In 1840, composer Felix Mendelssohn submitted two works for a celebration of the 400th anniversary of Gutenberg’s invention of the printing press.
The first was his Symphony No. 2. The other was a now-forgotten work for male chorus, whose tune would be borrowed 16 years later by a British hymnist to create one of the most famous of all Christmas carols--"Hark, the Herald Angels Sing."
In the next hour, classical works like Mendelssohn’s that have inspired Christmas songs--and traditional Christmas songs that have found their way into works by Respighi, Liszt, Bizet, Orff, and many others.FEATURED RECORDINGS
Work Title | Group/Artist | Recording | Label |
Symphony No. 2 | BBC National Orchestra & Chorus of Wales | Mendelssohn Symphony No. 2 | BBC Music MM306 |
Liebgesang | Kolping Chor Stuttgart | Mendelssohn Lieder mid und ohne Worte | Bauer Studios SACD9196 |
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing | Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus | The Many Moods of Christmas | Telarc CD-80087 |
The Adoration of the Magi | Philharmonia Orchestra | Respighi Orchestral Works | Cala CACD 1007 |
The Three Kings | Robert Shaw and Robert Shaw Chamber Singers | Songs of Angels | Telarc CD-80377 |
L'arlésienne - Suite N°1 - Ouverture | London Festival Orchestra | Bizet L’Arlesienne Suite | PMG CD 160 205 |
Weihnachtsbaum, IV. Adeste fideles | Roland Pontinen | Liszt: Weihnachtsbaum, etc. | BIS CD-1164 |
Santa Claus Symphony | .Royal Scottish National Orchestra | Fry: Santa Claus Symphony | Naxos 8.559057 |
Patapan | Deller Consort and Instrumental Ensemble | Orff: From Heaven Above | RCA Victrola (LP) VICS-1376 |
Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming | New York Choral Artists | O Come All Ye Faithful | EMI CDC 7 49908 2 |
Weihnachts Musik | Arditti String Quartet | Schoenberg: Weihnachts Musik | Naïve Classics MO 782160 |
Une Cantate de Noel | BBC Concert Orchestra & Singers | Christmas Music | BBC Music MM236 |
In the Bleak Midwinter | Jessye Norman | Jessye Norman: Christmastide | Philips 420 180-2 |
Carol Symphony IV: Allegri Energico | Pro Arte Orchestra | Hely-Hutchinson: Carol Symphony | EMI Classics CDM7641312 |