History of noëls

The Provençal noëls are Christmas carols written in the 1600s, though there were various aural forms even earlier. What sets them apart from traditional carols are their imaginative lyrics about what might have happened to the supporting players in Jesus’ story, the people from the surrounding countryside, from the time of his birth to the departure of the Magi thirteen days later (according to tradition).

Nicolas Saboly (1614-1675), a choirmaster or “Maître de Chapelle” of Avignon, composed and transcribed the great majority of these songs, sixty-nine of which are officially recorded. Many other noëls are anonymous, and more were written later by other composers.

The noëls often represent the perspective of the shepherds who, upon hearing the good news of Jesus’ birth, embark on a “pilgrimage” to Bethlehem, wondering aloud what to take to the child Christ, and expressing their worries about the dangers of the trip. They eventually meet up with other pilgrims who have similar questions and concerns: Will they have enough food for the journey? What if they catch a bad cold, or get lost? How will they deal with highway robbers? What gift would be most appropriate for a newborn king? This is the gist of many lyrics (see chapters 1 and 2 of my book).
The characters, stories, and concerns of these Provençal pilgrims begin to receive as much attention as the reason for their journey: the Christ child. The holy family’s story is not forgotten, but it becomes clear that it has now been transplanted into seventeenth-century Provence.

Saboly’s unique contribution was his ability to combine earnest Christian devotion with a fondness for the customs of his land, including the beauty of the Provençal language, endangered by the northern majority French. His carols communicated the language of faith in the language of the people and, in so doing, helped to form the people’s sense of their own identity, as their region was going through "the first renaissance of Provence." These carols are now part and parcel of the culture – cherished features in the cultural heritage of Provence, most still sang in the original Provençal language.

The noëls were sung at Christmas services, as one might expect, though from time to time the clergy banned them on account of their humor and imaginative content. This led to their gradually being sung outside of church.

Today one is as likely to hear them in secular settings (for example, local cultural festivals - chapter 8 of my book) as in sacred contexts during the Christmas season.

The traditional instruments one would associate with the noëls are the drum, the flute, bagpipes and the hurdy gurdy.