"" ("From Heaven Above to Earth I Come") is a hymn text relating to the
Nativity of Jesus
The Nativity or birth of Jesus Christ is found in the biblical gospels of Gospel of Matthew, Matthew and Gospel of Luke, Luke. The two accounts agree that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, Palestine, in Herodian kingdom, Roman-controlled Judea, th ...
, written by
Martin Luther
Martin Luther ( ; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, Theology, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Reformation, Pr ...
in 1534. The hymn is most often sung to the melody,
Zahn No. 346, which first appeared in a 1539 songbook and was probably also composed by Luther. This classic
Christmas carol
A Christmas carol is a Carol (music), carol on the theme of Christmas, traditionally sung at Christmas itself or during the surrounding Christmas and holiday season. The term noel has sometimes been used, especially for carols of French or ...
remains popular and has inspired many choral and organ works by other composers.
History
In an account not confirmed by contemporary sources
Martin Luther
Martin Luther ( ; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, Theology, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Reformation, Pr ...
would have written "Vom Himmel hoch" in 1534 for the Christmas celebration in family circle.
[Vom Himmel hoch: Wie Martin Luther mit seinem Lied in Widerspruch zu sich selbst geriet]
in ''Aargauer Zeitung
''Aargauer Zeitung'' (English: ''Aargauer Newspaper'') is a Swiss German-language daily newspaper, published by AZ Medien Gruppe, Aarau, Aargau.
History and operations
''Aagauer Zeitung'' was created in 1996 through the merger of the '' Aa ...
'', 23 December 2011. It is not certain but likely that Luther thought of a scenic representation.
The text of the hymn was first published in 1535, the melody most commonly associated with it in 1539.
1535 publication
"Vom Himmel hoch" was first published in 1535 as a hymn with 15 stanzas of four lines in ''Geistliche Lieder auffs new gebessert'' (also known as the
''Klugsches Gesangbuch''), under the header "" ("A children's song on the
Nativity of Christ
The Nativity or birth of Jesus Christ is found in the biblical gospels of Matthew and Luke. The two accounts agree that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, Palestine, in Roman-controlled Judea, that his mother, Mary, was engaged to a man named J ...
"). In that publication, the text was coupled to the melody of the then well-known secular song "," Zahn 345.
It was Luther's only
contrafactum
In vocal music, contrafactum (or contrafact, pl. contrafacta) is "the substitution of one text for another without substantial change to the music". The earliest known examples of this "lyrical adaptation" date back to the 9th century in Gregor ...
, reusing a tune of a secular composition for a religious text.
1539 melody
In 1539, the hymn was published with a new melody, Zahn 346,
that was probably composed by Luther himself, in ''Geistliche lieder auffs new gebessert und gemehrt'' (an edition of the ''Klugsches Gesangbuch''). This is the melody generally associated with the text:
:
\header
\layout
global =
tn = \tempo 2 = 100
tf = \tempo 2 = 45
tenor = \new Voice = "tenvoice" \relative c'
bass = \relative c
verse = \lyricmode
\score
Text
The song is an interpretation of , a part of the Christmas story. The first five stanzas echo the
annunciation addressed to the shepherds. The following stanzas are an invitation to follow the
shepherds to the manger and celebrate the newborn baby. The last stanza is a short
doxology
A doxology (Ancient Greek: ''doxologia'', from , ''doxa'' 'glory' and -, -''logia'' 'saying') is a short hymn of praises to God in various forms of Christian worship, often added to the end of canticles, psalms, and hymns. The tradition derives ...
and mentions the new year, as a new, peaceful time.
1. Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her.
Ich bring' euch gute neue Mär,
Der guten Mär bring ich so viel,
Davon ich sing'n und sagen will.
2. Euch ist ein Kindlein heut' geborn
Von einer Jungfrau auserkorn,
Ein Kindelein, so zart und fein,
Das soll eu'r Freud und Wonne sein.
3. Es ist der Herr Christ, unser Gott,
Der will euch führn aus aller Not,
Er will eu'r Heiland selber sein,
Von allen Sünden machen rein.
4. Er bringt euch alle Seligkeit,
Die Gott der Vater hat bereit,
Daß ihr mit uns im Himmelreich
Sollt leben nun und ewiglich.
5. So merket nun das Zeichen recht:
Die Krippe, Windelein so schlecht,
Da findet ihr das Kind gelegt,
Das alle Welt erhält und trägt.
6. Des laßt uns alle fröhlich sein
Und mit den Hirten gehn hinein,
Zu sehn, was Gott uns hat beschert,
Mit seinem lieben Sohn verehrt.
7. Merk auf, mein Herz, und sieh dorthin!
Was liegt dort in dem Krippelein?
Wes ist das schöne Kindelein?
Es ist das liebe Jesulein.
8. Sei mir willkommen, edler Gast!
Den Sünder nicht verschmähet hast
Und kommst ins Elend her zu mir,
Wie soll ich immer danken dir?
9. Ach, Herr, du Schöpfer aller Ding,
Wie bist du worden so gering,
Daß du da liegst auf dürrem Gras,
Davon ein Rind und Esel aß!
10. Und wär' die Welt vielmal so weit,
Von Edelstein und Gold bereit',
So wär sie doch dir viel zu klein,
Zu sein ein enges Wiegelein.
11. Der Sammet und die Seide dein,
Das ist grob Heu und Windelein,
Darauf du König groß und reich
Herprangst, als wär's dein Himmelreich.
12. Das hat also gefallen dir,
Die Wahrheit anzuzeigen mir:
Wie aller Welt Macht, Ehr und Gut
Vor dir nichts gilt, nichts hilft noch tut.
13. Ach, mein herzliebes Jesulein,
Mach dir ein rein, sanft Bettelein,
Zu ruhen in meins Herzens Schrein,
Das ich nimmer vergesse dein.
14. Davon ich allzeit fröhlich sei,
Zu springen, singen immer frei
Das rechte Susaninne schon,
Mit Herzenslust den süßen Ton.
15. Lob, Ehr sei Gott im höchsten Thron,
Der uns schenkt seinen ein'gen Sohn.
Des freuen sich der Engel Schar
Und singen uns solch neues Jahr.
From heaven above to earth I come
To bear good news to every home;
Glad tidings of great joy I bring
Whereof I now will say and sing:
To you this night is born a child
Of Mary, chosen mother mild;
This little child, of lowly birth,
Shall be the joy of all your earth.
'Tis Christ our God who far on high
Hath heard your sad and bitter cry;
Himself will your Salvation be,
Himself from sin will make you free.
He brings those blessings, long ago
Prepared by God for all below;
Henceforth His kingdom open stands
To you, as to the angel bands.
These are the tokens ye shall mark,
The swaddling clothes and manger dark;
There shall ye find the young child laid,
By whom the heavens and earth were made.
Now let us all with gladsome cheer
Follow the shepherds, and draw near
To see this wondrous gift of God
Who hath His only Son bestowed.
Give heed, my heart, lift up thine eyes!
Who is it in yon manger lies?
Who is this child so young and fair?
The blessed Christ-child lieth there.
Welcome to earth, Thou noble guest,
Through whom e'en wicked men are blest!
Thou com'st to share our misery,
What can we render, Lord, to Thee!
Ah, Lord, who hast created all,
How hast Thou made Thee weak and small,
That Thou must choose Thy infant bed
Where ass and ox but lately fed!
Were earth a thousand times as fair,
Beset with gold and jewels rare,
She yet were far too poor to be
A narrow cradle, Lord, for Thee.
For velvets soft and silken stuff
Thou hast but hay and straw so rough,
Whereon Thou King, so rich and great,
As 'twere Thy heaven, art throned in state.
Thus hath it pleased Thee to make plain
The truth to us poor fools and vain,
That this world's honour, wealth and might
Are nought and worthless in Thy sight.
Ah! dearest Jesus, Holy Child,
Make Thee a bed, soft, undefiled,
Within my heart, that it may be
A quiet chamber kept for Thee.
My heart for very joy doth leap,
My lips no more can silence keep;
I too must sing with joyful tongue
That sweetest ancient cradle-song.
Glory to God in highest heaven,
Who unto man His Son hath given!
While angels sing with pious mirth
A glad New Year to all the earth.
Reception history
Another early publication containing the 1539 version of Luther's hymn is Lotther's of 1540. The 1539 melody was used in various compositions, in vocal compositions often coupled to (parts of) Luther's hymn text.
"Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her" became one of Germany's most popular Christmas carols.
[William D. Crump]
"From Heaven Above to Earth I Come," p. 189
in ''The Christmas Encyclopedia'', 3d ed. McFarland, 2001
In the 1560s the hymn spread to the Netherlands and the British Isles.
"From Heaven Above to Earth I Come," the version best known in English, was published by
Catherine Winkworth in 1855.
The Swedish-language version ("Av himlens höjd oss kommet är") became one of the most commonly sung Lutheran hymns in Sweden and Finland, appearing in films there.
Not all settings of Luther's hymn text after his publication of the 1539 melody refer to that melody: for instance
Sethus Calvisius' early seventeenth century
motet
In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the preeminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to the Eng ...
''Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her'' for
SSATTB choir borrows some motifs from the "Ich kumm aus frembden Landen her" melody, but does not contain the 1539 tune. The Scottish translation contained in the sixteenth century ''
Gude and Godlie Ballatis'' was indicated to be sung on the tune of a lullaby ("Balulalow").
[ Alexander Ferrier Mitchell, editor]
''A Compendious Book of Godly and Spiritual Songs, commonly known as "The Gude and Godlie Ballatis", reprinted from the edition of 1567'', pp. 49–51
Blackwood and Sons, 1897.
1539 melody in other compositions

From the second half of the 16th century the melody appeared in organ compositions, for instance by
Johannes Eccard
Johannes Eccard (1553–1611) was a German composer and kapellmeister. He was an early principal conductor at the Berlin court chapel.
Biography
Eccard was born at Mühlhausen, in present-day Thuringia, Germany. At the age of eighteen he went t ...
,
Adam Gumpelzhaimer
Adam Gumpelzhaimer, also Adam Gumpeltzhaimer (1559 – 3 November 1625) was a Bavarian composer and music theorist. Born in Trostberg, he studied music with the monk Jodocus Enzmüller. In 1581 he became cantor at the Augsburg Cathedral; a post ...
,
Hans Leo Hassler
Hans Leo Hassler (in German, Hans Leo Haßler) (baptised 26 October 1564 – 8 June 1612) was a German composer and organist of the late Renaissance and early Baroque eras, elder brother of lesser known composer Jakob Hassler. He was born in N ...
,
Michael Praetorius
Michael Praetorius (probably 28 September 1571 – 15 February 1621) was a German composer, organist, and Music theory, music theorist. He was one of the most versatile composers of his age, being particularly significant in the development of ...
,
Samuel Scheidt
Samuel Scheidt (baptized 3 November 1587 – 24 March 1654) was a German composer, organist and teacher of the early Baroque era. Life and career
Scheidt was born in Halle, and after early studies there, he went to Amsterdam to study with ...
(', 1650) and
Heinrich Scheidemann.
Early 17th century four-part
chorale harmonizations include those by
Jacob Praetorius, Hassler and Calvisius. Later organ compositions include those by
Johann Pachelbel
Johann Pachelbel (also Bachelbel; baptised – buried 9 March 1706) was a German composer, organist, and teacher who brought the south German organ schools to their peak. He composed a large body of sacred and secularity, secular music, and ...
(
chorale prelude
In music, a chorale prelude or chorale setting is a short liturgical composition for pipe organ, organ using a chorale tune as its basis. It was a predominant style of the German Baroque music, Baroque era and reached its culmination in the works ...
s, one of them printed in his ''
Erster Theil etlicher Choräle'' 1693) and by
Georg Böhm
Georg Böhm (2 September 1661 – 18 May 1733) was a German Baroque organist and composer. He is notable for his development of the chorale partita and for his influence on the young J. S. Bach.
Life
Böhm was born in 1661 in Hohenkirchen. ...
().
Johann Hermann Schein
Johann Hermann Schein (20 January 1586 – 19 November 1630) was a German composer of the early Baroque era. He was Thomaskantor in Leipzig from 1615 to 1630. He was one of the first to import the early Italian stylistic innovations into German ...
made for three voices and continuo, the unaltered 1539 melody being given to the tenor voice.
Sebastian Knüpfer wrote a
cantata
A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian language, Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal music, vocal Musical composition, composition with an musical instrument, instrumental accompaniment, ty ...
for six vocal soloists, choir and orchestra.
Johann Christoph Bach set six stanzas of "Vom Himmel hoch" in his motet ''Merk auf, mein Herz und sieh dorthin'',
BWV Anh. 163.
[ Wolfgang Schmieder (editor). ''Thematisch-systematisches Verzeichnis der musikalischen Werke von Johann Sebastian Bach: Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis, überarbeitete und erweiterte Ausgabe''. Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1990. – ] Also
Johann Mattheson
Johann Mattheson (28 September 1681 – 17 April 1764) was a German composer, critic, lexicographer and music theorist. His writings on the late Baroque and early Classical period were highly influential, specifically, "his biographical and the ...
included "Vom Himmel hoch" in his Christmas Oratorio ''Die heilsame Geburt und Menschwerdung unsers Herrn und Heilandes Jesu Christi'' (1715).
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...
set the first stanza of "Vom Himmel hoch" as
one of four ''laudes'' added to the Christmas 1723 version of his Magnificat. He also used the melody three times in his ''
Christmas Oratorio
The ''Christmas Oratorio'' (German: ''Weihnachtsoratorium''), , is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach intended for performance in church during the Christmas season. It is in six parts, each part a cantata intended for performance in a churc ...
'' (1734).
[(BWV2a) ]Alfred Dürr
Alfred Dürr (3 March 1918 – 7 April 2011) was a German musicologist. He was a principal editor of the Neue Bach-Ausgabe, the second edition of the complete works of Johann Sebastian Bach.
Professional career
Dürr studied musicology and Clas ...
, Yoshitake Kobayashi (eds.), Kirsten Beißwenger. ''Bach Werke Verzeichnis: Kleine Ausgabe, nach der von Wolfgang Schmieder vorgelegten 2. Ausgabe''. Preface in English and German. Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1998. –
pp. 272–273
/ref> The chorale ''Ach, mein herzliebes Jesulein'', which uses stanza 13 of Luther's hymn, closes Part I Part One, Part 1 or Part I may refer to:
Music
* ''Part 1'' (EP), a 2016 EP by Guy Sebastian
* ''Part 1'' (O-Town EP), a 2017 EP by O-Town
* '' Part I: John Shade, Your Fortune's Made'', a 2009 album by Fol Chen
* '' Part One (album)''
Televisio ...
of the oratorio. Bach wrote chorale preludes based on "Vom Himmel hoch", notably BWV 606 in his '' Orgelbüchlein'', 700, 701, 738 and 738a. In 1747 he used the chorale theme for his Canonic Variations on "Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her" ( BWV 769).
In 1831 Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions inc ...
wrote a chorale cantata
A chorale cantata is a church cantata based on a chorale—in this context a Lutheran chorale. It is principally from the Germany, German Baroque music, Baroque era. The organizing principle is the words and music of a Lutheran hymn. Usually a chor ...
'' Vom Himmel hoch'', MWV A 10, based on Luther's hymn. Later he incorporated the melody in the incidental music for Racine's '' Athalie'', Op. 74 (1845), and his sister Fanny cited it in the "December" piece of her piano cycle '' Das Jahr''. Also Otto Nicolai
Carl Otto Ehrenfried Nicolai (9 June 1810 – 11 May 1849) was a German composer, conductor, and one of the founders of the Vienna Philharmonic. Nicolai is best known for his operatic version of Shakespeare's comedy ''The Merry Wives of Wi ...
's ''Christmas Overture'' was based on "Vom Himmel hoch."
A 1910 is by Immanuel Faisst
Immanuel Gottlob Friedrich Faisst (13 October 1823 in Esslingen am Neckar – 5 June 1894 in Stuttgart) was a German composer and co-founder of the State University of Music and Performing Arts Stuttgart, Stuttgart Music School, whose director he ...
. Other composers citing "Vom Himmel hoch" include Sigfrid Karg-Elert, Ernst Pepping und Hugo Distler. Max Reger
Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger (19 March 187311 May 1916) was a German composer, pianist, organist, conductor, and academic teacher. He worked as a concert pianist, a musical director at the Paulinerkirche, Leipzig, Leipzig University Chu ...
composed a chorale prelude as No. 40 of his 52 Chorale Preludes, Op. 67 in 1902. He quotes the tune in the Christmas section of his organ pieces ''Sieben Stücke'', Op. 145. Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ( – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century c ...
wrote "Chorale Variations on 'Vom Himmel hoch'" for choir and orchestra (1956), which was an arrangement of Bach's canonic variations, adding extra contrapuntal lines.
"Enkeli taivaan", the Finnish version of "Vom Himmel Hoch", appears in Act 2, scene five of ''Luther'', an opera by Kari Tikka that premiered in 2000. The English-language version of the opera, brought to the United States in 2001, contains seven stanzas of "From heav´n above to earth I come." The opera premiered in Germany in 2004 containing stanzas of "Vom Himmel hoch" in the original language.
"Es kam ein Engel hell und klar"
Valentin Triller, a Protestant vicar, published a reworked version of the hymn with an additional introductory stanza in 1555, reverting to the "" melody. This version, known by its new first line, "Es kam ein Engel hell und klar", found its way to Catholic songbooks in the 16th century, although such printings of the song would not always contain all eighteen stanzas of Triller's version and would also start to adopt Luther's 1539 singing tune again.
"Balulalow"
The 1567 second edition of '' The Gude and Godlie Ballatis'' (the good and godly ballads) contained a Scottish translation of "Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her" under the header "Followis ane sang of the birth of Christ, with the tune of Baw lula low" (Here follows a song of the birth of Christ, o be sungon the tune of Balulalow). The first line of this translation reads "I come from heuin to tell" (I come from heaven to tell).
The thirteenth and fourteenth stanza of this were considered a Scottish lullaby
A lullaby (), or a cradle song, is a soothing song or piece of music that is usually played for (or sung to) children (for adults see music and sleep). The purposes of lullabies vary. In some societies, they are used to pass down cultural knowl ...
, "Oh, my deir hert, young Jesus sweit" (Oh, my dear heart, young Jesus sweet). As "Balulalow" these two stanzas were set to music for instance by Benjamin Britten
Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, o ...
as No. 4b in ''A Ceremony of Carols
''A Ceremony of Carols'', Op. 28 is an extended choral composition for Christmas by Benjamin Britten scored for three-part treble chorus, solo voices, and harp. The text, structured in eleven movements, is taken from ''The English Galaxy of Sho ...
'', Op. 28 (1942). Peter Warlock had already set the same lyrics in 1919.
Popular interpretations followed, for instance by Loreena McKennitt
Loreena McKennitt (born February 17, 1957) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and composer who writes, records, and performs world music with Celtic music, Celtic and Middle Eastern music, Middle Eastern influences. McKenni ...
(''To Drive the Cold Winter Away
''To Drive the Cold Winter Away'' is Canadian musician Loreena McKennitt's second studio album, released on January 11, 1987. It pays homage to her childhood memories of music for the winter season, the most vivid of which "came from songs and ca ...
'', 1987), by Sting ('' If on a Winter's Night...'', 2009), and by the French band Revolver.
"From Heaven on High the Angels Sing"
"From Heaven on High the Angels Sing" is sometimes indicated as a translation of "Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her." It is however a translation of " Vom Himmel hoch, o Engel, kommt", a song also known as "Susani", first published in the early 17th century, with a different tune. Apart from the Christmas setting derived from , the "Susani" repeated in this song also likens it to the "Susaninne" of the fourteenth stanza of "Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her.""Vom Himmel hoch": Der berühmteste Coversong der Kirchengeschichte
at There are however many other hymns, including older and English ones, with similar likenesses, e.g. the fourteenth century "A Little Child There Is Ybore", "A Little Child There Is Yborn", "Gloria Tibi Domine", and Luther's 1543 "".
The last one is usually sung to the "Vom Himmel hoch" melody,
or, alternatively, to the "
Puer natus in Bethlehem" hymn tune,
Zahn 192a.
"Ett barn är fött på denna dag"
"
Ett barn är fött på denna dag" is a Swedish Christmas song partly based on the "Vom Himmel hoch" hymn.
See also
*
List of hymns by Martin Luther
The Protestant Reformers, reformer Martin Luther, a prolific hymnodist, regarded music and especially hymns in German as important means for the development of faith.
Luther wrote songs for occasions of the liturgical year (Advent, Christmas, Pre ...
*
List of Christmas carols
This list of Christmas carols is organized by language of origin. Originally, a "Christmas carol" referred to a piece of vocal music in carol form whose lyrics centre on the theme of Christmas or the Christmas season. The difference between a ...
References
External links
"Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her" hymnary.org
Evangelical Church in Germany
The Evangelical Church in Germany (, EKD), also known as the Protestant Church in Germany, is a federation of twenty Lutheranism, Lutheran, Continental Reformed Protestantism, Reformed, and united and uniting churches, United Protestantism in Ger ...
"I Come from Hevin to Tell"at John Speller's web pages
at Mainly Norfolk: English Folk and Other Good Music
"Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her"on youtube, in the style of the so-called New Spiritual Song (NGL: "Neues Geistliches Lied")
*
*
{{authority control
16th-century hymns in German
Christmas carols in German
Hymns by Martin Luther
1534 works