Joy to the World

Arranged by Nigel Williams

The Christmas carol Joy to the World was arranged by Lowell Mason in 1848. According to the Saskatoon Symphony: "The music's origins are unclear. The name Antioch is generally used for the tune. It is often attributed to George Frederic Handel on the grounds of a chance resemblance to choruses in the Messiah, not least because a theme of the refrain (And heaven and nature sing…) appears similar to the orchestral opening and accompaniment of the recitative "Comfort ye." Likewise, the first four notes seem to match the beginning of the choruses "Lift up your Heads" and "Glory to God" from the same oratorio. However, there is no autographed score by Handel and no currently known documentary evidence to suggest that Handel wrote it, so Antioch remains, at best, a skillful collection of borrowings from Handel."

The use of dotted eighth and sixteenth notes for the introduction, and imitative contrapuntal lines throughout, make this arrangement a majestic interpretation of the popular tune.

Watch a sample YouTube video (virtual audio)