Stille Nacht- Silent Night

“Stille Nacht” (English: “Silent Night”) is a popular Christmas carol in Europe, especially in German-speaking countries, which is said to owe its birth and success to mice. Joseph Mohr, assistant priest of St. Nicholas parish church in Oberndorf, a village near Salzburg, was preparing for Midnight Mass at Christmas time in 1818, when he discovered that mice had chewed through the bellows of the organ and it wasn’t working. Desperate, he retrieved a Christmas poem he had written two years earlier and asked Franz Xaver Gruber, teacher in the nearby village of Arnsdorf, to set it to music and compose guitar accompaniment. It took him only a day to compose a melody. Though the congregation was surprised by the performance accompanied on guitar instead of the organ, that night’s mess was at least not without music and instrumental accompaniment. “Stille Nacht” spread to neighbouring villages and quickly gained popularity among salt miners. Since its birth, more than three hundred versions have emerged, and the world-renowned Christmas song has been sung by Marlene Dietrich, Bing Crosby and other performers. (Although St. Nicholas parish church had to be demolished due to flood damages, the new Silent Night Chapel was erected in its place.)

Stille Nacht Chanel in Oberndorf