Born in Newquay in Cornwall, he began his musical training as a chorister at Westminster Abbey from 1929 to 1934. From 1934 to 1938, he was a music scholar at Clifton College, Bristol, before his appointment as organ scholar at King's College, Cambridge.
After WWII he returned to Cambridge in 1945 to complete his studies, and in 1947 was elected a Fellow of King's College and appointed Conductor of the Cambridge Philharmonic Society. In the same year, he became the organist at Salisbury Cathedral and the conductor of the Salisbury Musical Society. He moved to Worcester Cathedral in 1950 and remained until 1957, during which time he was organist of the Cathedral, principal conductor of the Three Choirs Festival in 1951, 1954, and 1957, and conductor of the City of Birmingham Choir. From 1956 to 1974 he was also conductor of the Bradford Festival Choral Society, whilst continuing as guest conductor for their carol concerts into the early 1990s.
From 1957 to 1974 he held the post for which he is probably best known, Director of Music at King's College, Cambridge. In addition, he served as the organist of Cambridge University, conductor of the Cambridge University Musical Society, and as University Lecturer. He made numerous recordings with the college choir; the choir toured extensively, giving concerts worldwide, as well as garnering further acclaim internationally through television and radio appearances. Under the baton of Willcocks, CUMS performed Benjamin Britten's War Requiem in 1963 in (Perugia) Milan, La Scala, and in Venice. The choir subsequently performed the work in Japan, Hong Kong, Portugal, and the Netherlands. In 1960, he also became the musical director of the Bach Choir in London.
He held these positions at Cambridge until the 1970s when he accepted the post of director of the Royal College of Music. In the 1971 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), and was created a Knight Bachelor in 1977 in the Queen's Silver Jubilee Honours. He holds honorary degrees in England from the Universities of Bradford, Bristol, Exeter, Leicester, and Sussex, and from the Royal College of Music in London; in the USA from Luther College (Iowa), St. Olaf College (Minnesota), Rowan University and Westminster Choir College (New Jersey); and in Canada from the Universities of Trinity, Toronto, and Victoria B.C. All in all, his honorary degrees number over fifty. He is President of the City of Bath Bach Choir and Exeter Festival Chorus.
He has made recordings with the Bach Choir, the English Chamber Orchestra, the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, the Jacques Orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra as well as with the Choir of King's College, Cambridge. He also served as general editor of the Church Music series of the Oxford University Press. He is particularly known for his widely-used choral arrangements of Christmas carols, most of which were originally written for the Service of Nine Lessons and Carols at King's or the Bach Choir's Christmas concerts. They are published in the five Carols for Choirs anthologies (1961–1987), edited by Willcocks with Reginald Jacques and John Rutter. He is currently Music Director Emeritus of King's College Choir, and an Honorary Fellow of King's College, Cambridge.
O Come All Ye Faithful
Sir David Willcocks Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Joyful and triumphant
O come ye, O come ye
To Bethlehem
Come and behold him
Born the King of angels
O come, let us adore Him
O Come, let us adore Him
Christ the Lord
Yea, Lord, we greet Thee
Born this happy morning
Jesus, to Thee be glory given
Word of the Father
Now in flesh appearing
O come, let us adore Him
O come, let us adore Him
O Come, let us adore Him
Christ the Lord
Christ the Lord
The lyrics of Sir David Willcocks's song "O Come All Ye Faithful" are a celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ and an invitation to all the faithful to come and witness this momentous occasion. The first verse is an invitation to all the joyful and triumphant faithful to come to Bethlehem, where the King of angels has been born. The second verse is an exaltation to adore Him, to pay homage to the new-born King, Christ the Lord. The third verse is a greeting to the Newborn King, welcoming Him to the world on this happy morning. It is also a recognition of Jesus Christ as the Word of the Father, who has now appeared in flesh.
In essence, this song is a hymn of joy and celebration that invites everyone to join in the adoration of the newborn King, Jesus Christ. The lyrics express the awe, wonder, and reverence that people feel when they witness the miracle of the incarnation. The repetition of the line "O come, let us adore Him" is an invitation to all to join in the celebration and to be part of this momentous event. The use of repetition in this song conveys both the urgency and the significance of the event being celebrated.
Line by Line Meaning
O come, all ye faithful
Come, all of you who are loyal and steadfast in your beliefs
Joyful and triumphant
Rejoicing and full of triumph
O come ye, O come ye
Come quickly, come immediately
To Bethlehem
To the birthplace of our Savior
Come and behold him
Come and witness him firsthand
Born the King of angels
Born as the supreme ruler of all heavenly beings
O come, let us adore Him
Let us worship him with reverence and devotion
Christ the Lord
The anointed one, our Savior and Master
Yea, Lord, we greet Thee
Certainly, Lord, we offer you our salutations
Born this happy morning
Born on this joyous day
Jesus, to Thee be glory given
We give you all the honor and praise, Jesus
Word of the Father
The expression of God the Father's divine will
Now in flesh appearing
Now manifested in human form
Christ the Lord
The anointed one, our Savior and Master
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@davidredford5990
O come all ye faithful,
Joyful and triumphant,
O come ye,
O come ye to Bethlehem;
Come and behold Him
Born the King of angels;
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ, the Lord.
Sing, choirs of angels,
Sing in exultation,
Sing, all ye citizens
Of heaven above;
Glory to God,
Glory in the highest;
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ, the Lord.
Yea, Lord, we greet Thee,
Born this happy morning,
Jesus, to Thee be
All glory given;
Son of the Father,
Now in flesh appearing;
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ, the Lord.
@adamwithey4746
Oh, come, all ye faithful,
Joyful and triumphant!
Oh, come ye, oh, come ye to Bethlehem;
Come and behold him
Born the king of angels:
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Christ the Lord.
Highest, most holy,
Light of light eternal,
Born of a virgin,
A mortal he comes;
Son of the Father
Now in flesh appearing!
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Christ the Lord.
God of gods, light of light
Lo, He abhors not the Virgin's womb
Very God, Begotten not created Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Christ the Lord.
See how the shepherds, Summoned to His cradle,
Leaving their flocks, draw nigh to gaze
We too will thither Bend our hearts' oblations
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Christ the Lord.
Sing, choirs of angels,
Sing in exultation,
Sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!
Glory to God
In the highest:
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Christ the Lord.
Yea, Lord, we greet thee,
Born this happy morning;
Jesus, to thee be glory given!
Word of the Father,
Now in flesh appearing!
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Christ the Lord.
I wish #MeavNiMhaolchatha, #ChloeAgnew, #LisaKelly, #OrlaFallon, #MaireadNesbitt, #HayleyWestenra, #SarahBrightman, #KatherineJenkins, #AledJones, #EllenWilliams, #CarmenMonarcha, #MirusiaLouwerse, #CarlaMaffioletti, #AnnaMajchrzak, #RussellWatson, #AndreRieu, #SimonRattle #LondonSymphonyOrchestra, #BerlinerPhilharmoniker and the #CelticWoman team will be singing #OComeAllYeFaithful.
@anthonyjackalone1846
3:37, the famous “Word” chord. Absolutely ingenious writing. Chills every time.
@NickUva
Absolutely.
@blessedvirginmaryisqueen8448
Amen
@the_marjorie
I am of the opinion that in the pop song ‘Hallelujah,’ this is the ‘secret chord’ and the ‘David’ mentioned is not the psalmist but is, in fact, Sir Willcocks.
@ashleythorpe7933
it's just a half dim 7, Wagner used it everywhere
@timothyj1966
@@ashleythorpe7933 perhaps its just where you USE IT.
@jenapotts641
The acoustics.. The voices. The training and direction the beauty of Jesus's birth sung from the heart.. Praise be to the Lord Jesus.. Amazing.
@noonthumbs2644
That descant is just sublime.
Goosebumps! Takes me back to my old school choir where I sang the descant and still remember it now!
@AlwaysPrisms
my boyfriend gave me a christmas card many years ago this song was on it i still have the christmas card and i still play it after all this time i still cry when ever i play it cant help it i love the song and i always will my boyfriend passed away in 1996 i still miss him a lot and always will thank god i had a lot of happy years with him he had MS
@TaroAndreas
+AlwaysPrisms Prayers friend. :)