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When you hear a Christmas carol on the radio or television, what thoughts and feelings does it invoke? Images immediately spring forth of snow, heralding angels, the Nativity or Santa Claus. Christmas carols allow us to experience the love, caring and sharing that are such an integral part of the holiday season. As you are preparing for the joys of Christmas you will find that listening to the carols lightens your spirit and brings a sense of peace. Whether you are a person of faith doesn’t matter, for the memories these songs stir in us are borne of memories. Perhaps one of the most beloved Christmas carols ever written is Silent Night. It was written in Austria and had to be performed without the benefit of an organ. The church near Salzburg had a broken organ and the depth of the snow was too deep to get a new one in time for Christmas. Some say the carol was sung acappella and others tell of a guitar as accompaniment. All we know today is that the Christmas carol reaches out in peace to every corner of the world. During the First World War soldiers stopped fighting on Christmas Eve and sang across enemy lines this magnificent carol. Another Christmas carol that reaches out to many people is Good King Wenceslas. It is a carol steeped in history as it tells the legend of Saint Wenceslas I. He was a Duke in Bohemia in the tenth century. The carol tells us that his footprints gave off enough heat to save the Duke’s page from freezing to death. Maybe not starting the tradition of gift giving, but it was a gift nonetheless. The contemporary songs of today are really not considered carols. They lack the simplicity and rhythmic beat of the older Christmas carols. White Christmas, the Christmas Song and All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth wouldn’t fit the description of a true Christmas carol. Let’s look at some of the newer well liked Christmas songs: Jingle Bells – James Pierpont White Christmas – Bing Crosby Last Christmas – Wham The Christmas Song – Mel Torme Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer – Gene Autry Christmas Shoes – Newsong Holly Jolly Christmas – Burl Ives All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth – Spike Jones Santa Baby – Madonna Ave Maria – Perry Como A brief history of the Christmas Carol
One of the more colourful descriptions of the definition of “Christmas carol” stems from England. The legend goes that Carol, a young child, was wandering the London streets at night during the winter. The people that were looking for her went door to door asking for their friend. This became synonymous with the tradition of going Christmas carolling. If you were to look up the definition in the dictionary you will find several explanations. The Greek word “Choraulein” means a dance with flutes. When the French added song, the name was then “caroller”. The literal translation is to dance in a circle. The beginning of the Christmas carol has its roots in the church. St. Francis of Assisi started having the choirs sing carols during church services. Every country has their customs where Christmas carols are concerned. The English have traditional carollers that still go from one home to another, while other countries may sing carols only at church. Facts about Christmas carols
Christmas carols consist of consistent beats with a fast tempo. Christmas songs use melodies with different timing and lyrics that evoke many emotions. Silent Night is the most beloved and well known Christmas carol While Jingle Bells is a popular Christmas song it was actually penned for Thanksgiving. Charles Dickens wrote more than one Christmas story, but they never had the same popularity as “A Christmas Carol”. The Austrian Trade Union Federation made a plea in 2003 that the continuous playing of Christmas carols while shopping was “psychological terror”.
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