Hark! The stories behind our favorite Christmas carols – Details, episodes & analysis

Our final episode of Hark! this season departs from the usual nativity of Christ in a manger, surrounded by shepherds and angels on high. Instead, our carol centers on the singular icon of a rose. “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming” is a German Christmas song, first published in a Lutheran hymnbook in 1599. Although its believed to be much older, originating in a Catholic monastery with an uncertain date and writer.  And not only do we not know who wrote the text for our carol. The person behind the basic melody is also a mystery. The music is often credited to Michael Praetorius, a German composer, organist and music theorist from the 16th and 17th Centuries. But, Praetorius didn't compose the main melody; he only added the harmonies that have made this “the rose of all carols” among choristers and music maestros. Adding further to the mystery of this carol, the symbol of the rose is ambiguous. Depending on the translation and verse, the rose could represent Jesus or his mother Mary, who in Catholic mysticism is adorned with roses. Our heartfelt thanks extends to every musician, choir and soloist who gifted their music so generously to Hark! this season. On this episode we are especially grateful to: The Choir of King’s College Cambridge, The Ignatian Schola, Cynthia Boener, Katie Green and Karen Hefford, Barbara Rowe for sharing the music of her husband, the late Bryan Rowe, Gary Cope and the Encomium Ensemble, the music department of Hope College in Holland, Michigan, Stephen Lynerd, Winter Harp and The Notre Dame Folk Choir, under the direction of JJ Wright, who walked us through the music of “Lo How A Rose” on this episode. Special thanks to the Benedictine monks of Saint John's Abbey Schola in Collegeville, Minnesota. In particular to Father Nick Kleespie who coordinated the performance of Father Anthony Ruff's arrangement of “Lo, How a Rose,” featured in this episode. To learn more about the monks of Saint John’s Abbey, please visit saintjohnsabbey.org. Support “Hark!” become a digital subscriber of America Magazine at: https://link.chtbl.com/04Jrg99F Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re looking at a song that is indisputably a Christmas carol but with a reach that extends to every season – “Go Tell It on the Mountain.” It belongs to a collection of historic Negro Spirituals, which likely started on the slave plantations in the American South and were later picked up in the Civil Rights Movement by activists like Fannie Lou Hamer and later, The Freedom Singers.  “Go Tell It on the Mountain” has been performed by a multitude of heavenly singers and we were lucky enough to speak to one such star- Vanessa Williams- about why she chose to feature the carol on her 1996 Christmas album, Star Bright. Maggi Van Dorn, Hark’s host, also garnishes rich cultural and theological insight from Catholic liturgical heavyweight, Eric Styles, along with expert music and history lessons from the wildly talented Emorja Roberson, Assistant Professor of Music and African-American Studies at the Oxford College of Emory University. The music featured in this episode is thanks to The OK Factor, Caleb Noeldner, Kendra Logozar, Kim and Reggie Harris, Vanessa Williams, and Universal Music Enterprises. Special thanks to Pauline Books and Media for the recording of “Go Tell It on the Mountain” by Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman, F.S.P.A. We're grateful to Emorja Roberson for providing commentary and his singing voice throughout, and to Frank Tuson for his audio wizardry as the engineer on this episode. Frank also composed the Hark! theme music and successfully convinced members of his family to record “Down to the River,” heard on this episode. Support “Hark!” become a digital subscriber of America Magazine at: https://link.chtbl.com/04Jrg99F Or you can play a little reindeer game with us and win a subscription to America!  At the end of this episode, we’ve left a clue about next week’s carol. Guess the carol in an Instagram post, tag three friends, and follow @americamedia, and you will be entered to win a one-year digital subscription to America. No purchase necessary. Open to U.S. residents only 18 and older. Prize value is $49.99 each. Promotion period November 26 to December 22, 2023. Twenty winners will be randomly selected and notified by D.M. by January 10, 2023. Instagram does not endorse this giveaway. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It is hard to imagine a midnight Mass on Christmas Eve without Silent Night. Musicians may treat it differently—singing it a cappella, with spare chords on the organ in the background, or to the gentle picking of a guitar as its creators intended—but it is universally cherished. Its basic three-chord structure makes it a cinch to play and its lilting rhythm is perfect to soothe a congregation and lull a baby to sleep—even to sing to a president breathing his last. But it has also been usurped for evil. Join host Maggi Van Dorn on this final episode of “Hark!” as she plumbs the historical and emotional depths of this Austria-born classic with Jesuit priest Ed Schmidt and Rusty McDermott, the songbird mother of another Jesuit. To pull apart the chords and arpeggios of Silent Night, we invited back Colin Britt, the composer and conductor we spoke to in episode three about “Hark! the herald angels sing.”   Special thanks to the Liturgy Arts Group at Boston College, One Hope Project, Harpa Dei, Portsmouth Cathedral Choir; Portsmouth Grammar School Chamber Choir, Convivium Records and the Ignatian Schola for allowing us to play their recordings of Silent Night.  Support “Hark!” and subscribe to America today. Related articles: Ed Schmidt's article for America: Is ‘Silent Night’ the greatest Christmas song ever? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

O Come, All Ye Faithful is a rousing, controversial and some might even say, miraculous Christmas carol! And it’s believed to have a subversive Jacobite rallying call hidden in the text. To peal back the layers of history in this song, Host Maggi Van Dorn is joined by Rev. Andrew Cameron-Mowat S.J., a Jesuit priest at St. Ignatius, Stamford Hill (London), and an accomplished organist and music director. We also hear from Dr. Kim Harris, Assistant Professor of African-American Thought and Practice at Loyola Marymount University, along with a former Choir of King’s College organ scholar, Parker Ramsey. Special thanks to the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge and the Ignatian Schola for allowing us to play parts of their recordings of Adeste Fideles/O Come, All Ye Faithful.  Support “Hark!” and subscribe to America today. Related articles: Black spirituals meet the liturgy: Why I composed a Mass for Black Catholics Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The title track of the podcast is here! Even though “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” was never meant to be a Christmas carol, it has proven one of the most popular in history. We’re exploring its soaring descants and hallmark harmonizations with conductor/composer Colin Britt. And we’re unpacking its many scriptural allusions with Laurie Brink, a Dominican sister and New Testament scholar.  Special thanks to the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge, the Ignatian Schola and One Hope Project, for allowing us to play parts of their recordings of “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.” Support “Hark!” and subscribe to America today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What would it mean to approach Advent with a sense of longing, rather than wanting or demanding? That’s the question posed by Roc O’Connor S.J., of the famed St. Louis Jesuits. And the Christmas carol that seems to best encapsulate this holy longing is “O Come, O Come Emmanuel.” It’s one of the oldest carols in circulation, with a text that dates back to the 8th century. To uncover the story of this ancient hymn, we’re joined by Cameron Upchurch, chapel organist and Director of Music at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Braamfontein, Johannesburg. Special thanks to the Ignatian Schola and to Salt of the Sound (and their record label Echoes Blue Music), for their recordings of “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel;” to Frank Tuson for providing instrumental accompaniment to the Schola; and to Cameron Upchurch, Frank Tuson and Ricardo da Silva for vocals on this episode. Support “Hark!” and subscribe to America today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the first episode of Hark! we unwrap the history of Christmas carols in Europe and why so many of them are set in a haunting minor key. Host Maggi Van Dorn is joined by Rosie Pentreath, musician and music writer for Classic FM, and the founder/host of the OUTcast podcast. Support “Hark!” and subscribe to America today. Special thanks to Harpa Dei and Jim Bilodeau for providing some of the original music you heard in this episode. And to Frank Tuson for our theme music. Which Christmas carols would you like for us to explore next year? Let your voice be heard! Complete this brief listener survey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

America Media presents “Hark!” a podcast on the meaning and the making of our most beloved Christmas carols and their time-honored traditions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“The Wexford Carol” is heralded as Ireland’s oldest recorded Christmas carol. It’s been performed by world class cellist Yo-Yo Ma and American country music star Allison Krauss. Yet, the history of this carol is difficult to trace. We know that it was passed down in the oral tradition for hundreds of years. Some scholars claim it originated in the 16th century, while others believe it has even older roots in the 12th century. However, it was not until the 1920s that a certain music scholar and organist by the name of W.H. Grattan Flood plucked this jewel of a carol from the obscurities of history and preserved it for posterity. But where did Grattan Flood first hear this carol? And how did he manage to transform the song from folk legend to international sensation?  Host Maggi Van Dorn travels to Enniscorthy, a small hillside town in County Wexford, Ireland, where Flood first put the carol to paper. She speaks with Flood’s grand-daughter, Margaret Franklin, along with famed novelist and Enniscorthy native, Colm Tóibín. And Hark! welcomes back the illustrious liturgical music composer, Christopher Walker, to unwrap the beauty of “The Wexford Carol” and its likely roots. Semibreve Duo, Brad Prevodoros of Manzanita Productions, Heather Dale, Avaendil, Rosalind band, Jennifer Theby-Quinn, Étáin and Máire  of An Chéad Ghlúin Eile, and to Richard Jeffrey-Gray and Hoxa Recordings who gave us permission to play the 1997 performance of the Wexford Carol as arranged by John Rutter and performed in 1997 by the Choir of Clifton Cathedral in Bristol, England under the direction of David Ogden.  Support “Hark!” become a digital subscriber of America Magazine. Or you can play a little reindeer game with us and win a subscription to America!  At the end of this episode, we’ve left a clue about next week’s carol. Guess the carol in an Instagram post, tag three friends, and follow @americamedia, and you will be entered to win a one-year digital subscription to America. No purchase necessary. Open to U.S. residents only 18 and older. Prize value is $49.99 each. Promotion period November 26 to December 22, 2023. Twenty winners will be randomly selected and notified by D.M. by January 10, 2023. Instagram does not endorse this giveaway. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hark! Season 3 debuts with a crowd favorite- “O Holy Night.” Born as a French poem in 1843, and set to music a few years later, this carol was banned for two decades from the Catholic Mass. It resurfaced in the hands of a Unitarian minister in the U.S. and became an anthem for abolitionists before the Civil War. It is also the song that you, our listeners, have overwhelmingly asked us to feature on Hark! Conductor Colin Britt returns to the show to unwrap the soaring verses and repeating leaps and skips in the music. Daniel Williams, professor of American religion and politics and author of several books on related subjects, narrates how “O Holy Night” has helped to shape Christmas culture in 19th-century America. Finally, Greg Boyle, S.J. of Homeboy Industries, shares with host Maggi Van Dorn the profound meaning this beloved carol has for him.  The episode features a brand new recording of “O Holy Night” performed by the renowned choir of King’s College, Cambridge, under the direction of Daniel Hyde, and arranged by John Rutter, featuring the Britten Sinfonia. The story of Reginald Fessenden broadcasting “O Holy Night” was a theatrical production designed by our engineer, Jim Bilodeau. It incorporated a reenactment of the event available on Walts Welt Soundcloud channel.  Special thanks to Molly Cahill, Malukah de los Santos and Alexander Knutsen, Firjii, Salt of the Sound and Echoes Blue Music, and Chad Rehmann and Cremaine Booker of Grey Duck Records for providing music for this episode. Support “Hark!” become a digital subscriber of America Magazine. Or you can play a little reindeer game with us and win a subscription to America!  At the end of this episode, we’ve left a clue about next week’s carol. Guess the carol in an Instagram post, tag three friends, and follow @americamedia, and you will be entered to win a one-year digital subscription to America. No purchase necessary. Open to U.S. residents only 18 and older. Prize value is $49.99 each. Promotion period November 26 to December 22, 2023. Twenty winners will be randomly selected and notified by D.M. by January 10, 2023. Instagram does not endorse this giveaway. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices