St. Nicholas Song
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This round is the Renaissance round entitled "The Bell Doth Toll" and was published in the early 1600s as a part of a collection of rounds. The words talk about the sound of church bells. This song is about St. Nicholas because the second Sunday of Advent is when we support the church in Palestine through the American Friends of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem and this St. Nick was from the Holy Land.
This is a three-part round, so no difficult divisions: kids start, women take the second part, and men come in third. Sing the round in unison and three parts. Sing the three verses in unison (kids 1st verse, women 2nd, and men 3rd), then break into a round and sing all three verses three times. Here's how it goes:
• Kids: first verse
• Women: second verse
• Men: third verse
• Three-Part Round: Kids start, Women come in at 2, men at 3
St. Nicholas, lived so long ago,
lived in the Holy Land.
He helped the suffering and helped the needy
with the wealth at his command.
May we do likewise.
Text: Gail L. Grant
Tune: Renaissance English Round "The Bell Doth Toll"
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By Gail Grant, for the St. Mark's Family Choir, St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Palo Alto, California. Text, score and mp3 file used by permission.