THE STORY BEHIND CHRISTMAS CAROLS (15): DECK THE HALL (S): Deck the Halls or Deck the Hall (which is the 1877 title) is a traditional Christmas, yuletide, and New Years carol. The melody is Welsh dating back to the sixteenth century, and belongs to a winter carol, Nos Galan, while the English lyrics date to 1862. The first publication date of Deck the Halls is 1881. It is about being jolly and celebrating the midwinter holiday. (The phrase Deck the Hall is about putting up decorations.). Deck The Halls is what might be called a secular Christmas carol, that is, it has no particular religious content. The melody is actually Welsh, one of many fine Welsh melodies that have been adapted for English folk songs, like The Ash Grove. Having said that, the song has a truly international pedigree; Mozart used the music in a piano/violin duet, and the words are said to be of American origin, from the 19th Century. In 1862, Thomas Oliphants English lyrics, Deck the Hall With Boughs of Holly, appears in Welsh Melodies with Welsh and English Poetry, volume 2. published by Addison, Hollier and Lucas, 210 Regent Street, London, England. The Welsh melody with English lyrics then appeared in the December 1877 issue of the Pennsylvania School Journal, with the melody, described as a Welsh Air appearing in four-part harmony. The melody is substantially todays, except that the third Fa la la is omitted. An identical printing appeared four years later in The Franklin Square Song Collection. Charles Wood arranged a version, the words from Talhaiarn; translated by Thomas Oliphant. Oliphant died in 1873 and the English version of the 1881 publication (The Franklin Square Song Collection) is also attributed to Oliphant. The English lyrics first appeared (still called Nos Gallan) in volume 2 of Welsh Melodies, a set of four volumes authored by John Thomas with Welsh words by John Jones (Talhaiarn) and English words by the Scottish musician Thomas Oliphant, although the repeated fa la la goes back to the original Welsh Nos Galan and may originate from medieval ballads. The series Welsh Melodies appears in four volumes, the first two in 1862, the third in 1870 and the final volume in 1874. As can be seen from the translation of Nos Galan below, Deck the Hall(s) is not a translation but new words by Oliphant to an old song. The music to Deck the Halls comes from Wales, possibly from the 16th century and was reputed to have come from a tune called Nos Galan. The fa-la-la refrains were probably originally played on the harp. In the 18th century the melody spread widely across Europe. Even Mozart used it in his piano and violin composition, The first published version was by the Welsh poet John Ceirog Hughes (1832-87) as Nos Galan - ie New Years Eve. This poem is totally dissimilar from the song, which was originally a dance. The regular lyrics are believed to have originated with Welsh miners who emigrated to the Appalachians. Nowadays we typically think of this as a Christmas song, but I dont believe it actually mentions Christmas. There have been more than one winter celebration tradition that merged together over the years. Decorating with evergreen, burning a Yule log, having guests in and serving punch and nibbles. In the last several centuries, observing the birth of Jesus has become the central theme. Deck the Halls is a Welsh Christmas song that dates back, as far as we know, to the sixteenth century. The melody comes from a Welsh winter song called Nos Galan, a song thats actually about New Years Eve. The first time Deck the Halls was published with English lyrics was in 1862, in Welsh Melodies, Vol. 2, featuring Welsh lyrics by John Jones and English lyrics written by Thomas Oliphant. Oliphant was a Scottish songwriter and author who was responsible for many popular songs and writings. Though he dabbled in the Stock Exchange and other various pursuits, Oliphant was primarily what wed now consider a folk songwriter. He made his way by writing new lyrics to old melodies, interpreting foreign songs into English (not necessarily directly translating, but, as in Deck the Halls, coming up with lyrics that fit the mood of the song). He became a lyricist for the court of Queen Victoria and eventually became a popular translator of music. Where the old Welsh lyrics for Nos Galan sang of the impending new year, Oliphants folk composition in English lauded the onset of the Christmas holiday, calling for the decoration and merriment which typically accompanies the celebration. Deck the halls with boughs of holly Fa la la la la la la la la Tis the season to be jolly Fa la la la la la la la la Don we now our gay apparel Fa la la la la la la la la Toll the ancient yuletide carol Fa la la la la la la la la Whereas the original Welsh lyrics sang more about winter, love, and cold weather: Oh! how soft my fair ones bosom, Fa la la la la la la la la Oh! how sweet the grove in blossom, Fa la la la la la la la la Oh! how blessed are the blisses, Fa la la la la la la la la Words of love, and mutual kisses, Fa la la la la la la la la As you can see, its hardly a direct translation, but Oliphant was only interested in capturing the spirit of the song, which he did quite well. The fa la la refrain, though clearly present in the old Welsh carol, was probably an addition from the middle ages and the tendency of madrigal choruses to fill in between lines with what was, more or less, a vocal instrumental break. Madrigals were a popular secular musical form during the Rennaissance in Europe, and were typically sung a cappella (without instrumental accompaniment). They frequently employed poetry set to music, with a composer adding accompaniment sections for some voices (such as fa la la). Madrigals were typically performed by a troupe of three to eight well-trained singers, who sang in close harmonies and ascribed great emotion to the poetry they were singing. Madrigals were mostly an Italian phenomenon, singing poetry of the middle ages. Coincidentally, Thomas Oliphant was Honorary Secretary of the Madrigal Society. For the Madrigal Society, he mostly reinterpreted Italian madrigal songs into English, in the same manner with which he approached Nos Galan, which is to say, by writing completely new lyrics. Of course, his allegiance to the madrigal tradition was not responsible for the much beloved Fa la la section of Deck the Halls - that was included in the original Welsh song, as you can see above. But, no doubt it awakened in him some special interest for the songs structure, given his affection for madrigal songwriting. The text: Note that these lyrics first appeared during a time when Victorian-era Brits and Americans were enthusiastically celebrating the Christmas traditions of their English forebearers. Dickens A Christmas Carol was immensely popular, as were other works celebrating English Christmas traditions, such as those recalled by Washington Irving in Old Christmas. Dr. Ian Bradley, a Scottish theologian who researched the song, said that it came from North Wales and also was known as the Nantgarw Flower Dance. “Originally carols were dances and not songs,” he told Wales Online last year. In a 1999 post on the Minstrel mailing list, Monica Hultin writes that the song originated as a dance with improvised lyrics between either harp notes or sung syllables: It belongs to the competitive canu penillion tradition, in which merry makers would dance in a ring around a harpist, extemporizing verses in turn and dropping out when invention failed. The harp originally played the “answering” bars … but nonsense syllables came to be substituted as harpers became less common. The current lyrics to the carol have been sung for a century and are of American origin. They may have come from Welsh miners who emigrated to the Appalachian Mountains. When you sing “fa la la la la, la la la la” this Christmas, think about how those notes were intended to buy time until a dancer could come up with the next lyric. As nice as the song is, it’s almost a shame that nobody makes up their own words. The Christmas carol Deck the Halls has a long history that begins in Wales, where the music was a dancing song that dates back to at least the sixteenth century. The first published lyrics for the song were written by the Welsh poet John Ceiriog Hughes and titled “Nos Galan,” which means New Year’s Eve. Here is his original lyrics converted to English: 1. Cold is the man who cannot love, Fa la la la la la la la la The old mountains of dear Wales, Fa la la la la la la la la To him and his warmest friend, Fa la la la la la la la la A cheerful holiday next year Fa la la la la la la la la 2. To the troubled, cold are the bills, Fa la la la la la la la la Which come during the holidays, Fa la la la la la la la la Listening to a sermon in one verse, Fa la la la la la la la la Spending more than you earn, Fa la la la la la la la la 3. Cold is the snow on Mount Snowdon, Fa la la la la la la la la Even though it has a flannel blanket on it, Fa la la la la la la la la Cold are the people who don’t care, Fa la la la la la la la la To meet together on New Year’s Eve. This song has been the subject of many variations in the lyrics, at the sometimes indecipherable whims of editors. Occasionally some of these variations have been the subject of considerable controversy, as when a primary school teacher substituted the word bright for the word gay (according to published reports, the substitution was made because the students wouldnt stop laughing when they sang the word gay). Parents were described as furious and outraged at the substitution. The version of the lyrics in modern Christmas carols is: 1. Deck the halls with boughs of holly, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Tis the season to be jolly, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Troll the ancient Christmas Carol, Fa la la, la la la, la la la., Don we now our gay apparel, Fa la la la la, la la la la. 2. See the blazing Yule before us, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Strike the harp and join the chorus, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Follow me in merry Christmas Fa la la la la, la la la la. While I tell of Yuletide treasure, Fa la la la la, la la la la. 3. Fast away the old year passes, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Hail the new, ye lads and lasses, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Sing we joyous, all together, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Heedless of the wind and weather, Fa la la la la, la la la la la la la la The English words generally sung today are American in origin. The author is unknown. The first publication date of Deck the Halls is 1881. The modern version sung by American Christmas carolers in neighbourhoods across the country these days was published in an 1866 songbook titled, creatively, The Song Book, though, there, it reads as Deck the Hall. The pluralisation of halls is probably something that just took shape as more and more people took to singing it. By then, the song had been appropriated by Wolfgang Mozart, who used it as a launching pad for a piano-violin duet, as well as by folk musicians and others. These days, however, most Americans know little of the long and wide journey of this great old Welsh winter folk song. The relevance of its origins fades away as people throw back their heads and sing the inarguably festive refrain: Fa la la la la la la la la. The tune: The tune, although not the words, appear to come from Wales, possibly in the 16thcentury, and form a part of Nos Galan (New Year’s Eve). According to Studwell, the nonsense word repetition (Fa la la la la ... ) was a popular device used in the Middle Ages. The only example that Ive come across was a song in McCaskeys Franklin Square Song Collection, The Alpine Horn (see right). The tune is that of an old Welsh air, first found in a musical manuscript by Welsh harpist John Parry dating back to the 1700s.Poet John Ceiriog Hughes later wrote his own lyrics. A middle verse was later added by folk singers. In the eighteenth century the tune spread widely, with Mozart using it in a piano and violin concerto and, later, Haydn in the song New Years Night. According to scholars, the tune belongs to the Welsh canu penillion tradition, and goes back to the earliest meaning of the carol: a dance. Here, the dancers would dance in a ring around a harpist. The verses would be extemporized, and a participant would drop out when he or she would fail to sing a new verse (thus a kind of forfeits game). Originally, the harpist would play the answering bars (Fa la la la la la, etc.), but these nonsense syllables were substituted when harpers began to disappear. Thus the line Troul the ancient Christmas carol may refer to repeatedly singing verses to this tune, one meaning of troul (or troll). According to one source, the tunes popularity by the 18th century is demonstrated by the incorporation by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) in a duet for violin and piano (I have been unable to locate the correct title). Keyte and Parrott in The New Oxford Book of Carols wrote that there was an arrangement by Haydn or one of his pupils for voice and piano with violin and cello. One of the earliest appearances of the tune is said to be from two editions of Musical and Poetical Relicks of the Welsh Bards by Edward Jones, a harpist (London: 1784, 1794). The lyrics in this edition had nothing to do with the Christmas-tide, but was a type of love song; see: Oh! How Soft My Fair Ones Bosom. The older Deck the Hall English lyrics bear almost no relation to the Welsh, but are evocative of pagan traditions, such as Yule logs and homes decorated with holly (the tradition of decorating the home on the first day of winter goes back to the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans and Druids). Originally, carols were dances and not songs. The accompanying tune would have been used as a setting for any verses of appropriate metre. Singers would compete with each other, verse for verse—known as canu penillion dull y De (singing verses in the southern style). The church actively opposed these folk dances. Consequently, tunes originally used to accompany carols became separated from the original dances, but were still referred to as carols. The popular English lyrics for this carol are not a translation from the Welsh. The connection with dancing is made explicit in the English lyrics by the phrase follow me in merry measure as measure is a synonym for dance. A collection of such sixteenth and seventeenth century dances danced at the Inns of Court in London are called the Old Measures. Dancing itself having been previously suppressed by the church was revived during the renaissance beginning in fifteenth century Italy.
Posted on: Mon, 15 Dec 2014 15:22:27 +0000
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