Polish Christmas carols: the history of their creation
Polish ones, as it turns out, are some of the most frequently created Christmas songs. We can find over 500 songs of this type in Polish cultural heritage, which is an absolute world record.. Despite such a large number of them, carols and pastorals appeared in our culture relatively recently. The tradition of singing songs emphasizing the joy of the birth of the Holy Child came to Poland from across the Czech border along with Christmas nativity scenes and the solemn celebration of Christmas. This took place around the 15th century. The first Polish carols were translations into Polish from Latin, some were translations of songs from the songbooks of the Czech Brethren. The oldest known Polish carol is probably a translation of a Czech carol. Its text was preserved in the sermon of Jan Szczekna, confessor of Queen Jadwiga. It starts with words ”Hail, angelic king” and dates back to 1424. Unfortunately, its musical notation has not survived. However, the Christmas carol has survived to this day ”Christ is born for us”. The work included in the Kancjonal of Jan of Przeworsk was written in 1435, probably as a translation of the Latin carol ”Christus natus est nobis”. However, this carol is not as famous and popular as another adaptation of the Latin song titled ‘Dies est laetitiae’, which is a medieval Polish Christmas song. ”The angel spoke to the shepherds”, was established in the 16th century. You can find it, among others: in the Kórnik manuscript from 1551-1555. However, the first musical notation of this song comes only from the second half of the 17th century. It is worth knowing that the carol as a genre became popular in Polish culture at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries. It was then that the term ”carol” was coined to describe a Christmas song. One of the most important Polish Christmas carols comes from this period, i.e ”He lies in a manger”.
The most beautiful Christmas carols
The most beautiful Polish Christmas carols were and are still being created to this day. It is considered one of the most important Polish Christmas carols ”Song of the Nativity”commonly known as ”God is born”. Its dignified character is determined by the melody of the polonaise to which it is currently performed. The authorship of its musical layer is attributed to Karol Kurpiński, although it cannot be ruled out that it has folk origins. What is certain is that the text of this carol was written by Franciszek Karpiński at the end of the 17th century. An equally beautiful and extremely popular Christmas song is one of the oldest Polish carols, titled ”When Christ is born”. It was probably created at the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries, and its early Baroque origins can be proven by chorale elements combined with dance accents.
The lullaby is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful Polish Christmas carols ”Sleep Jesus”. It was probably created in the second half of the 17th century, and the oldest preserved version of this carol comes from 1705. It became an inspiration for many later composers, e.g. Fryderyk Chopin wove its motifs into the middle part of his Scherzo in B minor, Op. 20, and Jacek Kaczmarski quotes it in the song ”Wigilia na Siberii”. The beauty cannot be denied of such 18th-century lullabies as ”When a pretty lady” (enjoying particular popularity in nunneries) or ”Tiny Jesus” (referring in character to kujawiak).
A beautiful and eagerly sung carol comes from the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries ”The silence of the night”, which was first published only in 1853. In 1818, one of the most popular Christmas carols in the world was created in Austria, ”Silent Night”. The music for this beautiful carol was written by Franz Xaver Gruber, and the lyrics by Joseph Mohr. It quickly gained popularity around the world, the Polish text was written around 1930 by Piotr Maszyński. In 1938, a Christmas carol from Nowy Sącz was created ”There was no room for you”. The music to the words by Mateusz Jeż was created by Józef Łaś. It is one of the few Christmas carols in the minor mode, so it is no wonder that it was sung particularly often in concentration camps.
Lyrics of Christmas carols
The lyrics of the carols celebrate the joy accompanying the birth of God’s Child and emphasize that the shepherds were the first to welcome the son of Mary and Joseph. This is mentioned, for example, in a Christmas carol ”The silence of the night”: :
In the silence of the night a voice echoes:
Arise, shepherds, God is being born for you!
Go as soon as possible,
haste to Bethlehem,
welcome the Lord.
They went and found the baby in the manger,
with all the signs given to each other.
As they worshiped God,
and greeting them they exclaimed,
with great joy.
Ah, hail, long-desired Saviour,
four thousand years old!
On you, kings, prophets,
they were waiting, and you that night,
He revealed himself to us.
And we are waiting for You, Lord,
and when you come at the voice of the priest,
we will fall on our faces before you,
Believing you’re under cover
bread and wine.
In the texts of some carols we find a description of the place where God’s Child was born, e.g. ”Miserable, quiet”: :
Poor, quiet, poor stable
full of heavenly glory.
Here he lies, sleeping before us
little Jesus in the rays.
Angels stood above him in flight
and bowed they kneel
with golden hair and white wings
under the painted rainbow.
Whether ”Tiny Jesus”: :
There is no cradle or pillow,
She put hay under his heads in the manger.
The baby is crying, Mother is crying,
the feet are cold, the manger is hard, the stable is leaning.
The lyrics of Christmas carols describe the miracle of the birth of God’s Son and at the same time ask for God’s blessing, as is the case with ”Songs about the Nativity of the Lord”: :
God is born, power trembles,
The Lord of heaven is stripped bare!
The fire solidifies, the light darkens,
has limits Infinite!
Despised, glorified,
mortal King over the ages,
and the Word became flesh
and lived among us!
(…)
Raise your hand, Child of God,
bless your dear homeland,
in good advice, in good being,
support her strength with your strength,
our house and all our possessions,
and all the villages with cities.
And the Word became flesh
and lived among us!
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Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
