Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella
Encyclopedia
"Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabelle" is a Christmas carol
which originated from the Provence
region of France
in the 16th century. The song is usually notated in 3/8 time
.
The carol was first published in 1553 in France, and was subsequently translated into English in the 18th century. The song was originally not a song to be sung at Christmas, but rather dance music for French nobility
.
In the carol, visitors to the stable have to keep their voices down so the newborn can enjoy his dreams. To this day in the Provence region, children dress up as shepherds and milkmaids, carrying torches and candles to Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve
, while singing the carol.
The painter Georges de La Tour
painted a nativity scene
based on the carol.
The word Hark! or Hush is sometimes substituted for Ah!
Christmas carol
A Christmas carol is a carol whose lyrics are on the theme of Christmas or the winter season in general and which are traditionally sung in the period before Christmas.-History:...
which originated from the Provence
Provence
Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
region of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in the 16th century. The song is usually notated in 3/8 time
Meter (music)
Meter or metre is a term that music has inherited from the rhythmic element of poetry where it means the number of lines in a verse, the number of syllables in each line and the arrangement of those syllables as long or short, accented or unaccented...
.
The carol was first published in 1553 in France, and was subsequently translated into English in the 18th century. The song was originally not a song to be sung at Christmas, but rather dance music for French nobility
French nobility
The French nobility was the privileged order of France in the Middle Ages and the Early Modern periods.In the political system of the Estates General, the nobility made up the Second Estate...
.
In the carol, visitors to the stable have to keep their voices down so the newborn can enjoy his dreams. To this day in the Provence region, children dress up as shepherds and milkmaids, carrying torches and candles to Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...
, while singing the carol.
The painter Georges de La Tour
Georges de La Tour
Georges de La Tour was a French Baroque painter, who spent most of his working life in the Duchy of Lorraine, which was temporarily absorbed into France between 1641 and 1648...
painted a nativity scene
Nativity scene
A nativity scene, manger scene, krippe, crèche, or crib, is a depiction of the birth of Jesus as described in the gospels of Matthew and Luke...
based on the carol.
Lyrics
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The word Hark! or Hush is sometimes substituted for Ah!
- Alternate Lyrics:
- Bring a torch, Jeannette, Isabelle!
- Bring a torch to the cradle run!
- It is Jesus, good folks of the village;
- Christ is born and Mary's calling:
- Ah! ah! beautiful is the mother!
- Ah! ah! beautiful is her Son!
- It is wrong when the Child is sleeping
- It is wrong to talk so loud;
- Silence, all, as you gather around,
- Lest your noise should waken Jesus:
- Hush! hush! see how fast He slumbers:
- Hush! hush! see how fast He sleeps!
- Softly to the little stable,
- Softly for the moment come;
- Look and see how charming is Jesus,
- See how He smiles, Oh see how rosy!
- Hush! hush! see how the Child is sleeping;
- Hush! hush! see how He smiles in dreams.
Recorded versions
- 1957 - Fred Waring and his Pennsylvanians - Now Is The Caroling Season
- 1966 - Joan BaezJoan BaezJoan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....
- NoëlNoel (Joan Baez album)Noël was a Christmas album by Joan Baez, released in 1966. Working with composer Peter Schickele , Baez, for the first time, recorded an album outside the standard guitar-based folk format... - 1970 - Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - A Season for Miracles
- 1984 - Mannheim SteamrollerMannheim SteamrollerMannheim Steamroller is an American music group founded by Chip Davis and Jackson Berkey, known primarily for its modern recordings of Christmas music. The group has sold 28 million albums in the U.S. alone.-Beginnings:...
- Christmas - 1985 - The Canadian Brass - A Canadian Brass Christmas
- 1989 - Kathleen BattleKathleen BattleKathleen Battle , is an African-American operatic soprano known for her agile and light voice and her silvery, pure tone. Battle initially became known for her work within the concert repertoire through performances with major orchestras during the early and mid 1970s. She made her opera debut in...
- A Christmas Celebration - 1991 - Carnival Art - A Lump of CoalA Lump of CoalA Lump of Coal is an Australian compilation album of Christmas music produced in 1991 by Dead Line Records and First Warning Records for RCA Records...
- 1993 - John RutterJohn RutterJohn Milford Rutter CBE is a British composer, conductor, editor, arranger and record producer, mainly of choral music.-Biography:Born in London, Rutter was educated at Highgate School, where a fellow pupil was John Tavener. He read music at Clare College, Cambridge, where he was a member of the...
and the Cambridge SingersCambridge SingersCambridge Singers is an English mixed voice chamber/choral group formed in 1981 by their director John Rutter with the primary purpose of making recordings under their own label "Collegium"....
- Christmas Day in the Morning - 1994 - Robert ShawRobert Shaw (conductor)Robert Shaw was an American conductor most famous for his work with his namesake Chorale, with the Cleveland Orchestra and Chorus, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. Shaw received 14 Grammy awards, four ASCAP awards for service to contemporary music, the first Guggenheim Fellowship...
Chamber Singers - Songs of Angels - 1994 - The Swingle SingersThe Swingle SingersThe Swingle Singers are a mostly a cappella vocal group formed in 1962 in Paris, France by Ward Swingle with Anne Germain, Jeanette Baucomont, Jean Cussac and others. Christiane Legrand, the sister of composer Michel Legrand, was the group's lead soprano through 1972. Until 2011 the group...
- The Story of Christmas - 1995 - Jenny Gullen & Derri DaughertyDerri DaughertyDerri Daugherty is an American record producer, songwriter, guitarist and singer, best known as the lead singer and guitarist for band The Choir....
- Noel - 1996 - Golden Bough - Christmas in a Celtic Land
- Sung in both French and English
- Sung in a medley with another French song - Il est né/Un flambeau Jeanette Isabella
- 1997 - Jon Schmidt - Jon Schmidt Christmas
- 2005 - Gerhard Schöne - Pierre
- 2006 - The Eighteenth Day of May - Session Track for Stuart Maconie (unreleased)
- 2006 - Sufjan StevensSufjan StevensSufjan Stevens is an American singer-songwriter and musician born in Detroit, Michigan. Stevens first began releasing his music on Asthmatic Kitty, a label co-founded with his stepfather, beginning with the 1999 release, A Sun Came...
- Songs for ChristmasSongs for ChristmasSongs for Christmas is a box set of five separate EPs of Christmas-related songs and carols recorded by independent musician Sufjan Stevens between 2001 and 2006. The EPs had been given as gifts to friends and family of Stevens over the past six years, except for 2004 where he was too busy... - 2006 - Hilary WeeksHilary WeeksHilary Weeks is a singer/songwriter of faith based music with seven completed albums including her latest, Every Step, produced by Shadow Mountain Records. Hilary is also a frequent speaker at Deseret Book Company's Time Out For Women. She is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day...
- Christmastime - 2006 - The Mormon Tabernacle ChoirMormon Tabernacle ChoirThe Mormon Tabernacle Choir, sometimes colloquially referred to as MoTab, is a Grammy and Emmy Award winning, 360-member, all-volunteer choir. The choir is part of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . However, the choir is completely self-funded, traveling and producing albums to...
- The Wonder of Christmas - 2006 - Nadia Birkenstock - Winter Tales
- 2008 - Loreena McKennittLoreena McKennittLoreena Isabel Irene McKennitt, CM, OM, is a Canadian singer, composer, harpist, accordionist and pianist who writes, records and performs world music with Celtic and Middle Eastern themes. McKennitt is known for her refined, clear soprano vocals...
- A Midwinter Night's Dream - 2008 - Dave Carter and Tracy GrammerDave Carter and Tracy GrammerDave Carter and Tracy Grammer were an American folk duo who released three albums from 1998 to 2001, as well as additional material released after Dave Carter's death...
- American Noel - 2008 - Fernando OrtegaFernando OrtegaFernando Ortega is an adult contemporary singer-songwriter in contemporary Christian music. He is noted both for his interpretations of many traditional hymns and songs, such as "Give Me Jesus" and "Be Thou My Vision", and for writing clear, easily understood songs, such as "This Good...
- Christmas Songs - 2008 - Kurt BestorKurt BestorKurt Roland Bestor is an American composer, arranger, and performer.-Biography:Bestor was born in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and raised in Orem, Utah, graduating from Orem High School in 1976. His grandfather played trumpet in Tommy Dorsey's band and his great uncle played trombone in Jack Benny's band...
- Kurt Bestor Christmas Vol. II - 2009 - DownhereDownhereNot to be confused with the album Down Here by Tracy Bonham.Downhere is a Juno Award-winning Christian rock band from Canada...
- "How Many Kings: Songs for Christmas" - 2009 - Tori AmosTori AmosTori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...
- Midwinter GracesMidwinter GracesMidwinter Graces is the 11th solo studio album by singer-songwriter Tori Amos. Released on November 10, 2009 , through Universal Republic Records, it is the first seasonal album by Amos, and is also notable for marking her return to a more classical, stripped-down, baroque sound with various... - 2009 - Ben + Vesper - Salvation Is Created: A Christmas Record From Bifrost Arts
- 2009 - Joy WilliamsJoy WilliamsJoy Williams is an American singer-songwriter and a member of the folk duo The Civil Wars.-Studio albums:* Joy Williams, 2001 [Reunion]* By Surprise, 2002 [Reunion]* Genesis, 2005 [Reunion]...
- "More Than I Asked For" - 2010 - Die Irrlichter - Rauhnächte
- 2011 - Callie Moore and Colette Butler (of ShayTardsShayTardsShayTards is a web series which documents the lives of entrepreneur, actor, and YouTuber, Shay Butler , his wife Colette and their four children...
) - Bring a Torch, Jeanette Isabella (feat. Colette Butler) - Single