Many “traditional” Christmas carols appeared rather recently, by which I mean the last couple of centuries. Often the story of lyrics and music is rather straightforward, but sometimes the journey from origin to the carol we know today is more complicated. Tonight I’m sharing articles that explain how two carols came about: “Deck the Halls” and “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.”
“Deck the Halls” began as a Welsh drinking song called “Nos Galan,” meaning New Year’s Eve. Read more in this CBC article.
“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” was written by Charles Welsey — but it began as “Hark how all the Welkin rings, Glory to the King of Kings.” George Whitefield is the one who revised it to the words we know today. And a third man — musician William Hayman Cummings — paired the words with the rousing tune we’re familiar with, a canata by Felix Mendelssohn. I can’t tell the story better than Cait Miller, a specialist at the Library of Congress; read her article with accompanying illustrations and documents.
I apologize for such a brief post. Here are other Christmas songs I’ve researched in past years, if you’re interested:
I was subbing for the elementary music teacher today, and was sadden by how unfamiliar traditional carols are to the children. The only one they instantly recognized was “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.”