"UKRAINIAN BELL CAROL"
(for 2 pianos 8 hands)
Rearr. Jelia Megawati Heru
(for 2 pianos 8 hands)
Rearr. Jelia Megawati Heru
Listen "Ukrainian Bell Carol" in youtube
BRIEF HISTORY
Ukrainian Bell Carol is written based on Ukrainian folk song,
The melody was created for choir in 1916 by Ukrainian composer
Mykola Leontovych (1877-1921) and titled "Shchedryk", means "bountiful."
adapted by Peter J. Wilhousky as a "Carol of the Bells"
adapted by Peter J. Wilhousky as a "Carol of the Bells"
Based on an old Ukrainian folk song,
the original lyrics describes
the swallow flying
into a household to proclaim the plentiful year that
the family will have.
The swallow is a herald of
spring coming, possibly of pre-Christian origins.
The folk melody was
sung in many Ukrainian villages
on Jan. 13 – New Year's Eve on the
Julian calendar
– usually by adolescent girls going house to house in
celebration of the new year.
The title chosen by him "Carol of the Bells"
was harmonious with the
old Slavic legend
that at midnight the evening Jesus was born
all the
bells on earth started to sound of their own accord in his honor.
Since
then the song has become a popular Christmas tune
especially in the US
and Canada where it is also known as "Ukrainian Carol"
PIECE ANALYSIS
Leontovych originally created the piece as an assignment for a
harmony course.
He was taking by correspondence to demonstrate the use of
a four-note known as ostinato. The ostinato motif, a repeated four-note
pattern within the range of a minor third, is thought to be of
prehistoric origins. a New Year's chant known in Ukrainian as
"Shchedryk" [the Generous One].
The original traditional Ukrainian text used a device, known as
hemiola, in the rhythm (alternating the accents within each measure from
3/4 to 6/8 and back again).
This device however is lost in the English
translations and rarely is used in non-Ukrainian or instrumental
performances.The original work was intended to be sung a cappella by mixed
four-voice choir.
Two other settings of the composition were also
created by Leontovych: one for women's choir (unaccompanied) and another
for children's choir with piano accompaniment. These are rarely
performed or recorded.
The choral work Shchedryk was first performed by students at Kiev
University in December 1916. When American choir director and arranger
Peter Wilhousky (1902-1978) heard Leontovich's choral work, it reminded
him of bells; so he wrote new lyrics to convey that imagery for his
choir.
