Скачать или смотреть Carol of the Bells: The Dark History of the Most Popular Christmas Song

You hear those four notes every holiday season, but did you know "Carol of the Bells" wasn't originally a Christmas song? Discover the tragic true story of assassination, politics, and a little swallow that changed music history.

In this video, we uncover the fascinating and dark history behind the world’s most popular holiday anthem. We travel back to Ukraine to find the original folk chant "Shchedryk," written by the legendary composer Mykola Leontovych.

Most people don't know that the original lyrics had nothing to do with bells or Jesus. It was a song about a bird predicting good fortune for the New Year. We also discuss the tragic fate of the composer at the hands of a Soviet agent and how an American choir director named Peter J. Wilhousky transformed the song into the classic we know today.

In this video, we cover:

The Original Melody: What is "Shchedryk" and what does it mean?

The Swallow vs. The Bells: Why the lyrics were completely changed.

The Composer's Tragedy: The assassination of Mykola Leontovych.

Global Fame: How the song traveled from Kyiv to Carnegie Hall and "Home Alone."