Christum wir sollen loben schon

"Christum wir sollen loben schon"
"Christum wir sollen loben schon"
Hymn by Martin Luther
	The hymn in the Erfurt Enchyridion, 1524
Catalogue	Zahn 297a–c
Text	by Martin Luther
Language	German
Published	1524

"Christum wir sollen loben schon" (We should praise Christ beautifully^[a]) is a Lutheran Christmas hymn with a text by Martin Luther, first published in 1524 in the Erfurt Enchiridion. He wrote it based on the Latin A solis ortus cardine and kept its melody (Zahn No. 297a–b).^[1]^[2]

A variant of the hymn tune, Zahn No. 297c, was published in 1535.^[2] The hymn was used in several musical settings, including the chorale cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach, Christum wir sollen loben schon, BWV 121.^[3]^[4] Bach wrote an organ chorale prelude BWV 611 for his Orgelbüchlein.^[5]

The tune is also used for "From East to West, from Shore to Shore."^[6]

Notes[edit]

^ "Christum wir sollen loben schon" (in German). Christliche Liederdatenbank. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
^ ^a ^b Zahn, Johannes (1889). Die Melodien der deutschen evangelischen Kirchenlieder (in German). Gütersloh: Bertelsmann. pp. 80–81.
—— (1889). Die Melodien der deutschen evangelischen Kirchenlieder (in German). Vol. I. Gütersloh: Bertelsmann. pp. 80–81 – via Internet Archive.
^ "Christum wir sollen loben schon / Text and Translation of Chorale". bach-cantatas.com. 2003. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
^ "Chorale Melodies used in Bach's Vocal Works / Christum wir sollen loben schon". bach-cantatas.com. 2006. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
^ Williams, Peter (2003), The Organ Music of J. S. Bach (2nd ed.), Cambridge University Press, pp. 258–260, ISBN 0-521-89115-9
^ Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary, #267.

Wilhelm Lucke: Christum wir sollen loben schon. In: D. Martin Luthers Werke. Kritische Gesamtausgabe, vol 35, Weimar 1923, S. 150–151
Ingeborg Weber-Kellermann: Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder. Atlantis-Musikbuch-Verlag, Zürich 2003 (1982), ISBN 3-254-08213-3.