The Key West Citizen Newspaper, December 24, 1954, Page 25

Beloved Carol ‘Silent Night’ Has Fascinating Story THE KEY WEST CITIZEN —— CHRISTMAS EDITION —— 1954 RG ACRE ERM EME EL EEE LE OE | i Ren ERENCE CEI 926 Duval Street BRM HHP PD DDD. BD. 3.3. BDH HDD BD DIA] MIE HENNE IEEE EMME ME 523 Truman Avenue OF THE SEASON! May we extend a truly sincere wish for a Merry Christmas and may every good thing be yours during the’ coming New Year} APPEL'S e AND A JOYOUS NEW YEAR In the spirit of friendship may we extend best wishes for a happy holiday to all our good friends. Frances & Ted Edwards Banana Tree Restaurant & Grille Dial 2-2833 | DUDe Dee ede De De Br De De Be Be Be Ds Di Be DD ID URS Dial 2-5731 ASTOR, do you | tell of the Holy night where we can} gan builder to mend the broken in- know that the real Christmas song is yet to be written?” These were the words Jo- seph Mohr was thinking of on Christmas Eve, 1818, as he B stood looking out of the win- dow of the study of the parson- age in the little village of Obern- dorf in the remote Tyrolean Alps. The words had been spoken by Franz Gruber the school master in the neighboring village of Arns- dorf. He was a talented musician and played the organ in the church there. Mohr had also received musical training and a warm friendship had sprung up between the school master and the young priest. Every Sunday after the service the two young men, Mohr was 25 and Gruber, 27, would either sit in the sunny church or share the quiet of the pastor’s study. A great love of music being their Tyrolean heritage, they would oft- en sing to their hearts content, much to the delight of the passers- by. On that particular Christmas Eve, Mohr was absorbed in prepar- ing his Christmas message to his flock and recalled his friend’s re- mark. Mohr had asked Gruber what he meant and Gruber had replied, “I cannot name the song, but it will SS, eatuume- we hope to- earn, home and again thought of Grub- a\had written, asking him to com- @ | handing on the wall and said, “Let S| ing to his duties. see the Baby, the family, manger, | and the shepherds and the angel choir. Mohr’s musings were interrupt- ed by a neighbor woman who had come hurrying over the mountains to ask the young minister to come to the home of the wood-chopper and bless his first-born child—a little son. Mohr immediately donned his coat, cap and sheepskin leggings and taking his alpenstock set off for the wood-chopper’s cabin some miles across the mountain. When he reached the humble abode, he saw in a small crude cradle, a sleeping, curly-headed in- fant boy. The young mother, and father were gazing at their son. The hus- band stood with folded hands, his eyes lighted with a new joy he had never before experienced. As Mohr blessed the new-born babe, it seemed to-him that such a sight must have greeted the shep- herds as they entered the stable where the Christ Child lay in a manger. “Surely,” he thought, “Jesus the Savior is here.” With a new expression in his eyes, the young priest began the long ‘walk back to Oberndorf, and as he trudged through the snow, | he marvelled at the silence and the beauty of the night. Entering his study, Mohr again stood at the window gazing on the peaceful scene before him and murmured, “Silent night, Holy night”. He remembered his feeling of exhaltation at the wood-chopper’s er’s significant remark. i . He seated himself at his desk) and with a sense of elation, wrote the words to the beloved Christmas song, “Silent Night, Holy Night.” Early Christmas morning, the) young pastor hurried to Gruber’s home and gave him the words he pose a melody so they could sur- prise the villagers with a new Christmas song at church that night. Gruber was enthusiastic about the song, but reminded Mohr that the church organ was broken and that he would have no way to play the accompaniment. The young priest glanced about the room and saw an old guitar this be your instrument.” Gladly approving the suggestion, Gruber replied, ‘‘So shall it be,” and they parted, the pastor return- After he left, Gruber seated him- self at an ancient spinet and began reading the words of the song just written by Mohr. As he touched the keys, a melo- dy came to him and almost with- out change he wrote the score. In Oberndorf, Joseph Mohr was waiting impatiently to hear the new melody and opened his door to see Gruber standing there with his guitar under his arm, his face re- vealing all that Mohr had expect- ed. Soon the church bells announced that services would begin in the quaint little chapel. As the congregation assembled, Gruber went forward and lighted the candles on two large evergreen trees laden with gifts. Pastor Mohr ascended the high, carved pulpit and preached an inspiring sermon. In the hush that followed the fin- al prayer, Gruber joined Mohr in singing their Christmas hymn. Contemporary accounts a that after the strains of their voices were lost in the deep silence of the chapel, the congregation re- mained spellbound and then sud- denly gave way to a “veritable storm of ecstacy, overwhelming the pastor and the school master with a perfect torrent of praise and adoration.” It was almost a year later that the elders of the church engaged Matthias Mauracher, an expert or- Li aC A strument, ;. When he completed his task, the repair man said to Gruber who had been watching him, “Herr Gruber, I wish you would try the organ. Play a favorite tune, a song, a hymn that expresses feeling.” Gruber. recalled the Christmas song reposing in his desk, almost forgotten. Mohr, who was also ob- serving the work on the organ, had the same thought and exclaimed, “Our Christmas song!” Beside Mohr and Gruber, only the organ-builder was in the church. As the melody died away, he begged the young men to “let Kj me take the song with me to the little town across the mountains.” That evening as he set out for home, Franz Gruber placed in his hands a copy of the song. On wintry evenings, in the organ- builder’s village, his musical friends often gathered at the church for a recital of old songs and new. Soon the mountain folks were saying to one another, “The organ man has a new song.” From its obscure beginnings its | fame spread throughout the Tyrol. It became a favorite with the Strasser family whose occupation was sewing chamois gloves. Among their numerous children were four talented young girls, just out of their teens with well-trained voices of exceptional quality, and though the Strasser family was | famous for the excellence of its kid gloves, the special fame of the household was of the Girl Quar- tette. During the Easter season of 1834, the girls sang the lovely song in the market place at Leipzig. In the audience was an organist who asked them to sing it slowly so that he might write the notes. The next day, he returnéd to in- vite the Strasser girls to sing the song in one of the city’s celebrat- ed cathedrals. It happened that the King and Queen were present and were so moved by the beauty of the song and its marvelous rendition, they could not withhold some sign of their appreciation. From that day, whenever the Strasser Quartette appeared in Leipzig, the Cathedral was opened for them and the members of the regal household were present. For a year, the song was known simply as the “Tyrolese Song” and as such was cherished through- out Germany and Austria. Thirty-six years after the hymn} % -+ was first heard in Oberndorf, the full choir of the Imperial Church in Berlin sang it for the first time in the presence of Emperor Fred- The Emperor then instituted a search for the names of the then unknown author and composer. The only reliable information at that time pointed to the mountain vil- lage of Salzburg as the place of the} song’s origin. In Salzburg, the official quest finally disclosed the fact that the choir director of the Imperial Church was a friend of Gruber} who was established as the com- pose of the music accompanying | Mohr’s words. | Gruber received the personal congratulations of the Emperor the only flaw in his happiness was that he could not share it with his friend, Joseph Mohr, who had passed away in 1848. | In the homeland, the Strasser girls are credited with securing first recognition of the song in high places. The approval of an Emperor opened the way to world- | wide acceptance. | But the missionary, Peter Klotz, | found for the song its widest ac-| quaintance, the hospitality of far places and strange peoples. Wher- ever this consecrated man went, there went the music of Joseph Mohr and Franz Gruber. | Was it happenstance or some- thing more that led Matthias Mau- racher to ask Franz Gruber to play a favorite tune and thus rescue the world’s most beloved Christmas| Carol from a desk drawer where | it had lain for almost a year? own | AMMEN RN FIRESTONE HOME & AUTO SUPPLIES 1201 White St. To Our Patrons and Friends —For The Season’s Holidays— Sincere Greetings Stell's Beauty Nook and Staff 421 Simonton Street edgart nantucket @ palm beach © key west © nantucket ¢ edgartown @ PTT oe ct Tit t i Tet et ett Tet tied Appelrouth’s Shoe Center 604 Duval Street Telephone 2-2532 rick Wilhelm IV who was so im-}'R pressed that, by Imperial Edict, | } “Silent Night, Holy Night,” was thereafter at all Christmas festi- vals to be honored by first place in all religious programs. Now. at the happiest time of the year, we take the opportunity to express our deepest appreciation of your loyalty and friendship and extend our warmest wishes for your health and happiness. we extend the GREETINGS OF THE SEASON The Florida National Bank at Key West With Banking Facilities at the U.S. Navy Yard MEMBER FDIC Your Friendly Community Bank Hardware Department THOMPSON | Caroline Street