Christmas Hymns

Realizing that traditional Christmas carols could not be properly played on a guitar, Joseph Mohr decided to write a new hymn.

Kompas/Didie SW

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Ahead of Christmas in 1818, 22-year-old cleric Joseph Mohr discovered significant damage to the Church of St. Nicholas’ pipe organ. The small house of worship is located in Oberndorf, a village near Salzburg in Austria.

Mohr was perplexed. Even if repairmen could fix the pipe organ, the Christmas mass would be finished by the time they arrived at the church given the snowy conditions. For the young cleric, a Christmas without musical hymns would not be Christmas. However, he had musical talent.