VON HIMMEL HOCH (FROM HEAVEN ON HIGH)

Music: Felix Mendelssohn
Text: Martin Luther
Translation: Jean Lunn

In 1535 Martin Luther published a 15-verse hymn, “Vom Himmel hoch” (“From Heaven on High”), that he had written a year earlier, most likely for a Christmas celebration with his family. He subtitled it “a children’s song on the Nativity of Christ.” Luther also probably adapted a folksong as the melody for this hymn, which first appeared in print in 1539.  

It was nearly three centuries later that a young Felix Mendelssohn wrote a Christmas cantata based on Luther’s “Vom Himmel hoch.” Mendelssohn’s inspiration sprang not from Luther directly, but from his own respect for J. S. Bach, who had also borrowed Luther’s hymn frequently. In the chorale and the closing movement of Mendelssohn’s cantata, this performance of “Vom Himmel hoch” culminates with the final, triumphant stanza of Luther’s hymn—jubilant praise of God and cheerful wishes for the new year.