“Silent Night”: From 1818 Poem to the World’s Most Covered Christmas Song
“Silent Night” was originally written in 1818 in German. It was first a poem, and then it was set to music. The song may be the most covered song of all time. It has been covered 137,000 times. “Silent Night,” the poem, was originally written by a priest. He knew a musician and asked him to set it to music. Because of its calm, poetic, and soothing nature, the song is perfect for Christmas Eve, to welcome Jesus Christ. Do you feel this is your favorite Christmas carol?
“Silent Night” History
“Silent Night” is probably the most well-known Christmas carol, and as such has been covered by multiple recording artists. The song was declared a cultural heritage by UNESCO. The song was first performed in 1818 in the Austrian Empire in the wake of the Napoleonic Wars. It was written by Father Joseph Mohr, a Catholic priest, in 1816 as a poem.
The poem was set to music by Franz Xavier Gruber in 1818. Gruber was a schoolmaster. Mohr asked him to set the poem to music, and brought a guitar because the church’s organ had been destroyed by repeated flooding. In fact, the church was destroyed and replaced with the Silent Night chapel.
In 1995, a manuscript was discovered in Mohr’s original handwriting. It was dated by researchers to 1820. This is the earliest manuscript of “Silent Night” that exists. In 2011, the song was declared by UNESCO to be an intangible cultural heritage because of its strong undertones of peace and global cultural significance.
The Song in Film
The song has appeared in and been the subject of numerous films and television shows:
- “The Legend of Silent Night” is a television movie.
- “Silent Night, Holy Night” was an animated film made by Hanna-Barbera.
- “Silent Mouse” was a 1988 television special that was narrated by Lynn Redgrave.
- “Buster & Chauncey’s Silent Night” was a direct-to-video animated feature.
- “Silent Night” was a 2012 movie directed by Christin Vuissa.
- “The First Silent Night” was a documentary directed by Simon Callow.
- “Stills Nicht” was a musical documentary in German directed by Hannes M. Schalle, narrated by Peter Simonishek. An English version, called “Silent Night: A Song for the World,” was a 2020 documentary narrated by Hugh Bonneville.
“Silent Night” on the Charts
Several versions of the song have appeared on the charts. Here is a list:
- 1969-1970 Percy Sledge on the Dutch charts.
- 1971-1972 Tom Tomson reached number twenty-one on the Ultratop Flanders Chart and number ten on the Wallonia Chart.
- 1975-1976 The Cats reached number ten on the Dutch charts.
- 1991-1992 Sinead O’Connor reached number ten on the same Dutch Chart.
- In 1993, Enya reached number forty-eight on the Australian chart.
- 2007-2008 Josh Groban reached number five on the Norwegian chart and number nineteen on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart
- In 2009, Mariah Carey reached number sixty-seven on the Billboard Digital Sales Chart.
- In 2010, Rene Kirby and Ryne Sandberg both sang in a version sung by The Living Voices.
- 2013-2014 Elvis Presley (internal link) reached number 120 on the French Charts.
- In the same year, Nat King Cole reached number 130 on that same chart.
- In 2018, The Temptations reached number eleven on the Swedish chart.
Conclusion
“Silent Night” is one of the most popular songs in the world. It was written way back in 1818 and has been popular ever since, probably because of its peaceful melody. The carol has been arranged by various composers, like Carl Reinecke, Gustav Schreck, Eusebius Mandyczewski, Malcolm Sargent, David Willcocks, Charles Mackerras, Philip Ledger, John Rutter, Stephen Cleobury, Jacob de Haan, and Taylor Scott Davis, perhaps underscoring its popularity.
