Carol of the Bells

 


 

[Thanks to never2without3.]
 

Information, by way of 8Notes.
 
Composed by Unknown
Lyrics, by Peter J. Wilhousky

Hark! How the bells, sweet silver bells,
All seem to say, throw cares away,
Christmas is here, bringing good cheer,
To young and old, (meek and the bold),
Ding, dong, ding, dong, that is their song,
With joyful ring, (all caroling),
One seems to hear words of good cheer,
From everywhere, (filling the air),
O, how they pound, raising the sound,
O’er hill and dale, telling their tale.

Gaily they ring, while people sing,
Songs of good cheer, Christmas is here!
Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas!
Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas!

On, on they send, on without end,
Their joyful tone to every home,
(Hark! How the bells, sweet silver bells,
All seem to say, throw cares away),
Christmas is here, bringing good cheer,
To young and old, (meek and the bold),
Ding, dong, ding, dong, that is their song,
With joyful ring, (all caroling),
One seems to hear words of good cheer,
From everywhere, (filling the air),
O, how they pound, raising the sound,
O'er hill and dale, telling their tale.

Gaily, they ring, while people sing,
Songs of good cheer, Christmas is here!
Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas!
Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas!
 

My son just found this for me. I was tempted to retroactively add it to the Christmas Concert, but instead decided to publish it separately, since otherwise, many readers would miss it until next year. At that time, I’ll add it to the concert.
 

The Artist: Traditional Music of unknown author

Composition Date: Unknown

Composition Info: A traditional Ukrainian song, known as “Schedryk.” The legend of the “lastivochka” (“The Swallow”), recounted in a winsome folk song, was given a harmonious arrangement by Mykola Leontovych, and traveled to the United States in 1922 with Alexander Koshetz and the touring Ukrainian National Chorus. American composer Peter J. Wilhousky added new lyrics, upped the tempo, and named the song, “Carol of the Bells.”