The popular version is the result of alterations by various hands, notably by Wesley’s co-worker George Whitefield who changed the opening couplet to the familiar one, and by Felix Mendelssohn. His original opening couplet is Hark! how all the welkin rings / Glory to the King of Kings. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing is a Christmas carol that first appeared in 1739 in the collection Hymns and Sacred Poems, having been written by Charles Wesley. Special Mention: George Whitefield (1753) Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, Charles Wesley (1739) Top 20 Christian Christmas Carols and Hymns of All Time Last Updated: November 2016 Songs have been chosen based on popular organic searches through Google. Here is our list of the top 20 most popular carols and hymns of all time and a little snippet of how they came to be the songs we know and love. Each carol or hymn has a story behind it with some more intriguing than others as you will see. Many carols have been written over time, but there are few that can be considered a top Christmas carol or hymn. Every year we are blessed with the opportunity to remember our Lord Jesus Christ and to sing carols that warm our hearts and glorify Him. ‘Tis the season for those Christmas carols and hymns that we all know and love. The full text really gives you a look into how Longfellow was feeling when he wrote this poem.Christian Music, Worship Leadership, Worship Ministry, Worship Resources For the full text of the poem click HERE. The stanza that really gives me hope, no matter what I’m facing at the time, is second to last, “Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: God is not dead, nor doth he sleep The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, With peace on earth, good will to men.” If there is one message I wish the world could understand at Christmas time, it is this one, “God is not dead, nor doth he sleep.” I’ve included the stanzas that are the verses of the song in the LDS Hymn Book. There is a grief that can linger and consume you to an extent. I think it’s safe to say that for many we’ve been in the same dark places that Longfellow found himself in after the death of his wife and son. Most of us know his most famous poem, “Paul Revere’s Ride” (which you learn, when you visit Boston, had some liberties taken with the truth of the actual ride), and perhaps you know his other famous work, “ The Song of Hiawatha”. A few years ago, I found this clip from the Tabernacle Choir with Edward Hermann telling the story of how Henry Wadsworth Longfellow came to write this poem. (Sorry, Cory! I was being a turkey, I was 17). I’m pretty sure I was shooting fire darts from my eyes at my voice teacher during the performance. I remember singing I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day in my senior voice recital and not really being too jazzed about it all. Here is another story of how a Christmas song came to be a song. I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ‘Glory to God on high’ the angel voices sing. Welcoming our Saviour, born on earth a heavenly King. Sounding in majesty the news that they bring Softly and clearly, there came through the stillness I’ve just included verse one, but look the song up for the rest of the words, it’s worth a few clicks on google. This is one of his newer songs The words really bring in the Spirit and message of Christ’s birth. Singing his Christmas songs especially hold very dear and sweet memories and experiences for me. If there is one person that I associate with good choral music it’s John Rutter. I remember learning and singing this song as being a very joyful time.Īll Bells in Paradise by John Rutter. We used them when we sang this song as a round. And one year the First Ward Primary learned to play the pipe bells. One year, she had my dad make these bells/chimes out of plumbers pipe for all of the kids - which were my siblings, and our cousins that lived across the street. My mom was the Primary song leader for most of my time in Primary, she always made song time so fun. Every recording of this I found was not very musical, so I apologize for that, but I still love this song. Here are my top three.Ĭhristmas Bells Are Ringing - from the Children’s Songbook. There are so many songs about Christmas Bells, it was hard to choose which songs to choose to write about. I felt so grown up when I’d memorized the words from a song book we had a home, and could sing along when the song came on the radio. One of my earliest Christmas memories was hearing the song “Silver Bells”. I love Christmas bells - they are the sound of Christmas to me.
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