Christmas carol 'Silent Night': 200 years and still a hit

Silent Night, one of the world's most beloved Christmas carols, was released nearly two centuries ago. And Silent Night is still a hit.

Silent Night tops the list of Christmas songs"Silent Night" tops the list of Christmas songsFor millions of people around the world, Silent Night is a symbol of the Christmas spirit. The lyrics of Silent Night resonate with the emotions of many people as it brings a sense of comfort, affection, and the cozy atmosphere around the Christmas tree. Silent Night has resonated around the world in more than 300 languages ​​and dialects.

The organ in the church is broken.

The original lyrics to Silent Night were written in German in 1816 by Austrian preacher Joseph Mohr (1792-1848) in the small village of Mariapfarr in the Lungau region of present-day Austria. He was particularly passionate about social issues. In 1817, when Mohr moved to the small village of Oberndorf, 100 km away from his old home, near Salzburg, he brought the lyrics with him. At that time, the area was mostly inhabited by poor sailors and raft builders.

Silent Night songwriters Franz Xaver Gruber (right) and Joseph Mohr

Upon moving there, Mohr became acquainted with the village schoolmaster and organist Franz Xaver Gruber (1787-1863). When they met, the two quickly realized that they would make a good couple. Just before Christmas that year, they discovered that the church organ was broken. That was the origin of the Christmas carol Silent Night.

On December 24, 1818, preacher Josef Mohr passed a poem to organist Franz Gruber and suggested composing music suitable for two solo voices with guitar accompaniment, without the need for a choir.

On the night of December 24, 1818, the new song composed by Gruber resounded in the simple Christmas atmosphere through the performance of the two authors themselves. Mohr sang the tenor, Gruber sang the bass, and both played guitar. The performance was a great success. In that first performance, they sang all 6 stanzas, not just the 3 that are familiar today.

But before it became a Christmas carol known around the world as Silent Night, the piece was forgotten for a time. At that time, the church organ was broken and it was not until six years later, in 1825, that a craftsman rediscovered it when he was called in to repair the organ and took the music back to his Tyrolean home.

But there are sources that say that this song was performed by the internationally famous singer Rainer's family (in Tyrolean) in 1822 before Tsar Alexander I and Austrian Emperor Franz I.

Spread like wildfire

Around 1832, Silent Night was performed publicly in Leipzig and soon spread like wildfire. In Berlin, Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm invited the church choir to perform the song at his palace every year.

In 1854, the Royal Orchestra added Silent Night to its repertoire. Silent Night became a Christmas family favorite and a staple of church services. Unfortunately, its composer, Joseph Mohr, did not live to see his brainchild reach its full potential. He died in 1848.

Silent Night then spread around the world, with its first foreign-language versions. In 1873, it reached America as the Chorale of Salzburg, and in 1891, it reached England, Sweden, and India. Missionaries then took the Christmas carol to East Africa, New Zealand, and South America.

According to TT&VH