Posted on 12/10/2007 10:37:26 AM PST by NYer
The carol, as a religious song for a particular season, dates back to the 13th century but it hit glory days during the next century gaining widespread popularity. Over the following hundred years the carol developed musically and as a literary form in its own right, but was silenced by the Reformation in England and replaced by the metrical Psalm. A resurgence of carols in the 18th century has helped them become the sine qua non of the Christmas season.
‘Hark the Herald Angels Sing’ was penned in 1739 by Charles Wesley, whose brother John founded the Methodist church.The original title was “Hark how all the welkin rings / Glory to the King of Kings”, welkin meaning ‘the heavens’. Wesley is said to have thought of the hymn while listing to church bells one Christmas day. Originally set to slow and sombre music, Felix Mendelssohn composed the tune sung today in 1840 to commemorate Gutenberg’s printing press. The lyrics were adapted to ‘Hark the herald angels sing’ by William H Cummings in 1855, to fit Mendelssohn’s melody.
O Come All Ye Faithful, is popularly thought to have been written by a 13th-century saint. But the crescendoing carol, originally in Latin and entitled Adeste Fidelis, dates instead to 1743. It was written by John Francis Wade, a Roman Catholic who fled France during the Jacobean rebellion and worked as a music teacher in England. The carol was first translated into English in 1789 for use in the Protestant Church. There are almost 50 different English versions, the most well known was translated in 1841 by Frederick Oakeley an Anglican priest who wrote “Ye faithful, approach ye”. But after his conversion to Catholicism in 1845 Oakeley rewrote the opening lines as ‘O come all ye faithful / Joyfully triumphant.’
O Little Town of Bethlehem was written by Rev Phillips Brooks a Philidelphian vicar, after a horseback ride from Jerusalem to Bethlehem where he helped at Midnight Mass, in 1867. He wrote the following about the journey in 1865.
"I remember standing in the old church in Bethlehem, close to the spot where Jesus was born, when the whole church was ringing hour after hour with splendid hymns of praise to God, how again and again it seemed as if I could hear voices I knew well, telling each other of the Wonderful Night of the Saviour's birth."
The tune ‘Forest Green’ was adapted for the carol by Ralph Vaughan Williams.
Away in a Manger, the Nativity play favourite, was first printed anonymously in the Lutheran book, Little Children’s Book for Schools and Families in 1885. Verse three was added by John T McFarland, and the words were set to music composed by James Murray in Dainty Songs for Little Lads and Lasses in 1887.
Silent Night has a disputed history. Traditionally the tale goes that Mohr and Gruber wrote it on Christmas Eve in Oberndorf, Austria when they found the church organ was eaten away by mice or rust, depending on which story you believe, and had to improvise with voices and a guitar. This charming account has been dispelled as folklore since the discovery of a manuscript that indicates Gruber wrote the score a few years after Mohr wrote the emotive lyrics in 1816. The carol apparently began its journey around the world when master organ builder Karl Mauracher, who had been working on the Oberndorf organ took a copy of it away with him. It is now translated into 150 languages. On Christmas Eve in 1915, from the trenches of World War One, the carol could apparently be heard coming from the German line.
Once in Royal David’s City was written in Hymns for Little Children by Mrs Cecil F. Alexander, the wife of the Bishop of Derry in 1848. The following year, Henry Gauntlett discovered the poem and set it to music.
While Shepherds Watched their Flocks by Night has an illustrious origin as the creation of Poet Laureate Nahum Tate and Nicholas Brady in 1703 during the reign of Queen Anne. At that time only the Psalms were sung in the Anglican Church and Nahum and Tate were famous for paraphrasing them into rhyme to be sung. The melody of the carol comes from Handel’s opera ‘Siroe’.
In the Bleak Midwinter was written by poet Christina Rossetti for Scribner’s Monthly as their Christmas poem. There are many musical arrangements for the carol the most famous was composed by Gustav Holst in the early 20th century.
See Him Lying in a Bed of Straw is a relatively recent addition to the carol canon. Written by Michael Perry and arranged by Stephen Coates it’s a modern gospel carol that is becoming a classic.
Joy to the World is credited to Isaac Watts in 1719, who is known at the 'Father of English Hymnology'. The rousing music by Lowell Mason is said to have been inspired by Handel’s Messiah, in particular the refrain “And heaven and nature sing”.
Here are the top Carols being sung in churches across the country this year according to our poll.
Methodist
Evangelical
Baptist
Church of England
The Catholic Church in England and Wales Network and the Elim Pentecostal Church were unable to provide any details.
Advent.
Not Christmas.
Not yet, anyway ...
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
Refrain
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Wisdom from on high,
Who orderest all things mightily;
To us the path of knowledge show,
And teach us in her ways to go.
Refrain
O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan’s tyranny;
From depths of hell Thy people save,
And give them victory over the grave.
Refrain
O come, Thou Day-spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Refrain
O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Refrain
O come, O come, great Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes on Sinai’s height
In ancient times once gave the law
In cloud and majesty and awe.
Refrain
O come, Thou Root of Jesse’s tree,
An ensign of Thy people be;
Before Thee rulers silent fall;
All peoples on Thy mercy call.
Refrain
O come, Desire of nations, bind
In one the hearts of all mankind;
Bid Thou our sad divisions cease,
And be Thyself our King of Peace.
Refrain
I just worry that a lot of the information floating around on the internet is not really all that accurate. When I see something that seems blatantly wrong, I end up mistrusting everything else along side it.
But it's a cool article, and I won't grouse about it.
It’s “Random Chance, Rest Ye Merry Gentle-Persons”.
O come, O come, Emmanuel And ransom captive Israel That mourns in lonely exile here Until the Son of God appear Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free Thine own from Satan's tyranny From depths of Hell Thy people save And give them victory o'er the grave Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer Our spirits by Thine advent here Disperse the gloomy clouds of night And death's dark shadows put to flight. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Key of David, come, And open wide our heavenly home; Make safe the way that leads on high, And close the path to misery. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, O come, Thou Lord of might, Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai's height, In ancient times did'st give the Law, In cloud, and majesty and awe. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel.
Man, I love that song.
You beat me! =)
My favorite is probably “Oh Holy Night”.
Ditto that.
The Lamb (Tavener setting of Blake's poem)
The Sussex Carol ("On Christmas night all Christians sing")
Wie schoen leuchtet der Morgenstern ("How Bright Appears the Morning Star")
Wolcum Yule (from Britten's Ceremony of Carols)
I'm sure I'll think of more! We've sung almost all of these at one time or another.
OK! I’m saving THAT one! I LOVE it!
Uh. . . it’s fled TO France. And it’s the “Jacobite Rebellion”. Jacobean is FURNITURE, from the time of James II, not James III.
Greek Orthodox Christmas Carols—ancient songs in tribute to the Lord!
http://www.halifaxgreeks.ca/school/Kalanta/Handout.htm
This is of the Pontian Christian Greeks singing in their ancient Dialect...they no longer exst in Asia Minor
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tdqr9HOY9tM
"Cantique de Noelle" has assured Adam a place in the Composers' Hall of Fame long after "Giselle" is (mercifully) forgotten.
"Cantique" was written for high voice (tenor or soprano) with organ accompaniment in the key of D-flat (5 flats). It was written for a professional voice, as the end makes clear. Adam expects the singer to hit a high A-flat and run down the D-flat scale legato to a high D-flat, not using the vocal shorthand of portamento. In other words, those notes should be clear and not slurred.
In church it works best with a soloist who has had some experience with opera. Unfortunately, when a congregation is asked to sing it, the result usually approaches low comedy. As a youth, I can remember more than one congregation falling flat on its vocal -- ahem, face -- when asked to sing that carol.
Ever hit that “high” note towards the end?
I did, once.
Then I passed out.
:`)
“Silent Night” by the Vienna Boys Choir is the best
Oh golly. I like just about anything by Mannheim Steamroller.
This is the most incredible Christian carol of all simply because Orthodox Christians have survived so much violence against them by Muslims over the years
This one is the Byzantine Hynmn of the Nativity (in arabic)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvjiVam2HO4
. . . and of course the Trocks have sent it up worse than anything we can do.
Angels We Have Heard on High
Angels we have heard on high
Singing sweetly o’er the plains,
And the mountains in reply
Echoing their joyous strains.
CHORUS:
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Shepherds, why this jubilee?
Why your joyous strains prolong?
What the gladsome tidings be
Which inspire your heavenly song?
Come to Bethlehem and see
Him Whose birth the angels sing;
Come, adore on bended knee,
Christ the Lord, the newborn King.
Interesting history of “O Holy Night/Cantique de Noelle.” Thank you very much.
I remember the ballet Giselle...fondly, actually. But then I was crazy about ballet in general.
Angels We Have Heard on High
Angels we have heard on high
Singing sweetly o’er the plains,
And the mountains in reply
Echoing their joyous strains.
CHORUS:
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Shepherds, why this jubilee?
Why your joyous strains prolong?
What the gladsome tidings be
Which inspire your heavenly song?
Come to Bethlehem and see
Him Whose birth the angels sing;
Come, adore on bended knee,
Christ the Lord, the newborn King.
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