Caroling, Caroling
by Alfred Burt
Caroling, caroling, now we go; Christmas bells are ringing!
Caroling, caroling through the snow; Christmas bells are ringing!
Joyous voices sweet and clear, sing the sad of heart to cheer.
Ding, dong, ding, dong, Christmas bells are ringing!
Caroling caroling, through the town; Christmas bells are ringing!
Caroling, caroling, up and down; Christmas bells are ringing!
Mark ye well the song we sing, Gladsome tidings now we bring.
Ding, dong, ding, dong, Christmas bells are ringing!
Caroling, caroling, near and far; Christmas bells are ringing!
Following, following yonder star; Christmas bells are ringing!
Sing we all this happy morn. “Lo, the King of Heaven is born!”
Ding, dong, ding, dong, Christmas bells are ringing!
We will see how far I get in the busy month of December, but for now I am starting a blog series featuring some of the Christmas Carols I sing every year.
I belong to a music ensemble partnership called Carolers of Note that is hired to sing Christmas Carols at stores, malls, private parties, offices, etc., during the Christmas Season. As such, I have learned a lot of songs, some very familiar, others less so. Over time, some of the songs have come to be special to me for one reason or another, so I thought I would feature some of them here.
I chose to start with “Caroling, Caroling” by Alfred Burt, one of three Alfred Burt carols that we perform.
Alfred Shaddick Burt (April 22, 1920 – February 7, 1954) was an American jazz musician who is best known for composing the music for fifteen Christmas carols between 1942 and 1954. Only one of the carols was performed in public outside his immediate family circle during his lifetime.
Burt’s father, an Episcopal minister, started a tradition in 1922 — the creation of a Christmas card, which he sent to family members and parishioners. On these cards were original Christmas carols, with both the words and music by the Reverend Burt. For the family Christmas card in 1942, Bates asked his son Alfred to write the music for that year’s carol, “Christmas Cometh Caroling.” From then on, Alfred would write the music for the family’s Christmas cards, and the “Alfred Burt carols” were born. (notes on Burt’s life taken from Wikipedia)
I like this song because it talks about common holiday things, singing, bells, cheering the sad, but it also delves deeper, mentioning why all these things have meaning, why we can cheer the sad. “sing we all this happy morn, ‘Lo, the King of heaven is born,'”
It was also written to be sung a capella, which scores it several more points in my favorites book.
So take a moment to listen to Caroling Caroling, as we start a month of Christmas Carols.
At The Rainbow 
Reblogged this on This, that, and the other thing.
LikeLike