Nine Lessons and Carols, also known as the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols and Service of Nine Lessons and Carols, is a service of

Christian worship In Christianity, worship is the act of attributing reverent honour and homage to God. In the New Testament, various words are used to refer to the term worship. One is ("to worship") which means to bow down to God or kings. Worship in the N ...

traditionally celebrated on or near

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in Anglican churches. The story of the fall of humanity, the promise of the Messiah, and the

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is told in nine short

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readings or lessons from Genesis, the prophetic books and the Gospels, interspersed with the singing of

Christmas carol A Christmas carol is a Carol (music), carol on the theme of Christmas, traditionally sung at Christmas itself or during the surrounding Christmas and holiday season. The term noel has sometimes been used, especially for carols of French or ...

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' d ...

s and

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anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to sho ...

History

Order of Service for Nine Lessons and Carols 1880

Although the tradition of Nine Lessons and Carols is popularly associated with

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, its origins are attributed to Truro Cathedral in

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. Up to the late 19th century, the singing of Christmas carols was normally performed by singers visiting people's houses, and carols — generally considered to be secular in content — had been excluded from Christian worship. In the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed the ...

, the rising popularity of hymnody encouraged church musicians to introduce carols into worship. An 1875 book of carols, ''Carols for Use in Church During Christmas and Epiphany'' by Richard Chope and Sabine Baring-Gould, was an influential publication. At around this time, the composer and organist John Stainer was compiling a collection, ''Christmas Carols New and Old'', and during Christmas 1878 he introduced carols into the service of Choral Evensong at

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in London. Other cathedrals also began to adopt carols at

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that year and the '' Royal Cornwall Gazette'' reported that the choir of Truro Cathedral would sing a service of carols at 10:00 pm on Christmas Eve: Two years later, the Right Rev. Edward White Benson, at that time Bishop of Truro, conducted the first formal service of "Nine Lessons and Carols" on

(24 December) 1880. Benson, concerned at the excessive consumption of alcohol in Cornish pubs during the festive season, sought a means of attracting revellers out of the pubs and into church by offering a religious celebration of Christmas. The idea for a service consisting of Christmas music interspersed with Bible readings was proposed by the succentor of the cathedral, the Rev. George Walpole (who later became Bishop of Edinburgh). The cathedral — a Victorian gothic building — was still under construction, and services were being held in a temporary wooden structure which served as a

pro-cathedral A pro-cathedral or procathedral is a parish Church (building), church that temporarily serves as the cathedral or co-cathedral of a diocese, or a church that has the same function in a Catholic missionary jurisdiction (such as an apostolic prefect ...

. The first Nine Lessons and Carols service took place there at 10:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve and was attended by over 400 people. Benson's son, A. C. Benson, later recalled: Bishop Benson was appointed

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

in 1883, and the Nine Lessons service began to gain in popularity across the

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and the wider

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, as well as

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churches in

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. The original liturgy has since been adapted and used by other churches all over the world, particularly in English-speaking countries. Lessons and Carols most often occur in

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

churches. However, numerous Christian denominations have adopted the service, or a variation of it, as part of their Christmas celebrations. In the UK, the service has become the standard format for school carol services. On Christmas Eve 1914, David Wilson organised the first service of Nine Lessons and Carols in Ireland in North Strand Church in Dublin. A special carol service was held in 2014 to celebrate the centenary. In 1916, a service of Nine Lessons and Carols was held at

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; the institution celebrated the 100th anniversary of its Lessons and Carols in 2016. Notably in 1918, the Rev. Eric Milner-White the new dean of King's College, Cambridge, introduced the service to the college chapel, taking advantage of the established choral tradition of the Choir of King's College, Cambridge. It proved highly successful, and began an annual tradition — albeit with some alterations to Benson's original format from 1919 onwards. The

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began to broadcast the service on the radio from 1928 and on television from 1954, establishing ''Carols from King's'' as the most popular and widely recognised presentation of the service. In North America, the Lessons and Carols tradition spread to other US and Canadian institutions. In 1928, organist and choirmaster Twining Lynes, introduced the service to

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in Groton, Massachusetts, after being inspired by services in England. In Canada, the Festival of Nine Lessons and carols is done multilingually at Bishop's College School,

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, with the nine lessons read in nine languages or dialects. In December 2013, Truro Cathedral staged a reconstruction of Bishop Benson's original 1880 Nine Lessons with Carols Service which was attended by a congregation of over 1,500 people.

Service at King's College, Cambridge

The first Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King's College Chapel, Cambridge, was held on

in 1918, directed by Arthur Henry Mann who was the organist from 1876 to 1929.. . During

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the dean, Eric Milner-White, had served as army chaplain in the 7th Infantry Division and he was concerned that the distress of the "Great War" had hardened attitudes against religion. Taking advantage of the established choral tradition of the Choir of King's College, Cambridge, he introduced Benson's carol service to King's as a means of attracting people back to Christian worship. The King's College service was immensely successful, and the following year Milner-White made some changes to Benson's original format, notably introducing the tradition of opening the service with a solo treble singing " Once in Royal David's City". This was then followed by a bidding prayer penned by Milner-White himself, and re-ordering the lessons. The choir had 16 trebles as specified in statutes laid down by Henry VI, and until 1927 the men's voices were provided by choral scholars and lay clerks. Today, 14

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s from the choir sing the men's parts.

Broadcasting of the service

The popularity of the service was established when the service began to be broadcast by the

British Broadcasting Corporation The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public broadcasting, public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved in ...

in 1928, and, except for 1930, has been broadcast every year since. During the 1930s the service reached a worldwide audience when the BBC began broadcasting the service on its Overseas Service. Even throughout the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, despite the

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having been removed from the chapel and the lack of heating, the broadcasts continued. For security reasons, the name "King's" was not mentioned during wartime broadcasts. Nine Lessons and Carols from King's College was first televised by

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1 January 1927. It p ...

in 1954, conducted by the director of music, Boris Ord. Peter Paul Rubens 009

Since the Second World War, it has been estimated that each year there are millions of listeners worldwide who listen to the service live on the BBC World Service. Domestically, the service is broadcast live on

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, and a recorded broadcast is made on Christmas Day on

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. In the US, a 1954 service was put into the National Recording Registry by the

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in 2008. The broadcast has been heard live on public radio stations affiliated with American Public Media since 1979, and most stations broadcast a repeat on Christmas Day. Since 1963, the service has been periodically filmed for television broadcast in the UK. Presently, each year a programme entitled ''Carols from King's'' is pre-recorded in early or mid-December then shown on Christmas Eve in the UK on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...

and

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. The programme is weighted more heavily in favour of carols sung by the choir, with only seven readings in total, not all of which are from the Bible. In 2020, during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, the service was conducted, for the first time, without a congregation. The service did not take place live, but instead a pre-recorded service produced by King's College was broadcast at the usual time. It was the first time since 1930 that the service had not been broadcast live.

Order of service

The format of the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols has not changed substantially since 1918. The order of the lessons was revised in 1919, since when the service has always begun with the hymn " Once in Royal David's City". Today the first verse is sung unaccompanied by a solo boy chorister. To avoid putting him under undue stress, the chorister is not told that he will be singing the solo until immediately before the service. The nine lessons, which are the same every year, are read by representatives of the College and of the city of Cambridge using the text of the

King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version (AV), is an Early Modern English Bible translations, Early Modern English translation of the Christianity, Christian Bible for the Church of England, wh ...

of the

published in 1611. The singing is made up of "carols" sung by the choir and "hymns" sung by the choir and congregation. Some services have also included anthems sung between the carols and hymns, such as a performance of " E'en So, Lord Jesus, Quickly Come" in 2004. Since 1983, a new carol has been commissioned by the College and premiered at the service. The carols vary from year to year, although some music is repeated, and the service ends with the hymn "

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" is an English Christmas carol that first appeared in 1739 in the collection ''Hymns and Sacred Poems''. The carol, based on , tells of an angelic chorus singing praises to God. As it is known in the modern era, it ...

". The order of service in 2024 is as follows:. For the songs sung in earlier years, see " List of carols performed at the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King's College Chapel, Cambridge". *Organ preludes ::*"Prelude and Fugue in G, BWV 541" – music by

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...

(1685-1750) ::*" Weihnachten, Op. 145 No. 3 – music by Max Reger (1873-1916) ::*"Chorale-Improvisation on 'In dulci jubilo', Op. 75 No. 2" – music by Sigfrid Karg-Elert (1877-1933) ::*'Pastorale on "Joseph, lieber Joseph mein" and "Stille Nacht"' from "Weihnachten, Op. 22" – music by Carl Sattler (1877-1966) ::*" Canonic Variations on "Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her", BWV 769" – music by Johann Sebastian Bach ::*'Desseins éternels' from " La Nativité du Seigneur" – music by Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992) ::*" The Holy Boy" – music by John Ireland (1879-1962); arranged by Alec Rowley (1892-1958) ::*"In dulci jubilo, BuxWV 197" – music by

Dieterich Buxtehude Dieterich Buxtehude (; born Diderich Hansen Buxtehude, ; – 9 May 1707) was a Danish composer and organist of the Baroque music, Baroque period, whose works are typical of the North German organ school. As a composer who worked in various vocal ...

(c. 1637-1707) :* Processional hymn: " Once in Royal David's City" – words by Cecil Frances Alexander (1818−1895); melody ('Irby') by Henry Gauntlett (1805−1876); harmonised by Arthur Henry Mann (1850−1929); descant by Philip Ledger (1937−2012) * Bidding prayer, concluding with the Lord's Prayer :*Carol: " Sussex Carol" – words and music, English traditional; arranged by Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958) *First lesson from Genesis 3: 8–15, 17–19 (read by a chorister of King's College) :*Carol: " Adam lay ybounden" – words, 15th century English, modernised by Edith Rickert (1871-1938); music by Matthew Martin *Second lesson from Genesis 22: 15–18 (read by a student of King's College) :*Carol: " Nowell sing we now all and some" – words, anonymous 15th century English; translated by Rosanna Omitowuju; music by Elizabeth Maconchy (1907-1994) *Third lesson from Isaiah 9: 2, 6–7 (read by a member of the King's College staff) :*Carol: " A Great and Mighty Wonder" – words by St Germanus (c.634-740); translated by

John Mason Neale John Mason Neale (24 January 1818 – 6 August 1866) was an English Anglican priest, scholar, and hymnwriter. He worked on and wrote a wide range of holy Christian texts, including obscure medieval hymns, both Western and Eastern. Among his mo ...

(1818-1866); music arranged by James Whitbourn (1963-2024) :*Hymn: " It Came Upon the Midnight Clear" – words by Edmund Hamilton Sears (1810-1876); melody ('Noel') adapted by

Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...

(1842-1900); descant by John Scott (1956-2015) *Fourth lesson from Isaiah 11: 1–4a, 6–9 (read by the Master over the Choristers of King's College) :*Carol: " The Lamb" – words by

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake has become a seminal figure in the history of the Romantic poetry, poetry and visual art of the Roma ...

(1757-1827); music by

John Tavener Sir John Kenneth Tavener (28 January 1944 – 12 November 2013) was an English composer, known for his extensive output of choral religious music, religious works. Among his best known works are ''The Lamb (Tavener), The Lamb'' (1982), ''The ...

(1944-2013) :*Carol: " Gabriel's Message" – words by Sabine Baring-Gould (1834−1924); music, Basque carol, arranged by David Willcocks (1919−2015) *Fifth lesson from Luke 1: 26–35, 38 (read by a

Fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

of King's College) :*Carol: " Ave Regina coelorum" – words from Brevarium Romanum; music by Orlando de Lassus (c. 1532-1594) :*Carol: " Nativity Carol" – words and music by John Rutter *Sixth lesson from Luke 2: 1–7 (read by the Deputy Mayor of Cambridge) :*Carol: "Come all you faithful Christians" – words and music, English traditional; arranged by Christopher Robinson :*Hymn: " While shepherds watched their flocks by night" – words by Nahum Tate (1652-1715); melody ('Winchester Old') arranged by George Kirbye (c. 1565-1634); descant by Nicholas Marston (died 1624) *Seventh lesson from Luke 2: 8–16 (read by the Director of Music of King's College) :*Carol: "Three Points of Light" – words by Peter Cairns; music by Grayston Ives (commissioned for the 2024 service) :*Carol: " I saw three ships come sailing in" – words and music, traditional English; arranged by Simon Preston (1938-2022) *Eighth lesson from Matthew 2: 1–12 (read by the Vice-Provost of King's College) :*Carol: "Lullay, dear Jesus, my heart's only treasure" – words, 'Lulajże, Jezununiu', 17th century Polish; translated by Jan Śliwiński (1884-1950); music by Arnold Bax (1883-1953) :*Carol: "Procedenti puero" – words, 15th century English; music by Peter Warlock (1894−1930) *Ninth lesson from the John 1: 1–14 (read by the Provost of King's College) :*Hymn: " O Come, All Ye Faithful" – words, translated by Frederick Oakeley (1802−1880), William Thomas Brooke (1848−1917), et al.; melody ('Adeste, fideles') by John Francis Wade (1711−1786); arranged by David Willcocks; descant by Daniel Hyde * Collect and

blessing In religion, a blessing (also used to refer to bestowing of such) is the impartation of something with doctrines of grace, grace, Sacred, holiness, spiritual Redemption (theology), redemption, or Will of God, divine will. Etymology and Germani ...

:*Hymn: "

" – words by

Charles Wesley Charles Wesley (18 December 1707 – 29 March 1788) was an English Anglican cleric and a principal leader of the Methodist movement. Wesley was a prolific hymnwriter who wrote over 6,500 hymns during his lifetime. His works include "And Can It ...

(1707−1788), et al.; adapted by William Hayman Cummings (1831-1915); melody ('Mendelssohn') by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (1809−1847); descant by David Willcocks *Organ voluntaries ::*" In Dulci Jubilo, BWV 729" – music by Johann Sebastian Bach ::*'Final' from "Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 59" – music by Louis Vierne (1870-1937)

Commissioned carols and organ postludes

The table below shows the new carols commissioned by King's College, Cambridge, since 1983. Organ postludes have also been commissioned in certain years, as shown in the table below.

Attendance at the service

Attendance at the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols held on Christmas Eve is now by ticket only, many of which are allocated by public ballot; standby tickets are also made available to those who applied in the ballot.King's College, Cambridge, A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, Attending in Person
Retrieved 21 December 2023. Owing to the service's popularity, demand for seats greatly exceeds the number of tickets available. In previous years, when tickets were available at the door, some people began queuing the night before, but now only those with standby tickets are permitted to stand in the queue.

References

Citations

Sources

External links

King's College, Cambridge: "A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols" webpage

50-minute BBC World Service documentary
{{authority control Anglican liturgy Anglican church music Church music Christmas carols Christmas in England Nativity of Jesus in worship and liturgy