Dec 25, 2020
And thatās why itās my favorite
Thatās because it wasnāt composed as a Christmas song. The music is from āShchedryk,ā about a swallow singing about fortunes in the coming spring, by Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych, based on a traditional folk chant that predates Christianity. American composer Peter Wilhousky heard it and wrote unrelated Christmas lyrics, āCarol of the Bells.ā Hereās a great version that explores its pagan origins.
It sounds scary to people because its first four notes sound like the first four notes ofĀ āDies Irae,ā which we have been classically conditioned to associate with death.
