Christmas Carols at the Chalet School Quiz

Answer: Czech Republic

'Hajej, Nynjej' is also known as 'Little Jesus, Sweetly Sleep' (the English lyrics are a loose translation by Percy Dearmer). The Christmas play in 'The Chalet School and Barbara' also features a Czech carol called 'Rocking', which is presumably the same one. 'Hajej, Nynjej' is thought to have originated somewhere between the 13th and 15th centuries, and has been covered by Julie Andrews as 'Rocking'.

The melody bears some similarities to 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star'.

Answer: Good King Wenceslas

'Tempus adest Floridum' is not remotely Christmassy, and actually celebrates spring (its title means 'the time is near for flowering'); it comes from the 13th century and was published in a Finnish hymn book two centuries later. John Mason Neale, an English hymn writer, used the melody as the basis for the lyrics to 'Good King Wenceslas', which was published in 1853 and tells the story of the king in question and his servant spying a poor man gathering wood, and going off to find him so they can help him celebrate Christmas. Wenceslas, by the way, was a real person; he was the Duke of Bohemia, and attained martyr status after being murdered by his brother Boleslav and a group of collaborators in 953.

He became a cult figure in medieval religious circles afterwards.

He is the patron saint of the Czech Republic, with his feast day being on 28th September.

Answer: A boar's head

'The Boar's Head Carol' is a 15th century English carol about an old Yule custom of sacrificing a boar and presenting its head at a feast. The song describes the head as garnished with bay leaves and rosemary, and the final line of each verse is in Latin. Some institutions around the world today still perform the ritual of parading a boar's head around at a big meal. In case you're wondering what the line I quoted in the question means, it's 'The boar's head I bear/Giving praises to the Lord.' If you're a fan of English folk music, I can recommend the version by Maddy Prior, of Steeleye Span fame, and the Carnival Band.

Sausages wrapped in bacon is a side dish known as 'pigs in blankets', often served as part of Christmas dinner in the UK.

Answer: 'In Dulci Jubilo' and 'Good Christian Men, Rejoice'

'Good Christian Men, Rejoice' is featured in the Christmas play in 'Jo of the Chalet School' and its Latin counterpart, 'In Dulci Jubilo' (translation: 'in sweet rejoicing'), appears in the play in 'Jo Returns to the Chalet School'. While the version of 'In Dulci Jubilo' that we know today in the UK is in both Latin and English, the version originally sung was part Latin, part German, and was thought to have been written by Heinrch Seuse, a German mystic, in the 14th century. Legend has it that he was inspired by angels to write the words. 'Good Christian Men, Rejoice' is purely in English; the 1853 translation, by hymnist John Mason Neale, was criticised because of its loose nature and some awkward lyrical shoehorning.

If any 'Chalet School' fans are interested, 'From Far Away We Come Unto You' appears in 'Exploits of the Chalet Girls'; 'Quoi Ma Voisine' and 'Congaudeat Turba Fidelium' also appear in 'Jo Returns to the Chalet School'; 'Out of Your Sleep, Arise and Wake!' is in the Christmas play in 'The Highland Twins at the Chalet School', 'Faisons Réjouissance' appears in 'The Mystery at the Chalet School'; and 'Sleep, My Saviour, Sleep' appears in the play in 'Redheads at the Chalet School'.

Answer: Johann Sebastian Bach

'O Jesulein süß, o Jesulein mild' is featured in the German church musician Georg Christian Schemelli's hymnal of 1736, and is Number BWV 493 in the 'Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis', a catalogue of JS Bach's work, originally compiled in 1950. It is sung a cappella.

When sung in English, it is usually called 'O Little One Sweet'. (The prolific Bach, incidentally, is the only baroque composer on the list; Wagner and Brahms were from the Romantic period and Beethoven was considered both a Classical and Romantic composer.)

Answer: Three Kings from Persian Lands Afar

'Three Kings from Persian Lands Afar' is an unusual carol. It is essentially two songs in one; 'Die Könige' ('The Three Kings') was written for a soloist by Peter Cornelius, and he used 'Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern' by Philip Nicolai as an accompaniment, thinking it was an Epiphany hymn (it's actually about Advent). The Cornelius version has the accompaniment played on a piano, but a later version, arranged by Worcester Cathedral organist Ivor Atkins, has the choir singing the lyrics of 'How Brightly Shines the Morning Star' in the background as a counterpoint to the soloist singing Cornelius' lyrics. This makes it quite tricky to sing, and I'm speaking from experience here!

(If any 'Chalet School' fans are playing this quiz and are wondering which books feature the carol, it appears in the plays in 'Shocks for the Chalet School' and 'The Chalet School and Barbara'.)

Answer: A roasted cock crows three times.

This obscure English carol is also known as 'Herod and the Cock', and has been covered by the Watersons, an English family folk group. Its writer is anonymous, and its lyrics come from a legend about St Stephen. Stephen claimed that a prince would be born that night, and as proof the roasted cock which Herod was eating would crow three times. In the song, it is the three kings who tell Herod this. As the song has it:

'"If this be the truth," King Herod said,
"That thou hast told to me,
The roasted cock that lies in the dish
Shall crow full senses three."
O the cock soon thrusted and feathered well
By the work of G-d's own hand,
And he did crow full senses three
In the dish where he did stand.'

Answer: Franz Xaver Gruber

It's quite fitting that one of Austria's most famous carols would be featured in a series of books set there. Franz Xaver Gruber was a teacher and weaver who lived in the small Austrian village of Arnsdorf, and also played the organ and conducted the choir in the church in the neighbouring village of Oberndorf bei Salzburg. He co-wrote the song with Joseph Mohr, a priest who needed a carol for Midnight Mass one evening and wanted Gruber to write a melody for a poem he had written, this poem being 'Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht'. John Freeman Young, an American Episcopal priest, wrote the English lyrics which are most commonly sung today. The song was given Intangible Cultural Heritage status by UNESCO in 2011.

(As an aside, I sang the German version for my audition for the Chester Music Society Junior Choir back in the '90s. It worked!)

Answer: The Coventry Carol

The 'Coventry Carol' is a 16th century carol from the city of Coventry, traditionally performed as part of 'The Shearman and Tailors' Pageant', one of the Coventry Mystery Plays. The carol is sung from the perspective of the mothers of babies who were murdered on the orders of King Herod in the Massacre of the Innocents, as told in Matthew Chapter 2.

In the pageant, it is sung by three women from Bethlehem. The author of the lyrics is unknown; the oldest copy of the lyrics was written down by Robert Croo, who was involved with the pageants over several years. ('To send someone to Coventry', a treatment often meted out by groups of girls in the books to a girl who'd done something to upset them, means to ignore them.)

Answer: O Come All Ye Faithful

With its rousing chorus of 'o come let us adore him/Christ, the Lord', 'O Come All Ye Faithful' is a Christmas concent classic (and as anyone who's sang in choirs might recall, it has a lovely descant in the final verse). The writer of the song is unknown; suggestions have included the English hymnist John Francis Wade, King John IV of Portugal, and various monks. Wade worked in France as a copyist of music manuscripts and copies of 'Adeste Fideles' bore his signature, hence the theory that he wrote it. Frederick Oakeley wrote the English translation of the original four Latin verses; another four were composed during the 18th century, but had different translators.