Please turn your hymnals to number 27 (Second Tune) and join with the clarinets in “O Little Town of Bethlehem”.
Name: Christmas Carol.
Meter: 8 6, 8 6, 7 6, 8 6.
Tempo: In moderate time
Music: Henry Walford Davies, 1869-1941
Text: Phillips Brooks, 1835-93
A second version of this hymn. I’d say it’s Baroque-like, except that Baroque, with the tune being written some time between 1869 and 1941, was long past its expiration date when this version was written.
This is what I can find about this version:
Two versions also exist by H. Walford Davies, called “Wengen”, and “Christmas carol”.[7][8] “Wengen” was published in Hymns Ancient and Modern in 1922,[9] meanwhile “Christmas Carol” is usually performed only by choirs rather than as a congregational hymn. This is because the first two verses are for treble voices with organ accompaniment, with only the final verse as a chorale/refrain harmony. This setting includes a recitative from the Gospel of Luke at the beginning, and cuts verses 2 and 4 of the original 5-verse carol. This version is often performed at the service of Nine Lessons and Carols in Kings College, Cambridge.[10]
Here’s the pdf of the clarinet arrangement: 027b.ServiceBookAndHymnal
It was kind of fun challenge to myself to play all the parts of the tunes. Some pretty challenging counterpoint going on in the harmonies, even if it really isn’t an improvement on the original.
