He Is Born, Holy Child

Hymns and Carols are the two main sources for the melodies that are associated with traditional Christmas Music. While hymns are predominately sacred, the historical roots of carols are in religious and pagan folk music and dance. The latter association with pagan and dance music has throughout history brought carols alternatively in and out of favor with Christmas worship. Fortunately, interest in Christmas music grew in the 20th century, leading to the popularity it presently enjoys. Dating from the 18th century, He Is Born, Holy Child is a traditional French carol. The composer and lyricist are anonymous, but translations of the texts have resulted in many references to music, including “Sound the pipes, let the trumpets play”, “Play the oboes and bagpipes merrily”, and “Bells are ringing, we are singing”. This arrangement for saxophone quartet strives to include all the players in the music making, particularly by distributing melodic material. All dynamics and articulations, minimally marked, should be taken as suggestions only, as performers are encouraged to make their own interpretations.