Hark! 2012
December 6
Angels We Have Heard on High
Performed by Joseph Hedden on guitar and vocals
Words: French traditional; translated by James Chadwick, 1860.
Music: GLORIA, French traditional; arranged by Edward Shippen Barnes, 1937.
Our song today was recorded by Joseph Hedden, pastor of Emmanuel Reformed United Church of Christ (Hills Church) in Export, PA. Joseph is a colleague of Liddy Barlow in the Westmoreland Association of the UCC Penn West Conference.
Lyrics
Angels we have heard on high,
Sweetly singing o'er the plains,
And the mountains in reply
Echoing their joyous strains.
Refrain
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Gloria, in excelsis Deo!
Shepherds, why this jubilee?
Why your joyous strains prolong?
What the gladsome tidings be
Which inspire your heavenly song?
Refrain
Come to Bethlehem and see
Him whose birth the angels sing;
Come, adore on bended knee,
Christ the Lord, the newborn King.
Refrain
See Him in a manger laid,
Whom the choirs of angels praise;
Mary, Joseph, lend your aid,
While our hearts in love we raise.
Refrain
Sources and more information
- 50 Three-Chord Christmas Songs for Guitar, Banjo, and Uke, Larry McCabe, Mel Bay Publications, 2009.
- Presbyterian Hymnal, 1990.
- Christmas Songs for Clawhammer Banjo
- Hymns and Carols of Christmas
