O Little Town of Bethlehem
O Little Town of Bethlehem | |
---|---|
Artista | |
Autore/i | Phillips Brooks |
Genere | Carola natalizia |
Data | 1868 |
O Little Town of Bethlehem è un tradizionale canto natalizio, composto nel 1868 dal vescovo statunitense Phillips Brooks (1835 - 1893), autore del testo, e dal suo organista Lewis Redner, autore della melodia.
Il brano fu probabilmente ispirato da un viaggio in Terra santa, compiuto da Brooks tre anni prima.[1]
Testo
[modifica | modifica wikitesto]![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/11/Manuscriptolittletownofbethlehem.png/330px-Manuscriptolittletownofbethlehem.png)
O little town of Bethlehem,
How still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by;
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light;
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee to-night.
For Christ is born of Mary,
And gathered all above,
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wondering love.
O morning stars, together
Proclaim the holy birth!
And praises sing to God the King,
And peace to men on earth.
How silently, oh how silently,
The wondrous gift is given!
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of his heaven.
No ear may hear his coming,
But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive him, still
The dear Christ enters in.
Where children pure and happy
Pray to the blessed Child,
Where misery cries out to thee,
Son of the mother mild;
Where charity stands watching
And faith holds wide the door,
The dark night wakes, the glory breaks,
And Christmas comes once more.
O holy Child of Bethlehem!
Descend to us, we pray;
Cast out our sin and enter in,
Be born in us to-day.
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell;
O come to us, abide with us,
Our Lord Emmanuel!
Versioni
[modifica | modifica wikitesto]Il brano è stato interpretato, tra l'altro, da: Barbra Streisand, Julie Andrews, Amy Grant, Cliff Richard, Frank Sinatra ed altri fra cui Bob Dylan che nel 2009 l'ha inserita nel suo album Christmas in the Heart.
Note
[modifica | modifica wikitesto]- ^ cfr. p. es. Bowler, Gerry, Dizionario universale del Natale [The World Encyclopedia of Christmas], ed. italiana a cura di C. Corvino ed E. Petoia, Newton & Compton, Roma, 2003, p. 252
Voci correlate
[modifica | modifica wikitesto]- Canto natalizio
- Natale
- Nascita di Gesù
- Betlemme
- Away in a Manger
- Ding Dong Merrily on High
- The First Nowell
- I Saw Three Ships
- I Wonder As I Wander
- It Came Upon the Midnight Clear
- Joy to the World
- We Three Kings of Orient Are
- Adeste fideles
- Astro del ciel
- Dejlig er den himmel blå
Altri progetti
[modifica | modifica wikitesto]Wikimedia Commons contiene immagini o altri file su O Little Town of Bethlehem
Collegamenti esterni
[modifica | modifica wikitesto]- A Treasure of Christmas Carols - The Hymns and Carols of Christmas: O Little Town of Bethlehem, su hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com.
- (EN) Spartiti liberi di O Little Town of Bethlehem, in Choral Public Domain Library (ChoralWiki).
- (EN) Spartiti liberi di O Little Town of Bethlehem, in International Music Score Library Project, Project Petrucci LLC.