Show Notes
We’re ringing in the second season of Hark! with “Carol of the Bells,” or “Shchedryk.” Originally derived from a Ukrainian folk song, this Christmas classic crossed the Atlantic to become a major sensation, debuting at Carnegie Hall in 1922. Since then it has become an enchanting symbol of Christmastime with over 150 versions and recordings worldwide. And to this day the story behind “Carol of the Bells” resonates powerfully with the people of Ukraine. We speak with Ukrainian-American journalist Lydia Tomkiw about these modern-day parallels and music composer, Colin Britt, returns to unpack the musical brilliance of this tune. Lydia’s article for Slate —Toll of the Bells: The forgotten history of nationalism, oppression, and murder behind a Christmas classic. Her report on the 100th Anniversary of “Carol of the Bells”, aired on NPR and affiliates: As war rages at home, Ukrainian choir heads to Carnegie Hall to celebrate 100 years of ‘Carol of the Bells’. Colin Britt is one of four composers involved in an international collaboration called “The Same Word,” which celebrates the commonalities between the world’s religions. This piece will be premiered in Hamburg in February 2023. Listen to Tatyana Yurina “Miss Diki” play “Carol of the Bells” on the bandura Special thanks to GIA Publications, Terre Roche of The Roches, Tatyana Yurina and James Kennerley, the director of Music at St. Paul's Church and Choir school in Cambridge, Mass, for providing much of the music on this episode. Support “Hark!” and subscribe to America today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
More from Hark! The stories behind our favorite Christmas carols
“O Little Town of Bethlehem” has shaped how millions of English speakers imagine the Palestinian town where Jesus was born: a small place, still and peaceful, resting under the stars. The wars and struggles of recent decades invite us to question whether that image is true. And yet, “Bethlehem is still a very little town,” says Stephanie Saldaña, a writer and mother raising her family in this religiously and culturally diverse place. “It is a small place where everybody knows each other.”
Did you know that when a ewe rejects her newborn lamb, the shepherd has only hours to convince her to nurse it—or the lamb will die? This is the work of shepherds—staying awake through the night when lambs are being born, watching closely, ready to step in and save them. It gives new meaning to the good shepherd. In this episode, host Maggi Van Dorn travels to a farm in Herefordshire, near the Welsh border, to understand shepherding, and discovers why God might have chosen shepherds to be the first to hear the good news.
We often imagine angels as gentle and serene. But in Scripture they arrive in blinding light and overwhelming sound—so much so that their first words are almost always “Do not be afraid.” These are the messengers who burst into the night sky to meet a group of poor, worn-out shepherds—outsiders who become the first to hear the news of Christ’s birth.
Most Christmas carols celebrate the birth of Jesus. But not “The Coventry Carol,” the premiere episode of “Hark!” season five. This song centers on a biblical horror: the “massacre of the innocents,” King Herod’s order to kill all male babies two years old and under in Bethlehem. It’s a lullaby sung by mothers to children who may not survive the night.
On the final episode of Hark! this season, prepare yourselves for a wee bit of scandal because we’re looking at a tune that began as a bawdy love song and has long been associated with an evil monarch, but which, over the course of three centuries, finds its redemption as a Christmas carol. This is the story behind, “What Child Is This?”