1. If you had to choose CDs as a soundtrack for the Christmas season, what would they be?
Messiah by George Frederick Handel--the entire oratorio, not just the Christmas portion.
2. How do you feel about singing all the verses of "The First Noel?" (Six in our hymnal, but apparently there are nine.)
Our Presbyterian hymnal uses the "Nowell" spelling. I say sing them all! Especially the last verse:
Then let us all with one accord
Sing praises to our heavenly Lord,
That hath made heaven and earth of nought
And with His blood our life hath bought.
Nowell, Nowell, Nowell, Nowell
Born is the King of Israel
3. "O, Come All Ye Faithful" has a lot of verses, too. Which is your favorite?
Apparently we Presbies got short-changed compared to the version in Songbird's UCC hymnal. There are only 3 verses in the "blue" hymnal. I like the first verse best in English AND in Latin:
Adeste, fideles, laeti triumphantes;
Venite, venite in Bethlehem.
Natum videte Regem angelorum.
Venite adoremus, venite adoremus, venite adoremus, Dominum
I remember singing Adeste Fideles in Latin in my Presbyterian church on Christmas Eve in San Antonio in Latin. I have no idea why we did that! Must've had a Latinist for a pastor or music director.
4. What music do you play while opening presents?
Messiah, Messiah, and then some more Messiah. My father always played Messiah non-stop from Christmas Eve to the end of Christmas Day and I follow that custom. Needless to say I have the ENTIRE thing memorized which comes in handy when I'm singing it with a church choir.
5. Which carols do you consider to be Christmas Eve essentials?
O Come All Ye Faithful, Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Joy to the World, O Little Town of Bethlehem, and Once in Royal David's City.
Bonus Question:
6. What, if any, is your favorite secular Christmas song?
Deck the Halls With Boughs of Holly
Tra-la-la-la-la-la-la
'Tis the season to be jolly
Tra-la etc
Don we now our gay apparel
Tra-la etc
Troll the ancient Yuletide carol
Tra-la etc
My maiden name was Hall. When I was growing up we adopted this as our theme song and sang Deck the "Hall's" as we put up our Christmas tree and decorations.
How would you answer these questions? I hope you get to sing all your favorite carols in church tomorrow and Sunday.
How would you answer these questions? I hope you get to sing all your favorite carols in church tomorrow and Sunday.
4 comments:
great answers :)
blessed Christmas !
I really enjoy singing "Once in Royal David's City;" it feels so English. But when we did our hymn survey in preparation for ordering new hymnals, it turned out to be someone's least favorite hymn. (And not just anybody--the moderator of the church!) What's not to like?
One of my pet peeves is omitting verses of hymns. Maybe it's because the Presbyterian background of my very early years. Anyway, I say if God didn't want us to sing all the verses He wouldn't have put them in the hymnbook.
Amen to what Jaan said. What the blue hymnal did to to "Be Thou My Vision" was tragic.
I really enjoy Bach's Christmas Oratorio. It has been a source of pleasure for many years, and I play it from time to time during the rest of the Church year.
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