The roots of TSO are found in Savatage, a traditional heavy metal band that gradually progressed into a symphonic metal act. Savatage's rock operas, starting with STREETS, began the experimentation with what would become TSO culminating on the track "Christmas Eve (Sarajevo 12/24)" from DEAD WINTER DEAD. This track was a minor hit for the struggling band, and demonstrated that there might be an audience for the symphonic metal approach to holiday themes.
The concept for a band playing Christmas carols in a rock opera style was not received warmly by the industry, but quickly proved a success with adults as well as young people. In the recording studio, Trans-Siberian Orchestra uses a full 60-piece orchestra and a choir.
As of 2004, their touring band included 14 vocalists, 14 musicians, and 2 narrators. Trans-Siberian Orchestra released their debut album Christmas Eve and Other Stories in 1996, and it remains their best-selling album. Their 1998 release The Christmas Attic was similarly a concept album with a Christmas theme. In 2000, they released their first non-Christmas album, Beethoven's Last Night. Beethoven's Last Night is a concept album about Ludwig van Beethoven's last night on earth, during which he meets Mephistopheles (possible Satan, or one of his underlings).
After a few years of touring, they returned to the studio with another full-length album, Lost Christmas Eve, and the accompanying DVD/3-CD release The Christmas Trilogy, which contained all three of their Christmas albums to date.
During their winter tours of 2005 and 2006, the band had announced that they were working on the new album, set to release later that year (this was said both years). During the summer of 2007, the official myspace for TSO stated that they were recording, with the expression 'inspired'. Finally, on October 27, 2007, the long awaited new album (and second non-Christmas) arrived "Night Castle". The album is another concept album, spanning 2 cd's, and is the telling of the story of a soldier's experience during the Killing Fields of the Khmer Rouge. As always, it's about faith, hope, fate and the inherent belief that there is good in all people. The album was received with mixed reviews, from the praise of the band's fans, to the near burning of albums by those that are less than receptive to the album. Along with the songs for the story, the album also includes 4 tracks that are not part of the story, and yes, it features the band's rendition of "Carmina Burana (O Fortuna)", performed as a preview by the band during their winter tours, as well as one cover of a Savatage song.
http://www.trans-siberian.com
http://www.nightcastlealbum.com
http://www.myspace.com/tsoofficial
Who Is This Child
Trans-Siberian Orchestra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Who laid to rest
That I now find here sleeping?
Do angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?
And could this be Christ the king
Whose every breath the angels bring?Could this be the face of God, this child, the son I once carried?
What child is this
Who is so blessed he changes all tomorrows?
Replacing tears with reborn years
In hearts once dark and hollow
And could this be Christ the king
Whose every breath the angels bring?
Could this be the face of God, this child, the son I once carried?
In the dead of the night
As his life slips away
As he reads by the light
Of a star faraway
Holding on
Holding off
Holding out
Holding in
Could you be this old
And have your life just begin?
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
It beginsReading by the light of a lost Christmas day
Tell me how many times can this story be told
After all of these years it should all sound so old
But it somehow rings true in the back of my mind
As I search for a dream that words can no longer define
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
And the time
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
And the time and the years
And the tears and the cost
And the hopes and the dreams
Of each child that is lost
And the whisper of wings
In the cold winter's air
As the snow it drifts down
And visions appear everywhere
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
In the air
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
In the dead of the night
As his life slips away
As he reads by the light
Of a star faraway
Holding on
Holding off
Holding out
Holding in
Could you be this old
And have your life just begin
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
It begins
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
It begins
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
It begins
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
It begins
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
It begins
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
It begins
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
It begins
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
It begins
In the song "Who Is This Child", Trans-Siberian Orchestra brings to life the story of the birth of Jesus Christ. The song opens with a question - "what child is this who laid to rest?" - and then wonders whether this could be the Christ the King, the face of God, the son once carried. The song describes how this child is so blessed that he changes all tomorrows, replacing tears with reborn years in hearts once dark and hollow. The lyrics then shift to talk about a narrator reading in the dead of night by the light of a star far away, holding on, holding off, holding out, holding in. The song ends with the question "could you be this old and have your life just begin?", and with the singer reading by the light of a lost Christmas day, as visions appear everywhere.
The song is a beautifully crafted interpretation of the birth of Jesus and its impact on humanity. Through the lyrics, the listener can feel the wonder and awe that the singer feels towards this child, who is so powerful that he changes everything around him. The use of the star symbolizes hope and guidance, in the midst of the darkness of night. The song ends with a sense of new beginnings and renewal, as if telling us that even in the darkest of days, there is always a light to guide us.
Line by Line Meaning
What child is this
Who is this child?
Who laid to rest
Who is sleeping here?
That I now find here sleeping?
And how did I come to find this child sleeping?
Do angels keep the dreams we seek
Do angels hold onto our dreams?
While our hearts lie bleeding?
As we suffer from our broken hearts?
And could this be Christ the king
Is this the baby Jesus?
Whose every breath the angels bring?
Whose every breath is attended by angels?
Could this be the face of God, this child, the son I once carried?
Is this the face of God, the same son that I once cradled in my arms?
Who is so blessed he changes all tomorrows?
Who is so special that he transforms the future?
Replacing tears with reborn years
Replacing our sorrows with renewed hope for the future
In hearts once dark and hollow
In hearts that were once empty and despairing
In the dead of the night
Late at night
As his life slips away
As he nears the end of his life
As he reads by the light
As he reads by the glow
Of a star faraway
Of a distant star
Holding on
Grasping tightly
Holding off
Delaying
Holding out
Enduring
Holding in
Keeping to oneself
Could you be this old
Can you believe you have lived this long?
And have your life just begin?
Does your life feel like it's just starting?
Reading by the light of a lost Christmas day
Reading in the glow of a past Christmas celebration
It begins
A new story starts
Tell me how many times can this story be told
How many times can we hear this tale?
After all of these years it should all sound so old
After so long, it should feel cliché
But it somehow rings true in the back of my mind
But it still resonates in my thoughts
As I search for a dream that words can no longer define
As I look for a dream that cannot be put into words
And the years and the tears
All the years and tears
And the cost and the hopes
And the price we paid, along with our aspirations
Of each child that is lost
Of every lost child
And the whisper of wings
And the sound of angels' wings
In the cold winter's air
In the frigid winter weather
As the snow it drifts down
As the snow softly floats to the ground
And visions appear everywhere
And magical sights appear all around
In the air
All around us
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: . DP, PAUL O'NEILL, ROBERT KINKEL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind