Stille Nacht Stille Nacht
Many interesting fables abound for the origins of "Silent Night." Most of them are fanciful and untrue.
The Christmas Eve of 1818 was at hand. Pastor Joseph Mohr of St. Nicholas Church in Oberndorf decided that he needed a carol for the Christmas Eve service. The little poem he had written two years earlier while serving at the pilgrim church in Mariapfarr just might work. Perhaps this poem could be set to music. He hurried off to see his friend, Franz Xaver Gruber, who was a schoolteacher and also served as the church's organist and choir master. Maybe he could help. He did.
In a few short hours Franz came up with the hauntingly beautiful melody that is so loved and revered to this day. At the request of Joseph, who had a special love for his guitar, Franz composed the music for guitar accompaniment. Just short hours later, Franz stood with his friend the pastor, Joseph, in front of the altar in St. Nicholas church and introduced "Stille Nacht" to the congregation.
Below are a few midi files that will give you the flavour of the original arrangement. On subsequent pages you will find pictures of Franz Gruber and Joseph Mohr as well as those of the original church and its altar and the chapel built after St. Nicholas was demolished. An Annotated Links page is included.
Listen to
1820 manuscript version by Joseph Mohr
The original melody for Silent Night differs slightly from what we learned in school. The 1818 manuscript is missing so the earliest version we have of the melody is from a manuscript written by Joseph Mohr around 1820. The above midi is based on that arrangement.
Listen to
1845 Version of Silent Night by Franz Gruber
Over the years, Franz Gruber wrote various arrangements for Silent Night at the request of other choir directors. The above midi is from an arrangement he wrote in 1845 in Hallein, Austria. It was written for soprano and alto, with a full choir joining in for a repeat of the last two lines.
Listen to
Heiligste Nacht! by Franz Gruber
Another Christmas carol written by Franz Gruber, arranged for four voices, organ and flute.
The background graphic on the opening page was created using a photograph taken in January, 1998 by dear friends of mine, Ken and Cindy Earhart of Springfield, Ontario. The picture was taken in the Kicking Horse Canyon, above the Kicking Horse River as one approaches Golden, BC and facing the Purcell Mountain range. Copyright ©1998 Spirit Communication.