’s something about discovering a song that isn’t originally tied to this time of year, and placing it” that Daniel really likes. It’s also an approach that Ann Haugen, head of production and partner at South Music and Sound tends to favour – it’s almost a personal mission against the sameness of the sounds of Christmas, especially since the ‘festivities’ for adland tend to ‘start’ in July; “by the time the general public is sick of hearing holiday music, it doesn't come close to our ‘fatigue’,” she notes. 

Ann’s approach is “to identify genres of music that, while not explicitly holiday-themed, tend to still be associated with the holidays, especially when paired with holiday visuals. Jazz and Big Band stuff are nice places to start, since so much ‘golden era’ holiday music comes from the 40s and 50s. (Think Bing Crosby or Frank Sinatra). You can also push a little further into the 60s and nod to early rock and roll, like Elvis Presley. My favorite era/genre to play with is that 60's girl group stuff, made famous by Phil Spector. ‘Baby Please Come Home’ by Darlene Love is so well known that creating anything original in that genre tends to give off ‘holiday-adjacent’ vibes. Throw something like that on a film depicting a festive holiday gathering and you've solved it all while keeping the sleighbells locked away in a drawer somewhere. I'd call that a win.”

Evoking a sense of nostalgia, from mild and subtle to strong and unavoidable, is about where most festive advertising lands now. Jack Whitney, head of music at Forever Audio, concurs: “The power of nostalgia through music is a great way for brands to authentically achieve an emotional response from their audience.” This explains why we’ve heard quite so many covers of well-known tracks in recent years. “More and more brands nowadays are leaning into covers of well known songs, but reimagined to portray that magical feeling of Christmas time (very much led by the annual supermarket commercials). The surprise factor of music is often something that our brains can find really enticing, we are naturally attuned to predicting the next part of a song, and when it comes to an unexpected arrangement of a well known track, that surprise element can create new memorable experiences.” 

For Jack, it works really well. “This combination of nostalgia, the element of surprise and ‘feel good Christmas vibes’ creates, in my opinion, the perfect blend for festive ad music.”

“At the most basic level, the perfect holiday ad music finds a way to blend an element of nostalgia along with very subtle or creative use of traditional holiday instrumentation, all while staying focused on the mood, tone, and scoring needed to support the visual,” adds Dan.

There’s no one ‘perfect’ festive song or holiday sound, and with brands trying to stand out in a sea of ads, getting the music right and forgoing old formulas presents the best opportunity to get noticed at Christmas. What this doesn’t mean is forgoing nostalgia – the industry’s preferred festive modus operandi; for now, at least – just thinking more creatively about how to evoke it. Ann says that “there are so many great unearthed holiday songs, both covers and originals, that the opportunities for a fresh look are endless.” And wouldn’t we all feel that little more holiday cheer if we were to be pleasantly surprised with a festive ad soundtracked by something genuinely fun and good?