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| The Church Where Silent Night Was Written And Performed |
In 2018 one of the world’s most famous Christmas carols, “Silent Night,” celebrated its 200th anniversary.
Over the centuries, hundreds of Christmas carols have been composed. Many fall quickly into obscurity, but not “Silent Night.” In fact when Franz Gruber, the man that put the poem to music, played Silent Night for his wife, she said, "You and I will die, but this song will live on forever."
Silent Night has been translated into at least 300 languages. It was designated by UNESCO as a treasured item of Intangible Cultural Heritage and arranged in dozens of different musical styles — from heavy metal to gospel — “Silent Night” has become a perennial part of the Christmas soundscape.
Its origins — in a small Alpine town in the Austrian countryside — were far humbler. This historical traditions of song, the story of “Silent Night” and its meteoric rise to worldwide fame are fascinating.
Fallout from war and famine The song’s lyrics were originally written in German just after the end of the Napoleonic Wars by a young Austrian priest named Joseph Mohr.
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| Father Joseph Mohr |
Josef Mohr, a man whose name was unloved in his home town of Salzburg He was one of three illegitimate sons born to Anna Schoiberin, His father, Franz, was a mercenary soldier who eventually abandoned the family. To make matters worse, Josef’s godfather was the town executioner.
Perhaps due to his mother’s poverty, the curate of the local Catholic cathedral took Josef in as a foster child. Josef had a proclivity toward music, which was encouraged by the church, and he eventually decided himself to pursue the priesthood.
Mohr was ordained August 21, 1815, and was sent to Oberndorf, just north of Salzburg. It was there that he met Franz Xaver Gruber, a local schoolteacher who would become organist at Old Saint Nicholas Church the following year.
In the fall of 1816, Mohr’s congregation in the town of Mariapfarr was reeling. Twelve years of war had decimated the country’s political and social infrastructure. Meanwhile, the previous year — one historians would later dub “The Year Without a Summer” as the entire year had been catastrophically cold.
The eruption of Indonesia’s Mount Tambora in 1815 had caused widespread climate change throughout Europe. Volcanic ash in the atmosphere caused almost continuous storms, even snow in the midst of summer. Crops failed and there was widespread famine.
Mohr’s congregation was poverty-stricken, hungry and traumatized. So he crafted a set of six poetic verses to convey hope that there was still a God who cared. “Silent night,” the German version states, “today all the power of fatherly love is poured out, and Jesus as brother embraces the peoples of the world.”
Mohr, a gifted violinist and guitarist, could have probably composed the music for his poem. But instead, he sought help from a friend.
Mohr’s congregation was poverty-stricken, hungry and traumatized. So he crafted a set of six poetic verses to convey hope that there was still a God who cared. “Silent night,” the German version states, “today all the power of fatherly love is poured out, and Jesus as brother embraces the peoples of the world.”
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| The original handwritten text of the poem Silent Night |
It is said that on a winters night Mohr had spent most of it giving prayers and comfort to a member of his congregation. On his chilly walk home he thought "Perhaps this is a night similar to that when Jesus was born." The beginnings of the poem started coming into his mind. He tucked the poem away for a few years.
In 1817, Mohr transferred to the parish of St. Nicholas in the town of Oberndorf, just south of Salzburg. There, he asked his friend Franz Xaver Gruber, a local schoolteacher and organist, to write the music for the six verses. The churches organ was in need of repair, since mice had chewed through the bellows. So Gruber set the music to be performed on a guitar.
On Christmas Eve, 1818, the two friends sang “Silent Night” together for the first time in front of Mohr’s congregation, with Mohr playing his guitar.
The song was apparently well-received by Mohr’s parishioners, most of whom worked as boat-builders and shippers in the salt trade that was central to the economy of the region.
The melody and harmonization of “Silent Night” is actually based on an Italian musical style called the “siciliana” that mimics the sound of water and rolling waves: two large rhythmic beats, split into three parts each; essentially 6/8 time.
In this way, Gruber’s music reflected the daily soundscape of Mohr’s congregation, who lived and worked along the Salzach River. But in order to become a worldwide phenomenon, “Silent Night” would need to resonate far beyond Oberndorf.
According to a document written by Gruber in 1854, the song first became popular in the nearby Zillertal valley. From there, two traveling families of folk singers, the Strassers and the Rainers, included the tune in their shows.
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| Franz Xavier Gruber |
In 1817, Mohr transferred to the parish of St. Nicholas in the town of Oberndorf, just south of Salzburg. There, he asked his friend Franz Xaver Gruber, a local schoolteacher and organist, to write the music for the six verses. The churches organ was in need of repair, since mice had chewed through the bellows. So Gruber set the music to be performed on a guitar.
On Christmas Eve, 1818, the two friends sang “Silent Night” together for the first time in front of Mohr’s congregation, with Mohr playing his guitar.
The song was apparently well-received by Mohr’s parishioners, most of whom worked as boat-builders and shippers in the salt trade that was central to the economy of the region.
The melody and harmonization of “Silent Night” is actually based on an Italian musical style called the “siciliana” that mimics the sound of water and rolling waves: two large rhythmic beats, split into three parts each; essentially 6/8 time.
In this way, Gruber’s music reflected the daily soundscape of Mohr’s congregation, who lived and worked along the Salzach River. But in order to become a worldwide phenomenon, “Silent Night” would need to resonate far beyond Oberndorf.
According to a document written by Gruber in 1854, the song first became popular in the nearby Zillertal valley. From there, two traveling families of folk singers, the Strassers and the Rainers, included the tune in their shows.
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| The Strasser Family |
The Strasser Siblings have been proven to have been the first band to perform “Silent Night”. The family originally came from Laimach near Hippach. The father, Lorenz Strasser, was a farmer, shopkeeper and glove seller. Together with his children, he lived in the “Strasserhäusl”, still preserved to this day.
Herr Strasser was a travelling salesman and would go to the biggest markets in Germany during the winter months, such as in Leipzig or Berlin. His vocally talented children Anna (born 1802), Josef (called Peppi, born in 1807), Amalie (born in 1809), Caroline (born 1813) and Alexander (born 1794, although he already passed away in 1831) accompanied him during his travels. They sang always dressed in their traditional garments Tirolean national songs for the purpose of attracting more customers. The siblings are said to have sung “Silent Night” at Leipzig’s Christmas market in 1831 already, as well as at the Christmas mass of the Royal Saxon Court Orchestra at the Pleissenburg fortress.
In 1839, another native of the Zillertal valley embarked on a journey to spread Tirolean folk music into the world. At the time, he was only 18 years old and wanted to travel to America with his Rainer Quartet, known as “the Rainer Family”. Ludwig Rainer (born 1821) originated from the famous Rainer Family of singers.
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| The Rainers |
Their first generation, the so-called “Ur-Rainers”, had already been very successful as a travelling band. Together, they performed between 1824 and 1839. At first, the band consisted of four members. The siblings Maria (born 1788), Felix (born 1792), Franz (born 1794) and Joseph (born 1800) Rainer. Later on, an additional brother, Anton, joined them on their travels. The family started singing after the Ur-Rainers had performed for Franz I of Austria and Tsar Alexander I of Russia at Fügen Castle. The Tsar was so impressed with their talent that he invited them to St. Petersburg.
Although the journey never came to be, the Rainer Siblings were asked to travel to and perform at countless royal courts in Europe and for many princes and kings.
The song then became popular across Europe, and eventually in America, where the Rainers sang it on Wall Street in 1839.
At the same time, German-speaking missionaries spread the song from Tibet to Alaska and translated it into local languages.
By the mid-19th century, “Silent Night” had even made its way to subarctic Inuit communities along the Labrador coast, where it was translated into Inuktitut as “Unuak Opinak.”
The lyrics of “Silent Night” have always carried an important message for Christmas Eve observances in churches around the world. But the song’s lilting melody and peaceful lyrics also reminds us of a universal sense of grace that transcends Christianity and unites people across cultures and faiths.
Perhaps at no time in the song’s history was this message more important than during the Christmas Truce of 1914, when, at the height of World War I, German and British soldiers on the front lines in Flanders laid down their weapons on Christmas Eve and together sang “Silent Night.”
The song’s fundamental message of peace, even in the midst of suffering, has bridged cultures and generations. Great songs do this. They speak of hope in hard times and of beauty that arises from pain; they offer comfort and solace; and they are inherently human and infinitely adaptable.
At the same time, German-speaking missionaries spread the song from Tibet to Alaska and translated it into local languages.
By the mid-19th century, “Silent Night” had even made its way to subarctic Inuit communities along the Labrador coast, where it was translated into Inuktitut as “Unuak Opinak.”
The lyrics of “Silent Night” have always carried an important message for Christmas Eve observances in churches around the world. But the song’s lilting melody and peaceful lyrics also reminds us of a universal sense of grace that transcends Christianity and unites people across cultures and faiths.
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| The Christmas Truce of 1914 British and German Soldiers |
The song’s fundamental message of peace, even in the midst of suffering, has bridged cultures and generations. Great songs do this. They speak of hope in hard times and of beauty that arises from pain; they offer comfort and solace; and they are inherently human and infinitely adaptable.
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| Literal Translation of German lyrics (blessed boy in curly hair) |
Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht,
Alles schläft; einsam wacht
Nur das traute hochheilige Paar.
Holder Knabe im lockigen Haar,
Schlaf in himmlischer Ruh!
Schlaf in himmlischer Ruh!
Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht,
Hirten erst kundgemacht
Durch der Engel Halleluja,
Tönt es laut von fern und nah:
Christ, der Retter ist da!
Christ, der Retter ist da!
Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht,
Gottes Sohn, o wie lacht
Lieb' aus deinem göttlichen Mund,
Da uns schlägt die rettende Stund'.
Christ, in deiner Geburt!
Christ, in deiner Gebur
