There are a number of hymns where the lyrics preceded the music by being written as a poem. Once in David’s Royal City was written by Cecil Frances Alexander, and a year after its publication Henry John Gauntlett composed the melody that we know and love.
Historical footnote: Mrs. Alexander wasn’t a one-hit wonder… she also wrote the hymn All Things Bright and Beautiful!
Once in royal David’s city stood a lowly cattle shed,
Where a mother laid her baby in a manger for his bed:
Mary was that mother mild,
Jesus Christ, her little child.
Cecil Frances Alexander, 1848
Our piano-accompanied six-handbell arrangement of the Christmas carol Once in Royal David’s City provides an opportunity to play as a two-bells-each trio. Another possibility is to play as a duet where one ringer plays four bells and the other (perhaps a younger/newer player!) plays two bells.
The six bells in the score are accompanied by piano; if you don’t happen to have an accompanist available, we also have an accompaniment MP3 available for purchase.
