Quatrapuntal 
Christmas Music – O Holy Night, Silent Night & O Tannenbaum played on lute and violin
#christmascarols #christmasmusic #christmassongs #oholynight #silentnight #otannenbaum
Traditional Christmas music: O Holy Night, Silent Night & O Tannenbaum. Played on the mandora (lute) by Chris Hirst with Emma-Marie Kabanova (violin) on O Holy Night. If you enjoyed this video, please like and subscribe as there is plenty more where this came from on the channel.
O Holy Night was composed by Adolphe Adam (1803 – 1856) in 1844. Adam was known primarily for his theatrical works, especially opera and ballet. He also taught at the Paris Conservatoire. O Holy Night (original title “Minuit, chrétiens!” – Midnight, Christians) was written late in his career and has become one of the best loved Christmas carols. It was possible to play the original piano accompaniment almost note for note on the mandora, with some adaptation to the outro. The violin being used dates from the early 19th century and is played using a period bow and gut strings, to recreate the sound of that era.
Silent Night was written by Austrian organist, teacher and composer Franz Xaver Gruber (1787 – 1863) in 1818. Gruber was asked to set a poem Stille Nacht written by the priest Joseph Mohr, and the first performance featured Gruber and Mohr singing with guitar accompaniment. This version has been adapted for solo mandora.
O Tannenbaum (O Christmas tree) has less of a clear history than the other 2 carols. The modern lyrics were written in 1825 by Ernst Anschütz, based on a much earlier folk song. The melody appeared in numerous earlier versions with a different text, and may date back as far as the 16th century. It was published in a set of German folk songs in 1799 with a slightly different melody/harmony which is the first version played here, then the more more familiar version played to day with music which dates from later on in the 19th century.
The mandora is a type of lute that developed in the 18th century. It often had 6 or 7 pairs of strings, tuned in D or E. In the early 19th century single strings became more common which can be seen in paintings and surviving instruments. The mandora used here is based on descriptions by the Viennese guitarist Simon Molitor in 1812, who mentioned the mandora several times in his writings. See this video for a full description and demonstration of the lute and mandora: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4FaF7eH8Tg
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