Twelve-Bell Christmas

List of Scores for Twelve Handbells for Advent/Christmas/Epiphany

Here’s a quick compilation of our Advent/Christmas/Epiphany scores for twelve handbells. Each title is a link to the corresponding webpage. TITLE HYMN TUNE Accompaniment available Angels We Have Heard on High GLORIA Angels, From the Realms of Glory REGENT SQUARE As with Gladness Men of Old DIX Away in a Manger CRADLE SONG Away in …

Angels We Have Heard on High – Twelve-Handbell Version

The Christmas carol Angels We Have Heard on High, sung to the French tune GLORIA is one of rejoicing! Angels we have heard on high, Sweetly singing o’er the plains And the mountains in reply, Echoing their joyous strains. Gloria in excelsis Deo. Gloria in excelsis Deo. Shepherds, why this jubilee? Why your joyous strains …

Angels, from the Realms of Glory (REGENT SQUARE) – Twelve-Handbell Version

Angels came from heaven to celebrate the birth of Christ. It’s amazing to compare how it must have been in God’s glorious presence with the humble stable of Bethlehem. Yet they came, and they marveled! Angels from the realms of glory / Wing your flight o’er all the earth; Ye who sang creation’s story / …

As with Gladness Men of Old (DIX) – Twelve-Handbell Version

The hymn tune DIX is usually sung with the texts For the Beauty of the Earth and As with Gladness Men of Old (the latter most often at Christmas). For the beauty of the earth, For the glory of the skies, For the love which from our birth Over and around us lies. Christ, our …

Away in a Manger (CRADLE SONG)- Twelve-Handbell Version

Away in a Manger is sung to several different tunes. One of these melodies is CRADLE SONG written by William Kirkpatrick at the end of the nineteenth century. This is the tune which is most commonly used in the United Kingdom. Away in a manger, no crib for a bed, the little Lord Jesus laid …

Away in a Manger (MURRAY) – Twelve-Handbell Version

The melody in this arrangement of Away in a Manger by James Murray is the one most familiar to Americans. Away in a manger, no crib for a bed, The little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head, The stars in the bright sky looked down where he lay, The little Lord Jesus asleep on …

Bring a Torch, Jeanette Isabella – Twelve-Handbell Version

In this charming sixteenth-century French carol Bring a Torch, Jeanette Isabella, a young girl is sent to bring a torch/candle to bring light to the stable where the Christ Child sleeps. Un flambeau, Jeanette, Isabelle, Un flambeau, courons au berceau! C’est Jésus, bonnes gens du hameau, Le Christ est né, Marie appelle, Ah! Ah! que …

Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus (JEFFERSON) – Twelve Handbells plus piano

The words for this Advent hymn fit many hymn tunes such as HYFRYDOL. Here’s our accompanied twelve-bell version on the less well-known hymn tune JEFFERSON. Come, thou long expected Jesus, born to set thy people free; from our fears and sins release us, let us find our rest in thee. Israel’s strength and consolation, hope …

Ding Dong, Merrily on High – Twelve-Handbell Version

The sixteenth-century English tune Ding Dong, Merrily on High is quite popular at Christmas. It reflects the joy of the season, and invites us to share in the joy of heaven at the birth of the Son of God. Ding dong merrily on high, / In heav’n the bells are ringing: Ding dong! verily the …

From Starry Skies Descending

The Italian carol Tu scendi dalle stelle is lovely, though perhaps less familiar to Americans than others. This arrangement will bring new joy to your holiday services and celebrations. Tu scendi dalle stelle, O Re del Cielo, e vieni in una grotta, al freddo al gelo. O Bambino mio Divino Io ti vedo qui a …

Go Tell It on the Mountain (GO TELL IT)

The birth of the Christ Child has been an occasion for great joy for centuries. Go Tell It on the Mountain gives us both the command to proclaim the coming of the Savior as well as a song by which to declare it. Go, tell it on the mountain, over the hills and everywhere; go, …

Good Christian Men, Rejoice (IN DULCI JUBILO)

Good Christian Men, Rejoice is a joyous Christmas carol set to the energetic tune IN DULCI JUBILO. This tune is thought to have been written in the fourteenth century by Heinrich Seuse, and its original lyrics are “macaronic” – a combination of Latin and German/English. Good Christian men, rejoice with heart and soul and voice; …

Good King Wenceslas (TEMPEST ADEST FLORIDUM) – Twelve-Handbell Version

The ancient carol Good King Wenceslas is about a king who resolutely sought to make one impoverished subject’s life a bit better on a terribly cold winter night. It’s all about giving in love for others, and while the lyrics don’t directly mention Christmas, its story tells of what Christmas is all about. Good King …

I Saw Three Ships

I Saw Three Ships is an English Christmas carol that, traditionally, speaks of the story of the ships which delivered the relics of the Magi to Cologne Cathedral in the 12th century. I saw three ships come sailing in on Christmas Day, on Christmas Day; I saw three ships come sailing in on Christmas Day …

In the Bleak Midwinter – Accompanied Twelve-Handbell Version

The poem often comes first… Christina Rosetti wrote the words for Scribner’s Monthly in 1872, and then a few years later (1906, to be precise), Gustav Holst set her verse to music. The result: In the Bleak Midwinter, one of the most reflective and well-loved of all Christmas songs. We have not only the eight-bell …

It Came Upon the Midnight Clear (CAROL) – Twelve-Handbell Version

Edmund Sears wrote the words to It Came Upon the Midnight Clear in 1849, and it’s sung on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean (just with different tunes). This arrangement is to the American melody, CAROL, composed by Richard Storrs Willis. It came upon the midnight clear, that glorious song of old, From angels bending …

O Holy Night – Twelve-Handbell Version

O Holy Night is perhaps one of the most dramatically-presented of all English language Christmas carols. It’s been performed by countless artists, and has been a favorite of many people all their lives. O holy night! the stars are brightly shining; It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth. Long lay the world in …

Rise Up, Shepherd, and Follow – Twelve-Handbell Version

Rise Up, Shepherd, and Follow is an African-American Christmas spiritual. It’s about the message that drew the shepherds (well, at least one shepherd) to follow the Christmas star to find the Christ Child. The spiritual is a “call and response” song – one way it’s been done in many Black churches is to have the …

Silent Night (STILLE NACHT)

Franz Gruber’s lovely carol has enchanted people for two centuries. In case you happen to visit Oberdorf von Salzburg, Austria, you can see the original Silent Night Chapel there. Or… if you’re in the Great Lakes region, you can see the Silent Night Chapel modeled after it in Frankenmuth, Michigan! Silent night! Holy night! / …

Still, Still, Still – Accompanied Twelve-Handbell Version

Still, Still, Still is a Christmas lullaby that reminds us that the Christ Child sleeps, and that He sleeps under the watchful eyes of the angels of heaven. Still, still, still, One can hear the falling snow. For all is hushed, The world is sleeping, Holy Star its vigil keeping. Still, still, still, One can …

We Three Kings – Twelve-Handbell Version

We Three Kings tells of special visitors on the first Epiphany. Well… in actuality the Bible doesn’t say precisely how many wise men visited the Christ Child in the Bethlehem manger. But it does record that they brought three special gifts – gold, frankincense, and myrrh – so that seems to hint that there might …

What Child is This?/Greensleeves – Twelve Handbells