As we near the holiday season, the pleasant jingle of Christmas carols begins to magnify the atmosphere, filling our spirits with peace and happiness. For many people, these musical pieces are an important aspect of the holiday season, especially those that reflect the religious importance of this merry season.
Music plays a vital role during Christmas Eve and other festive seasons. The melodies, lyrics, and songs help us embrace the holiday spirit and remind us of the meaning of the Christian festival.
In this blog post, we have huddled a medley of 25 religious Christmas carols that beautifully capture this festive season’s joy, wonder, and authentic essence.
The Most Popular Christmas Songs- Perfect for Celebrating Christmas Eve
1. The Light of the Christ
The Light of the Christ is a hymn about worshipping Jesus Christ. This carol tells that when Jesus entered this world, a ray of light came through them, depicting Jesus Christ as a ray of hope. This hymn was written in 1974 by an American music editor named Donal Fishel.
He was a college student when he wrote this song. It is said that Donald’s involvement with the Roman Catholic Movement inspired him to write The Light of the Christ.
The hymn was released through books. The Word of God was the first book published in Donald’s hymn. Later on, the hymn was published in many other books, including the Irish Church, Talbot, and others.
2. Mary’s Boy Child
This Christmas Eve carol was released in December 1956 by Harry Belafonte. In the song, Harry talks about Jesus Christ; the true meaning of the hymn signifies that all are Christ’s children. At first, the rhythm of the original song was written for a party containing people from mainly the western part of India.
However, it was never released in that format. Despite this, he took inspiration from a choir at a Christian church and changed the rhythm. It surely was Harry’s best decision, making Mary’s Boy Child one of the everlasting merry season carols.
3. Jingle Bells
Jingle Bells is a ubiquitous song that nearly most people have sung once in their lifetime. From kindergarten books to Christmas carols the song has made its unique place in people’s hearts. This song was written in 1850 by James Lord Pierpont, but it was published later in 1857, following The One Horse Open Sleigh.
4. Deck the Halls
Fa, la, la, la, la, la! You have undoubtedly heard these words in churches or on Christmas Eve, but do you know these are the lyrics of the song Deck the Halls, which is one of the most popular Christmas songs? The lyrics of this song in English were written by a Scottish maestro named Thomas Oliphant. It was first released in 1862.
It is stated that the song was abstracted from a Welsh melody from Nos Galan, a winter traditional carol, in the 16th century. Indeed, the song is very old, but during the festive seasons, especially Christmas Eve, the song starts charting in the chart performances of various countries.
5. Do They Know It’s Christmas?
This charity carol was released during the Christmas celebration in December 1984. In the Christmas music genre, the song is among the best-selling of all time. In the first week of its release, approximately a million copies were sold, making it a hit Christmas Eve carol.
This song consists of various Irish and British artists, and the surprising thing is that it was recorded on a single day at Sarm West Studios in London. The song was recorded to raise funds for the people who were hit by the famine of 1983 in Ethiopia.
6. O Come Let Us Adore Him
The true meaning of this song is based on the concept of how we should worship God. The title is referenced from a line in the Bible stating, ‘Oh come let us adore him.’ ‘O Come Let Us Adore Him‘ is also known as ‘O Come, All Ye Faithful‘ or ‘Adester Fideles’. The hymn was organised by several artists, later on, it was all compiled in a book in 1751.
Overall John Francis Wade was the one who contributed the most, hence his name was printed on the earlier versions of the hymnals. From there, the background music was added by Handel, Gluck, John Reading, and his son to this religious Christmas hymn, and this wonderful song was created.
7. In the Bleak Mid-Winter
The song was written by a poet named Christina Rossetti, and it was a poem published under the title ‘A Christmas Carol’ in January 1872.
Later in 1906, Gustav Holst, a composer, composed the writing into a song. After a few alterations by Harold Darke, the song was sung in many choirs and was regarded as a glorious Christmas Eve carol.
In the poem, Christina depicted the song’s true meaning by the Incarnation of god in Bethlehem. She also described the first and Christ’s second coming. Holst used Cranham’s tune setting in the verses of the poem. Later, Darke used a more advanced setting and adjusted the lyrics.
8. The First Noel
This traditional carol is often the most played to celebrate Christmas. The word ‘Noel,’ a French word in the carol’s title, means Christmas Eve, taken from Cornwall, United Kingdom. The modernized version was later edited by William Sandys, and extra lyrics were added to the song by Davies Gilbert.
The original hymn is a four-part hymn about an angel spreading the news of Jesus Christ’s birth on December 25. John Stainer, a composer from England, arranged the hymn. In 1930, after studying different variations the audio recording of the carol was made by James Madison Carpenter, an American folklorist.
9. Coventry Carol
Like the song ‘Deck The Halls,’ this carol is also from the 16th century. The carol was performed in England in a traditional Coventry, part of a play named ‘The Pagent of the Shearmen and Tailors’. The melody of the song was done in early 1591, as for the author it is still unknown, but the earliest written text was written by Robert Croo in 1534.
The modern fixture of the song was done by Michael McGlyn, Kenneth Leighton and Philip Stopford. It is one of the three hymns in the play of Coventry Mystery Plays. Apart from this, a three-segment harmony was also written by Madyke while composing the song.
10. O Little Town of Bethlehem
Based on Micah 5:2, this traditional melody is perfect for Christmas Eve. O Little Town of Bethlehem was written by Philips Brooks, a priest of Trinity Church in Boston, in 1868, and the melody and tunes were added differently. Lewis Redner added ‘St. Louis’ in the United States whereas Ralph Vaughan Williams added ‘Forest Green’ in Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
11. Silent Night
This traditional carol was composed by Franz Xaver Gruber in 1818, the lyrics Joseph Mohr wrote them., both were the natives of Austria. Later on, the song was published in 1833. In 2011, the song was declared an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO.
Since that time, the song has gained popularity and has been included in several films. And various artists have covered this song. With a count of 137000 recordings, Silent Night has claimed the spot of the world’s most-recorded Christmas Eve carol.
It is believed that German and English tropes simultaneously sang this song at the time of the First World War, 1914.
12. It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
This 1849 poem turned into a Christmas Eve carol written by a church pastor named Unitarian in Wayland. Edmund Sears gleaned the lyrics from Luke 2:14 and later converted to Carol in 1850. There are five stanzas in the original song, but different variations are used nowadays.
It is believed that Sears wrote It Came Upon a Midnight Clear at the request of William Parsons Lunt, his friend who was a pastor in a Massachusetts church named United First Parish Church. The song was written for William Lunt’s Sunday school. Once, the tune in which the carols were sung at Sears’s home is still unknown.
13. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
This English song was released in 1739 in the scripture Hymns and Sacred Poems. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing is based on the Bible, Luke 2:14. The sole meaning of the song is praising god while singing in a chorus. Charles Weasley wrote the original version of the hymn as a Hymn for Christmas Day and Hark! was an opening couplet in that.
The lyrics were written and altered by George Whitefield and Charles Weasley, and from then until now, no alteration or modification has been done in the lyrics.
Later, in 1961, the song was included in carols for choirs, a series of books published by the Oxford University Press.
14. Shepherd’s Pipe Carol
This religious carol is a contemporary Christmas Eve carol written and composed in 1966 by John Rutter. He composed it while being a student at a college at the University of Cambridge. Rutter performed Shephard’s Pipe Carol at a Christmas concert, where a Clare College at Cambridge choir performed this song.
The carol was published in 1967 and was Rutter’s first publication. David Willcocks, a director of the choir of King’s College, was impressed by Rutter’s astonishing carol and asked for a replica of the documentation, which he sent to Oxford University Press for publication. Later on, both of them became publication partners.
15. O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
This traditional Christmas music is a good choice to celebrate the Christmas season. The native name of O Come, O Come, Emmanuel is Veni, Veni, Emmanuel; John Maso Neale, a translator, did the textual writing, as the original text was written in Latin. The hymn is based on Matthew 1:23 of the Bible.
The hymn is said to belong to the early 8th or 9th century, meaning it is approximately 1200 years old. The translation of this writing in 1851 is a notable artifact by John Maso Neale so that the modern world can understand this religious and prominent Christian festival song.
16. God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
It is a traditional Christmas Eve carol based on the Bible’s Luke 2. In the Round Folk Song Index, it is listed at the number 394. The carol is referenced from an anonymous text, which is found to be from around the sixteenth century, but the earliest printed version is of 1760, which is Monthly Reviews’s edition.
Another tune was printed in 1833 in a Cornish style alluded to as the usual version in Oxford Books of Carols. The carol also refers to famous authors such as Charles Dickens in ‘A Christmas Carol’ and George Eliot in ‘Silas Marner.
17. Once in Royal David’s City
Another Christmas carol converted from text was first published in 1848 in a book called Hymns for Little Children. Cecil Frances Alexander wrote the original poem, which was later converted into a carol by Henry Gauntlett, an organist, who set the music to the poem. The poem is based on Luke 2:4-7, and Henry Gauntlett used Irby’s melody.
Gauntlett wrote and edited approximately a thousand tunes of hymns and edited many books. Later in 1919, a festival at the King’s College Chapel had a different arrangement of this song under Dr Arthur Henry Mann. In Arthur’s arrangement, a boy sings the first verse, followed by the choir in the second and the congregation in the third.
18. Oh, Holy Night
Oh, Holy Night is one of the religious Christmas songs about Jesus’s birth. This sacred carol tells about the night when baby Jesus was born. The song is based on a poem in French written by Placide Cappeau in 1843. Adolphe Adam, a composer, gave this written scripture a melody and accentuated a beautiful song from it.
Oh Holy Night became Frances’s national anthem during the earlier phase of the French Revolt in early 1848. But later the song was banned in 1936 by Catholic Church services of Canada, this was because of the yearning to boost Georgian music and chants.
19. Away in a Manager
Based on Luke 2:4-7, this 19th-century carol of American origin is very popular, claiming a second rank in the Gallup Poll. Away in a Manager uses two different melodies: Mueller, given by James R Murray in 1887, and Cradle Song, given by William Jr Kirkpatrick in 1895. This melody has many distinct variations, each with alterations and additions.
In the original hymn, the starting two verses are said to have been written by an anonymous writer, and there is no record of the person. Claimed to be Martin Luther’s work till the 20th century, it was said that only the verses were translated from German to English because of their immense popularity, but now the allegations have been cleared.
20. Carol of the Bells
Based on the Shchedryk, Ukraine’s New Year’s song, Carol of the Bells is a popular carol. Mykola Leontovych, the composer of Schedryk, was tasked to compose a traditional folk song, which, as a result, Schedryk was created in 1914. Later, Peter Wilhousky translated and wrote the lyrics in English in 1936.
The lyrics and melody were arranged and altered by Wilhousky for the orchestra. Later, in 1936, during the Great Depression, the song was released.
The immense popularity of this carol made Carol of the Bells a hit, securing its place on Billboard. The Carol has charted more than eleven nominations from different countries.
21. Gaudete
Gaudete is a Latin word which means rejoice. It is considered sacred and among the earliest carols, dating back to the fifteenth century. The text found in the manuscript is of the medieval period in Latin. The carol was a part of Swedish and Finnish venerated songs, published in 1582 in an anthology named Piae Cantiones.
The carol’s theme revolves around the Saints, the Virgin Mary and Jesus Christ. The original text consists of an ordered sequence of verses, a four-line stanza followed by a refrain consisting of two lines. As for the recording, the most famous recording of Gaudete was done by Steeleye Span in 1973.
22. Sussex Carol
Sussex Carol is a popular Christmas day carol of Britain, also known as On Christmas Night All Christian Sing, and the words of this carol were published by an Irish bishop named Luke Wading in the 17th century. 1919 Vaughan Williams gave tume to this masterpiece by referencing Mrs. Verrall and published the carol.
Different versions of texts exist today date, but the original doesn’t synchronize with the modern version of the Carol. The text, as well as the way of singing this carol, were both ascertained by Vaughan Williams and Cecil Sharp. It is believed that Williams heard the song at Monk’s Gate by Harriet Verrall at Sussex, hence the name came from here as Sussex Carol.
23. What Sweeter Music
It was written by Robert Herrick, who was a poet and a priest in the year 1647. The hymn consists of three sections of chorus and six stanzas. The poem was written earlier but was published five years later, in 1649, after the death of King Charles I, whom Robert Herrick used to serve.
The poem starts with celebrating the birth of baby Jesus and the brightness that baby Jesus brings with him. The poem shifts into darkness and light of different seasons while telling about the miracles done by Christ. Although, the conversion of the poem into a song was a difficult task.
Peter Dearmer modified and altered the lyrics into a carol with a German tune arrangement done by Martin Shaw. Later on, the carol was composed by John Rutter and published by the Oxford University Press in 1988.
24. Joy to the World
Written by an English minister named Issac Watts, this is a delightful traditional carol that people sing each year on Christmas day. It was written in 1719, and the text was based on Psalms 98, but later, in 1848, Lowell Mason, an American composer, composed and arranged the lyrics into a melody.
The theme of the poem is about the second coming of Jesus Christ. It tells how Jesus Christ’s blessings are an invocation to those sinning. The rule of Jesus Christ over the world is celebrated as god is the one who brings salvation to human existence.
George Frideric Handel gave Antioch melody to this poem in 1839, turning it into a glorious carol. The carol became more popular in 1911 when the Trinity Choir performed it. It is one of the most published carols in North America.
25. Gabriel’s Message
Also known as The Angel Gabriel From Heaven Came, it is a folk song perfect to celebrate Christmas. Composed in the 13th century, Basque was the language that was used, and it is based on The Magnificat from Luke 1.46-55 and Annunciation from Luke 1, 26-38. The carol was composed by Charles Bordes and translated into English by Sabine Baring-Gould.
The theme of the carol tells about the Annunciation by Gabriel, the archangel. The angel tells the Virgin Mary to be the mother of the only son of god, Jesus Christ. The carol was arranged by Edgar Pettman and was published in 1892 in the book Modern Christmas Carol. The tune used in this carol is labeled as the title itself, Gabriel’s Message.
Conclusion
Christmas Eve is indeed a joyous occasion honoured globally. Everything has its significance, from fruit cakes and a Christmas tree to some religious and popular Christmas songs. Some may even dream of spending Christmas vacation with their loved ones in a beautiful destination, creating cherished memories together. But singing Christmas Carols as Christmas customs will remain eternal in many countries. In Christianity, singing carols is very important. As a result, you may enjoy a great Christmas Eve by singing the songs listed above.
Last Updated on by Ankita M Bose
