by Alfred Tennyson, Lord (1809 - 1892)
The time draws near the birth of Christ
Language: English
The time draws near the birth of Christ:
The moon is hid; the night is still;
The Christmas bells from hill to hill
Answer each other in the mist.
Four voices of four hamlets round,
From far and near, on mead and moor,
Swell out and fail, as if a door
Were shut between me and the sound:
Each voice four changes on the wind,
That now dilate, and now decrease,
Peace and goodwill, goodwill and peace,
Peace and goodwill, to all mankind.
This year I slept and woke with pain,
I almost wish'd no more to wake,
And that my hold on life would break
Before I heard those bells again:
But they my troubled spirit rule,
For they controll'd me when a boy;
They bring me sorrow touch'd with joy,
The merry merry bells of Yule.
E. Bacon sets stanza 1
About the headline (FAQ)
Note: some of the below composers whose scores have not yet been checked may in fact be settings of Canto 104.
Text Authorship:
- by Alfred Tennyson, Lord (1809 - 1892), no title, written 1849, appears in In Memoriam A. H. H. obiit MDCCCXXXIII, no. 28, first published 1850 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Ernst Bacon (1898 - 1990), "Christmas Eve", 1970-4, published 1974, stanza 1 [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by ? Baker, Lady , "The bells of yule", <<1892 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by John Frederick Bridge (1844 - 1924), "Christmas Bells", published 1869 [ SATB chorus and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by André-Marie Cuvelier , "Song 103th", 1920 [ medium voice and piano ], from Chansons pour Hélène, 4ème recueil, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Robert Graham (b. 1912), "The time draws near", published 1961 [ SATB chorus and organ or piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Craig Sellar Lang (1891? - 1971), "The time draws near the birth of Christ", published 1939 [ SATB chorus with unison portions and organ ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Edward Woodall Naylor (1867 - 1934), "The merry bells of Yule", published 1898 [ SATB chorus with divisi a cappella ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Alexander Reichardt (1825 - 1895), "The birth of Christ", published 1890 [ voices and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Walter Wild , "The time draws near", published 1935 [ SATB chorus a cappella ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by David H. Williams (b. 1919), "The time draws near", published 1955 [ SATB chorus and organ ] [sung text not yet checked]
- possibly by Joseph Williams (1847 - 1923), "The time draws near the birth of Christ", published 1861 [ voice and piano ], note: composer given as "Florian" [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-01-11
Line count: 20
Word count: 138