Oops, had to catch myself! Anyway, I thought it would be fun to find out your favorite Christmas Carol. Now, I know I'm a pastor and all -- I'll be "spiritual" in a minute -- but I'd love to know your current favorite NO MATTER WHAT IT IS (remember: family friendly).
When I was young, I loved Joy To The World. Somewhere about high school it became The First Noel (I loved the bass part). By my junior year, our German Club was learning some in that language. I still remember more German words to O Tannenbaum than English words to O Christmas Tree. At about the same time, I was learning substitute words for some of the popular carols. Which, in turn, I taught to my kids. Totally messed them up.
In the past few years -- spiritual now -- I have loved the following...
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 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
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
Now, it's up to you. Whether it's Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer or Silent Night, please tell us your favorite. And, if possible, a word or two why. We will probably be humming along with you!
10 comments:
We had Joy To The World at our wedding - in August :)
My all time favourite carol is Gaudete - but it's never done at services due to being in Latin, so I never get to sing it (except to myself as I wander down the street). I love all the classics though - favourites include In The Bleak Midwinter, O Come All Ye Faithful, and It Came Upon A Midnight Clear.
It's more of a winter song than a Christmas song, but the past few years Winter Wonderland has gotten me through many slogs through muddy, days-old city snow. It enables me to imagine that everything is glistening, and that I can hear sleighbells ring, and that there's a meadow just around the corner where the snow is deep and pure enough to make a first-class snoman/snowclown/snowParsonBrown.
I think may favorite real Christmas song is It Came Upon a Midnight Clear.
When I was a litte boy, I remember looking through the TV guide with my brother anticipating finding "White Christmas" being shown in the wee hours of the morning. It's become our family tradition to watch it every year. I guess if you consider opera part of Christmas, I love Amahl and the Night Visitors.
I'm not sure.... I have loved O Come O Come Emmanuel the last few years too, both for the words and the beautiful, minor key melody.
It's really hard to pinpoint a favorite though.
Wow, you guys have been busy while I was goofing the morning away. BUT I got to talk to both my granddaughters on Skype -- what a special morning for me!
Rachel, based on your recommendation, I can't wait to listen to Gaudete. I'm a music nerd and it sure piques my interest. I think I have heard In The Bleak Midwinter, my UK friend, but it's not really familiar. Thank you!
Becki, based on that storm coming your way, sleighs may be the best mode of transport available for a few days up there. Maybe you can hear bells!
Scott, thanks for joining in. You mentioned your family tradition to me the other day. Those are such great moments!
Beth, maybe RMc will join in today and give us those words to Rodney, the Rednecked Reverend. That can be your favorite for today!
How about it, Rod? Where are you?
I love almost all Christmas and holiday music.
But Christmas just isn't Christmas until I hear The Hallelujah chorus. Even better is the entire Messiah. I used to sing in choirs that performed it... but have yet to find a live performance of it (that you don't pay oodles of money to attend) in my area.
I love all the old favorites. We sing alot of them in the Christmas Eve candlelight service. And at the end, the sanctuary is darkened, our candles are lit, and we sing Silent Night, with the sopranos in the choir singing a descant! I love all of this service, but I'm always especially touched by the Silent Night.
We went to a Christmas vespers service at the Seminary here once, and I heard these old Christmas hymns sung the best I had ever heard. A huge chorus of men's voices in a not too large chapel with perfect acoustics. Wow!
I also love a "recent" song that Mark Lowery wrote, "Mary Did You Know." I especially like the way Kathy Mattea sings it. Beautiful, touching words. Just a beautiful song.
Thanks, Liz and Sandy. I was listening to Messiah just this morning. I love it!
Sandy, your description of the huge chorus of men's voices in a not too large chapel with perfect acoustics sort of gives me chill bumps!
Thanks to you both.
Who else will weigh in?
It will probably say more about me than I want, but my current favorite is "You're a mean one Mr. Grinch!"
C. Beth - I've been out of pocket the past couple of days - sorry! My daughters haven't progressed past the giggling stage to buckle down to some serious wordsmithing on their arrangement yet! It would not surprise me to hear the completed song before any other hints are given!!
My favorite is "O Holy Night". I almost can never make it through the entire song without at least one tear making its way down my cheek.
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