This edition was prepared by Jennifer Bastable — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
Down in yon forest
Staff Notation • Secular, Christmas
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Down in yon forest by Jennifer Bastable — Lyrics
Down in yon forest there stands a hall:
The bells of Paradise I heard them ring:
It's covered all over with purple and pall:
And I love my Lord Jesus above anything.
In that hall there stands a bed:
The bells of Paradise I heard them ring:
It's covered all over with scarlet so red:
And I love my Lord Jesus above anything.
At the bedside there lies a stone:
The bells of Paradise I heard them ring:
Which the sweet Virgin Mary knelt upon:
And I love my Lord Jesus above anything.
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About Down in yon forest
This evocative Christmas carol paints a vivid and spiritual scene. Starting in a forest, the text draws the listener into a hall, then to a bed, and finally to a stone and a flood, each with potent symbolism. The recurring refrain, "The bells of Paradise I heard them ring: And I love my Lord Jesus above anything," anchors the imagery in deep devotion. The original English text is set for SSATB and SMzATB voices, offering rich harmonic possibilities to explore the contrasting images of earthly splendour and profound religious sentiment, culminating in the tender image of the Virgin Mary at the stone. This piece offers a unique meditation on the Nativity.
