Dominican singer Kerwin Garcia released “Navidad Sin Tí” back in November. It’s a melancholic Christmas song about missing a loved one during the festive season. Christmas is a very important time for Garcia, as he was born in Villa Altagracia, Dominican Republic, in 1969 and grew up in a Christian environment at the Assemblies of God Church, Philippians 3:14, where he first got interested in music. He took his first music theory classes at a small school in town, which gave him the foundation to teach himself guitar and singing. At 13, he moved with his family to Santo Domingo and got involved with Christian musical groups. He wanted to attend the National Conservatory of Music, but was too old; the cutoff was 12. So he used the money his parents gave him for English classes to pay for private piano lessons instead, and convinced his cousin William Peña, who owned the Higher Institute of Languages, to let him take English classes for free so his parents wouldn’t find out. This early passion for music and storytelling becomes apparent when you listen to this song.
Musically, Kerwin Garcia keeps it simple and straightforward with what you would expect from a Christmas-themed ballad. Clearly, Garcia is showing restraint to serve the song. Though there is a pleasant surprise of the saxophone performance being as central to the song as it is. Where the song really shines, though, is its lyrics. The lyrics are in Spanish, but nonetheless, the themes and story of the song transcend the language barrier. They tell a story of a person unable to enjoy Christmas fully because everywhere they look, they remember someone they used to enjoy Christmas with. The lyrics are very poetic if you take the time to understand them. One of the best lines in my opinion (translated to English) says “The clock keeps moving on, but the pain doesn’t.” It’s a negation of “time heals all wounds,” and this is a small showcase of why the lyrics are what make this song great.
Garcia‘s background shows in how he approaches the song. Someone who walked 20 kilometers to practice piano isn’t making music casually. The dedication he put into learning his craft comes through in a track that doesn’t try to do too much but hits the emotional notes it needs to. For a Christmas song that deals with loss rather than celebration, it manages to be melancholic without being depressing.