After the Twelve Day of Christmas

Here we are. The Twelve Days of Christmas (both before and after!) are over, and we have  arrived at January 6th. For Christians, it is Epiphany, also called Theophany, or Three Kings' Day. Epiphany (from the Greek epiphaneia, meaning  “manifestation”) is the holiday commemorating the first manifestation of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, represented by the Magi, the three wise men who, the Bible says, brought the Infant Jesus gifts and proclaimed him the Son of God. Matthew, in the Bible, tells of the kings who followed a star in the East to find the baby in the manger. Those three kings, Melchior, Caspar and Balthazar, brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

A number of hymns and carols deal specifically with this event, and the most popular and well known of those is, of course, We Three Kings of Orient Are. This carol was written by American John Henry Hopkins Jr. in 1857, while he served as the rector of Christ Episcopal Church in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. And he wrote the carol for a Christmas pageant in New York City!

We Three Kings of Orient are,
Bearing gifts we traverse afar,
Field and fountain,
Moor and mountain,
Following yonder Star.

O Star of Wonder, Star of Night,
Star with Royal Beauty bright,
Westward leading, still proceeding,
Guide us to Thy perfect Light.

We Three Kings of Orient Are - Chris Brunelle (voice & guitar)

We Three Kings of Orient Are - Alice Giles (harp) arr. by Carlos Salzedo

We Three Kings of Orient Are - Alexey Ryazanov (recorders)

In 1642 German hymnist Georg Weissel wrote the Epiphany hymn Nun liebe Seel, nun ist es Zeit (Well dear soul, now it's time). His words were set to music in a six-part motet by Johannes Eccard. It's a beautiful work; soothing on a day like today . . .

Nun, liebe Seel, nun ist es Zeit,
wach auf, erweg mit Lust und Freud,
was Gott an uns gewendet,
seinn lieben Sohn
vons Himmel-Thron
ins Jammerthal er sendet.

Well dear soul, now it's time
wake up, ponder with pleasure and joy,
what God turned to us,
his' dear Son
from the heavenly throne
in the valley of tears he sends.

O Jesu, unser Heyl und Licht:
halt über uns dein Angesicht,
mit deinen Strahlen walte,
und mein Gemüth
durch deine Güt
bey deinem Licht erhalte.

O Jesus, our salvation and light,
hold your face above us
rule with Your rays
and my mind
by Your kindness
receive by Your light.

Dein Glantz all Finsterniß verzehrt,
die trübe Nacht in Licht verkehrt,
leit uns auf deinen Wegen,
daß dein Gesicht
und herrlichs Licht
wir ewig schauen mögen.

Your splendor consumes all darkness,
the cloudy night in light traffic
guide us on Your way,
that Your face
and wonderful light
we like to look forever.

. . . And one last carol for Epiphany - Peter Cornelius' The Three Kings

The Three Kings
Three Kings from Persian lands afar
To Jordan follow the pointing star:
And this the quest of the travellers three,
Where the new-born King of the Jews may be.
Full royal gifts they bear for the King;
Gold, incense, myrrh are their offering.

The star shines out with a steadfast ray
The kings to Bethlehem make their way,
And there in worship they bend the knee,
As Mary's child in her lap they see;
Their royal gifts they show to the King;
Gold, incense, myrrh are their offering.

Thou Child of man, lo, to Bethlehem
The Kings are travelling, travel with them!
The star of mercy, the star of grace,
Shall lead thy heart to its resting place.
Gold, incense, myrrh thou canst not bring;
Offer thy heart to the infant King.

The Twelve Day of Christmas

Day 12 - For our final day of The Twelve Days of Christmas, Susan Lewis brings us the story behind the classic Christmas carol Silent Night . . .

"It's a song about a calm, bright and silent night, and the wonder of a tender and mild newborn child; words written in 1816 by a young Austrian priest, Joseph Mohr, not long after the Napoleonic wars had taken their toll.

As the story goes, that young priest went for a walk and looked out over a very quiet, snow-laden town. That town at peace inspired him to write his verses. On Christmas Eve 1818, the now-famous carol was performed for the first time as Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht. And performing it were guitarist Joseph Mohr, the young priest who wrote the words, accompanying singer Franz Xaver Gruber, the choir director who had written the melody.

Some time later, an organ builder and repair man working at Mohr and Gruber's church (St. Nicholas in Oberndorf) took a copy of the six-verse song to his home village. There, it was picked up and spread by two families of traveling folk singers, who performed throughout northern Europe. In 1834, the Strasser family performed it for the King of Prussia. In 1839, the Rainer family of singers debuted the carol outside Trinity Church in New York City. The composition evolved, was translated into over 300 languages, and arranged for a wide variety of vocal and instrumental ensembles. It was sung in churches, town squares, and even on the battlefield during World War I. During a temporary truce in the war on Christmas Eve, soldiers sang carols from home. Silent Night (by 1914 now known round the world) was sung simultaneously in French, German and English.

Over the years, the carol's mystique grew with its popularity. After the original manuscript was lost, some speculated that the music had actually been written by Haydn, Mozart or even Beethoven. But in 1994, an original manuscript was found in Mohr's handwriting, with Gruber named as composer. Today, the Franz Xaver Gruber Museum in Hallein and the Joseph Mohr School in Wagrain, Austria honor the creators of this classic carol. The Stille Nacht Gesellschaft (The Silent Night Society) hosts a virtual Silent Night museum, tracks events, and promotes the use of all six verses, which in the words of the Silent Night Society president encourage peace and demand responsibility around the globe.

Silent Night - Winchester Cathedral Choir

Silent Night - Per-Olov Kindgren (guitar)

The Twelve Days of Christmas

Day 11 - As with Gladness Men of Old is an Epiphany hymn, written by William Chatterton Dix on the 6th of January 1859 (Epiphany) while he was ill in bed. Though considered by many as a Christmas carol, it is found in the Epiphany section of many hymnals and still used by many churches. The music was adapted in 1861 by William Henry Monk from a tune written by Conrad Kocher in 1838. The hymn focuses on the visit of the Biblical magi to the Nativity of Jesus.

As with gladness men of old
Did the guiding star behold
As with joy they hailed its light
Leading onward, beaming bright
So, most gracious God, may we
Evermore be led to Thee

As with joyful steps they sped
To that lowly manger bed
There to bend the knee before
Thee whom heaven and earth adore
So may we with willing feet
Ever seek Thy mercy-seat

As they offered gifts most rare
At that manger rude and bare
So may we with holy joy
Pure, and free from sin's alloy
All our costliest treasures bring
Christ, to Thee, our heavenly King

Holy Jesus, every day
Keep us in the narrow way
And, when earthly things are past
Bring our ransomed souls at last
Where they need no star to guide
Where no clouds Thy glory hide.

In the heavenly country bright
Need they no created light
Thou its light, its joy, its crown
Thou its sun, which goes not down.
There forever may we sing
Hallelujahs to our King.

First, a straightforward version . . .

As with Gladness Men of Old - Emajekral (multi-vocal)

. . . and a wide range of performances.

As with Gladness Men of Old -  Peter Edvinsson (ukulele)

As with Gladness Men of Old -  Edmund Jacobs (violin)

As with Gladness Men of Old - Hannah Hawken (multi-brass)

As with Gladness Men of Old - Joanna Johnson (pocket violin)

As with Gladness Men of Old -  Shannon Söderlund (multi-vocal)

The Twelve Days of Christmas

Day 10 - Here's an insightful look at the hymn Watchman, tell us of the night by Richard Niell Donovan . . .

"John Bowring wrote the words of this hymn. Bowring was a brilliant man who had a special gift for languages. He is reputed to have learned a hundred different languages during his lifetime, and translated poetry into English from a number of languages.

Watchman, Tell Us of the Night was probably inspired by a rather obscure oracle in Isaiah 21:11-12, which says:

One calls to me out of Seir,

‘Watchman, what of the night?

Watchman, what of the night?’

The watchman said,

‘The morning comes, and also the night.

If you will inquire, inquire. Come back again.

The darkness of night presents many dangers, so a watchman would need to be especially alert during the hours of darkness. The dark of night is also when gremlins and goblins run through our consciousness and disturb our sleep. Darkness inspires both fear and depression. In this hymn, each verse is composed of two short speeches by a traveler. The watchman answers each of these short speeches with a short response. The traveler asks the watchman for “signs of promise”—and asks whether a beautiful star promises joy and hope.  The watchman assures the traveler that it does. The traveler asks further about the star, and the watchman says that the star promises blessedness and light - peace and truth."

Watchman, tell us of the night,
what its signs of promise are.
Traveler, what a wondrous sight:
see that glory-beaming star.
Watchman, does its beauteous ray
news of joy or hope foretell?
Traveler, yes; it brings the day,
promised day of Israel.

Watchman, tell us of the night;
higher yet that star ascends.
Traveler, blessedness and light,
peace and truth its course portends.
Watchman, will its beams alone
gild the spot that gave them birth?
Traveler, ages are its own;
see, it bursts o’er all the earth.

Watchman, tell us of the night,
for the morning seems to dawn.
Traveler, shadows take their flight;
doubt and terror are withdrawn.
Watchman, you may go your way;
hasten to your quiet home.
Traveler, we rejoice today,
for Emmanuel has come!

Watchmen, Tell Us of the Night - William Appling Singers

Watch the video here

Watchmen, Tell Us of the Night - Sabrina George (piano)

. . . and as used by Charles Ives in the first movement of his otherworldly Symphony No. 4

The Twelve Days of Christmas

Day 9  - Another one of my favorites . . . Gustav Holst's In The Bleak Midwinter, in a number of wonderful, memorable performances. Trying not to feel too bleak today . . .

In The Bleak Midwinter - Choir of Kings College, Cambridge

In The Bleak Midwinter - The Sixteen

In The Bleak Midwinter - The Trebled Ladybug

And even this very wild, weird and amazing arrangement . . .
In The Bleak Midwinter - reimagined by Jacob Collier

The Twelve Day of Christmas

Days 7 & 8 -  As I was exploring carols for this Twelve Days Before and After Christmas I came across this wonderful performance. I knew that the melody played by Mateusz Kowalski on his viola da gamba to start the performance was the classic German Christmas hymn Der Tag der ist so freudenreich (O hail this brightest day of days). However, it took me quite a bit of digging to discover what the second (choral) piece was - even though they gave a title for it! What they listed (in Polish) as Pochwalmyż wszytcy społem (Let us praise everyone together) is more often called Pieśń o Narodzeniu Pańskim (Song of the Nativity of the Lord) and was written by the Renaissance Polish composer Wacław z Szamotuł (c.1520-c.1560).

Not much more to say . . . but to enjoy this gorgeous music!

Der Tag der ist so freudenreich
(O hail this brightest day of days)

Der Tag der ist so freudenreich
Aller Kreature;
Denn Gottes Sohn vom Himmelreich
Über die Nature
Von einer Jungfrau ist geborn.
Maria, du bist auserkorn,
Dass du Mutter wärest.
Was geschah so wundergleich?
Gottes Sohn vom Himmelreich,
Der ist Mensch geboren.

O hail this brightest day of days,
All good Christian people!
For Christ hath come upon our ways,
Ring it from the steeple!
Of maiden pure is He the Son;
For ever shall thy praise be sung,
Christ's fair mother Mary!
Ever was there news so great?
God's own Son from heaven's high state
Is born the Son of Mary!

Ein Kindelein so löbelich
Ist uns geboren heute
Von einer Jungfrau säuberlich,
Zu Trost uns armen Leuten.
Wär uns das Kindlein nicht geborn,
So wärn wir all zumal verlorn;
Das Heil ist unser aller.
Ei, du süßer Jesu Christ,
Dass du Mensch geboren bist!
Behüt uns vor der Hölle.

This day the wondrous Child is born,
Lent to earth from heaven.
He comes to cheer a world forlorn,
Its heavy sin to leaven.
So, sing ye all the glorious birth
Which doth redeem our fallen earth,
And works our salvation.
Laud to thee, Child Jesus Christ!
With mankind Thou'st kept the tryst
Thou star of every nation.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Pieśń o Narodzeniu Pańskim
(Song of the Nativity of the Lord)

Pochwalmyż wszytcy społem Pana Boga z tego,
że na świat zesłać raczył Syna jedynego;
Tegoż Panna Marya w Betleem porodziła,
Jezusa miłego, i w pieluchy powiła,
a do żłobu włożyła Króla niebieskiego.

Let us all praise the Lord God
for the fact that He has deigned
to send the only Son to the world;
The Virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus in Bethlehem,
beloved, and gave birth to diapers,
and put the King of heaven in a manger.

Bylić w onej krainie pastyrze pasący;
i stanął Anioł przy nich, tako k’nim mówiący:
Wesele wam objawiam, narodził się Krystus Pan;
to znamię weźmiecie: że w Dawidowym mieście
w żłobie leżące dziecię powite najdziecie.

To be shepherds in that land;
and an angel stood by them, saying,
"I am glad to reveal to you,
Christ the Lord is born"
take this mark: that in the city of David,
in a manger, a child lying in a manger is welcomed.

Der Tag der ist so freudenreich
(O hail this brightest day of days)
and
Pieśń o Narodzeniu Pańskim
(Song of the Nativity of the Lord)
 - Mateusz Kowalski (viola da gamba), and PERFUGIUM