Carol Symphony
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Carol Symphony is a collection of four preludes, written by Victor Hely-Hutchinson in 1927. It is based on four Christmas carols, given additional orchestration and counterpoint arrangements. The four movements are written to be played uninterrupted consecutively.
The first movement (Allegro energico) is based on O Come All Ye Faithful. The second movement is a scherzo (Allegro molto moderato) on God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen. The third movement (Andante quasi lento e cantabile) is a slow movement whose outer sections are based on the Coventry Carol, with a central interlude on The First Noël. The finale (Allegro energico come prima) recapitulates material from the first movement, and also uses Here We Come A-Wassailing before concluding with a re-statement of O Come All Ye Faithful.
Two sections from the First Noël section were used for the opening and closing titles of the 1984 BBC adaptation of John Masefield's The Box of Delights. It featured a recording conducted by Barry Rose in 1966 of the Pro Arte Orchestra at Guildford Cathedral. During World War II, the book had been adapted for radio on the BBC's Children's Hour, and Hely-Hutchinson's same music had been used.
For many people who grew up listening to radio Children's Hour programmes, the haunting harp theme in the Symphony as the First Noel motif starts is as magically evocative of the spirit of Christmas as is the lone chorister who starts to sing Once in Royal David's City at the beginning of the King's College, Cambridge Festival of Lessons and Carols.
