First
performance: December 7, 1975, Hamburg, St. Michaelis
Edward-Tarr-Bläser-Ensemble
/ G. Dickel, T. Dittmann, J. Henschen, J. Domagala - Orgeln / St. Michaelis-Chor
/ Leitung: Günther Jena
Dedication: for Günther Jena and the St. Michaelis-Chor Hamburg
Duration: 11 Minutes
Publisher: Bertold Hummel Foundation
This very popular Christmas carol has Italian origins. In 1788 the German philosopher, theologian, and poet Johann Gottfried von Herder (1744-1803) brought the melody to Germany after a trip to Italy. Originally a Sicilian fisherman's song, the melody was used for the Latin hymn "O Sanctissima." Around 1816 Johannes Daniel Falk (1768-1826) wrote the German lyrics for what soon became one of the most popular German Weihnachtslieder. The English version is known as "O How Joyfully."
O how joyfully
O
how joyfully, o how blessedly,
Comes the glory of Christmastime!
To a world
so lost in sin,
Christ the Savior, enters in:
Praise Him, praise Him Christians,
evermore!
O how joyfully,
o how blessedly,
Comes the glory of Christmastime!
Jesus, born in lowly
stall,
With His grace redeems us all:
Praise Him, praise Him Christians,
evermore!
O how joyfully,
o how blessedly,
Comes the glory of Christmastime!
Hosts of angels from
on high,
Sing, rejoicing, in the sky:
Praise Him, praise Him Christians,
evermore!
Press
Hamburger
Anzeiger, 1st December, 1975
It is certainly an impressive spectacle when music is produced simultaneously by four organs, two choirs and several wind groups. In "Music for Advent and Christmas" in the principal church St. Michaelis under the direction of Günther Jena, a composition for this unusual instrumentation provided the highlight and conclusion. Bertold Hummel had written a fantasy on the Sicilian Christmas melody of "O du fröhliche, o du selige" specially for this concert. The musical plan exploited not only all the organs and organ positives available in the "Michel" but also their positions in the building. Hummel combines apocalyptic expectation with a Christmas message of joy. It was particularly memorable to experience the masses of sound resounding as if from all corners of the heavens (from three galleries and from the chancel).
See also: Christmas Music by Bertold Hummel