Advent Calendar 2011 - 11 December : O Holy Night

Advent Calendar 2011

11 December - O Holy Night

It's nothing new that "O holy night" is one of those songs that we simply must hear at Christmas.

Since Caruso first recorded this song in 1916 it has been a staple item in the repertoire not only of great tenors but of other singers and instrumentalists.

Caruso, however, was not the first person to record the work. In 1906 the Canadian Reginald Fessenden made the very first music broadcast on radio, consisting of a recording of Handel’s “Ombra mai fu” followed by this work, which he played on the violin and then sang.

The evocative words "Minuit, chrétiens" were written by Placide Cappeau (1808-1877), the mayor of Roquemaure near Avignon in the south of France, and re-worked into English in 1855 by the American clergyman John Sullivan Dwight, 1812-1893). The song was composed in Paris in 1847 by Adolphe Adam, originally for soprano voice, and entitled Cantique de Noël. It rapidly became very popular in churches and concert halls.

It has never lost this popularity and forms part of our Christmas heritage. But today we can hear it as our ancestors heard it a century ago.

Some of our keen listeners have noticed that the year given for the record (1924) is later than Caruso’s death (1921). This is why. Cantique de Noël was recorded by the Victor Talking Machine Company, Camden, in 1916 with the number 2-032022, and was republished by His Master’s Voice as DB 139 i 1924. Matrix number is A 17218.

Kommentarer (3)

  

Vis:   Sorter: Nyeste først Eldste først  

inverted chronological

Skrevet av George Brock-Nannestad

December 13, 2011 - 00:58

- stupid me; I am not a sufficiently proficient blogger to realise that my comment comes above the earlier comment. So, my translation was of "the below".

Translation of Norwegian comment

Skrevet av George Brock-Nannestad

December 13, 2011 - 00:56

I have been made aware of the fact that not everybody reads Norwegian. So, here is the above in English translation:

"This is not entirely correct: the US matrix number is C17218, the US catalogue number was Victor 6029, recorded 23 February 1916. The first edition in the UK had the number 2-032022, and in this case the matrix number had been changed to A17218."

Skrevet av George Brock-Nannestad

December 12, 2011 - 10:47

Dette er ikkje helt korrekt: Amerikansk matrisenummer er C17218, amerikansk katalognummer var Victor 6029, opptag 23. februar 1916. Førsteutgaven i England var 2-032022, og her var matrisenummeret endret til A17218.

Skriv en ny kommentar

Navn *
Epost (vil ikke vises) *
Nettside
Sted
Husk meg ?

Bli varslet:
Nei Alle kommentarer ? Svar på min kommentar ?

Emne:

 

Utviklet av TalkBack

1