See, Amid the Winter's Snow

Former Anglican minister Edward Caswall wrote the carol “See, amid the Winter’s Snow” shortly after converting to Catholicism and being ordained a priest. The poem was first published in 1858 as part of Caswall’s The Masque of Mary and Other Poems. 

Subtitled “Hymn for Christmas Day,” the carol was set to the tune “Humility,” composed specifically for this poem by Sir John Goss in 1871. It was then published nationwide in the hymn book Christmas Carols Old and New. Sir John Goss (1800-1890) was an English organist, composer, and teacher. He began as a choir boy at the Royal Chapel in London. For many years he served as organist at St. Luke’s Church in Chelsea and then eventually at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. “See, Amid the Winter’s Snow” is one of Goss’s most popular hymn tunes. 

This new, imaginative setting of “See, Amid the Winter’s Snow” for chorus and orchestra by Douglas Mears presents a dramatic musical portrayal of the angel’s annunciation to the shepherds, as recounted in Luke 2: 8-11.