Christmas is the most colourful and splendid holiday of the followers of Jesus Christ, which falls on December 25 every year. On this day, the faithful celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ with traditional religious devotion and enthusiasm.
Their thoughts go back to that first Christmas morning, nearly 2000 years ago, when the newborn Christ Child lay in a manger in the Holy Land. From his humble birthplace, the Child brought new faith and hope to the world. Simple shepherds and wise men alike knelt before the Holy Child in devoted thanks for his birth.
On Christmas day, men, women and children, attired in new raiment, throng churches to offer thanksgiving prayers. Many also attend midnight services on Christmas eve. Beautiful decorations adorn the churches and rich music swells from organ and choir. The splendor and beauty is different from the humble stable in Bethlehem where Christ was born, but the message he brought to the world is the same:
"Glory be to God to the highest;
And on earth peace, goodwill towards men"
On Christmas day traditional songs called carols are sung, which recall the birth of Jesus, adding to the beauty and fellowship of the Christmas season.
A carol is a song that is sung at Christmas time. Most carols tell something about the birth of Jesus but others just describe what Christmas means to the people. Some carols are very old, and go back to the time before people knew anything about writing music. They use to have carols for all kinds of festivals and holidays such as the ones observed while planting, harvesting and on the occasion of Easter. An old custom still followed on a large scale in the Orient was for groups of singers to go down the streets and sing carols on Christmas. They visit every residence in the locality, and sometimes, they are invited in or offered monetary or other kinds of inducements, in recognition of their voluntary efforts to spread the message of Christ.
Many Christmas hymns are sung as carols, though a carol is primarily like a folk song. Through the centuries, musicians wrote new carols, some with themes devoted to religious purposes by associating them with divinity or divine things, and as symbols of Christ's love and redemptive sacrifice.
The Holy Bible contains the words of many Hebrew songs and mentions such musical instruments as the harp, lyre, trumpet and cymbal. Hebrew chants sung in the temples foreshadowed early Christian songs.
The development of Western music was intertwined with the growth of Christian church. Chanting of scriptures and prayers was practised by the early Christians and by 6th century A.D the number of these chants had increased so much that Pope Gregory I had them collected and organised. They came to be known as Gregorian chants. Those chants did not have a regular rhythm, but were fitted to the natural accents of their Latin words. Like all previous music, each chant consisted of a single melody and all the singers crooned the same notes.
Those monophonic chants provided the basis for Christmas carols, which became popular the world over where Christmas was celebrated. Today, carol singing has become an integral part of Christmas celebration and has developed into an art form. It has given rise to groups of musicians and vocalists, who specialise in the composition and rendition of these devotional songs.
Organised groups of singers and musicians called choirs, today help in preparations to make Christmas the cheeriest day of the year. In Western countries, for their artistic excellence, a number of choirs have gained wide recognition, which transcends their national boundaries. Churches in Pakistan also have choirs, which participate in religious celebrations such as Christmas and Easter, adding an enchanting tangent to the devotional festivities.
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