With this new collection of beloved seasonal hymns and carols, pianist Davell Crawford invites you to experience the holidays not through grand spectacle, but with gentle intimacy. In Crawford’s hands the piano becomes both a calming meditative prayer and peaceful storyteller.

Crawford's performanes will bring calm to your heart, comfort to your home and a touch of royal peace to your holiday season   

“For as long as I can remember, Christmas has been my favorite time of the year. The lights, the laughter, the sense of warmth and renewal - all of it has always filled my heart with peace and reflection. But in a world that often feels hurried and heavy, I’ve continuously looked for the light, a sort of glow, if you will. A sacred, quiet glow found tucked away in stillness. I wanted to create a Christmas album that slows the moment down - a musical space where stillness, joy, and grace may not be seen so outwardly, but quietly coexist.

A Royal Christmas for solo piano was born from that desire. Recorded for the Steinway & Sons label, in this collection of beloved seasonal hymns and carols, I invite you to experience the holidays not through grand spectacle, but through gentle intimacy. My aim for this recording was that the piano would become both a calming meditative prayer and peaceful storyteller. I wanted to offer old melodies with a whisper of new tenderness.

This offering lightly touches my Classical sensitivity and the harmonic soul of Jazz that has always lived within me. There are moments that sway, moments that pause, and moments that I’d like to think reaches quietly toward heaven.

This album is a prayer set to music - an invitation to breathe, to feel, and to remember that even in the ways of this crazy world we are experiencing right now, there is still room for peacefulness and celebration.

May this collection of recordings accompany your quiet nights, bring calm to your heart, comfort to your home and a little royal peace to your season.”

— Davell Crawford

Album Credits

A Royal Christmas / Davell Crawford • STNS 30255

Release Date:12/5/2025

Recorded 2025 at Steinway Hall, New York City.

Producers: Davell Crawford & Jon Feidner

Engineers:  Joshua Frey, Melody Nieun Hwang

Mixing and Mastering: Daniel Shores

Executive Producers: Eric Feidner, Jon Feidner

Art Direction: Jackie Fugere

Design: Davell Crawford, Jackie Fugere

Project Coordinator: Renée Oakford
Piano Technician:  John Veitch
Piano: Steinway Model D #607799 (New York) 

About the Artist

Born into the rich musical soil of New Orleans and carrying forward a legacy that spans gospel, jazz, R&B, blues, and soul, Steinway Artist Davell Crawford has become a young living legend, one of the most distinctive voices in American roots music. From his earliest days, music coursed through his life: grandson of legendary R&B singer-pianist James “Sugar Boy” Crawford, whose “Jock-A-Mo” became the Mardi Gras anthem “Iko Iko,” and Godson of music icon, Roberta Flack, Crawford absorbed the heritage of the Crescent City and the sensitivity of global culture while charting his own path.  

Crawford began performing professionally at a remarkably young age - starting at age seven and by his teens already making his mark in New Orleans and abroad.  Raised among Catholic and Baptist church traditions, his formative years were steeped in gospel, choir accompaniment and organ work, giving him a deep spiritual foundation that would inform his artistry for decades.  

While firmly rooted in New Orleans piano tradition, drawing on lineage from the likes of Professor Longhair, James Booker, Fats Domino and Allen Toussaint, Crawford never constrained himself to one style. His musical vocabulary spans jazz, soul, blues, funk and R&B, with a voice and piano technique equally at home in a church sanctuary, a jazz club or a recording studio.  

Over three decades, Crawford has built a career marked by versatility and global reach. He has toured extensively, playing in the United States and abroad; Spain, Italy, France, Russia, Finland, Brazil, Morocco, Dominica, Portugal and beyond.  His live performances often marry technical mastery with showmanship: an expert entertainer, he steps from behind the piano, engages audiences directly and infuses each set with the dynamic energy of New Orleans.  

As a collaborator and sideman, Crawford has worked with or been supported by many high-profile figures across genres, including gospel choirs, jazz ensembles, R&B bands and top-tier session work. His role as educator and mentor is equally significant: conducting masterclasses, workshops and serving as advocate for American roots music in schools, churches and international contexts.  

On the recording front, Crawford has released albums that reflect the breadth of his talent. Early releases showcase his R&B and New Orleans piano roots; later work embraces jazz ballads, solo piano, sacred repertoire and vocal projects. Reviews note his capacity to balance stylistic authenticity with fresh interpretation, to honor tradition while remaining forward-looking.  

In recent years, Crawford has embraced roles as cultural ambassador for New Orleans music. Through his performances, recordings and education work he preserves the legacy of the region while expanding its boundaries and exposing it to new audiences. He is often cited in New Orleans and national media as one of the critical modern voices helping sustain and evolve the piano tradition of the city.  

Whether he is solo at the grand piano, performing with one of his many ensemble situations, leading a gospel choir, recording in the studio or teaching the next generation, Davell Crawford brings a rare combination of heritage, versatility and global vision. His journey from New Orleans church pews to international touring stages marks him as a defining artist of the American roots landscape, one who honors the past, commands the present, and shapes the future.

About Steinway & Sons label

The STEINWAY & SONS music label produces exceptional albums of solo piano music across all genres. The label — a division of STEINWAY & SONS, maker of the world’s finest pianos — is a perfect vessel for producing the finest quality recordings by some of the most talented pianists in the world.