Christmas Bells
for SATB Chorus and Bell-Sound
This piece is based on a poem by the great American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The poem was written in reaction to the Civil War, and there are two stanzas that I decided to omit because they refer specifically to war, and because the shortened version of the poem was better suited for use in a Christmas carol. The poem itself was very easy to set to music, and it has a universal message that certainly resonates today. The bell-sound may be played on organ, synthesizer, piano, celesta, or hand bells.