First published in 1833 by William Sandys, the author of this tune is unknown. This song became more widely known after receiving a reference in Charles Dicken’s “A Christmas Carol.”
Technical Notes
This arrangement serves as a great transition from level 3 to level 4. Part one, although written as level 3, includes a few notes on the 4th string. The score provides explicit information about where the 4th string notes are located on the guitar. Part two provides level 4 players with many notes on the lower strings, requiring thorough knowledge of the 4th and 5th strings. Part three focuses almost exclusively on the lower strings, but every note includes fingering information.
Because the piece is short, you may wish to have every player learn every part. To do this is concert, simply have each player change parts after each repetition (repeating the first ending twice). On each successive repeat guitar 1 moves to guitar 2, then guitar 3 -guitar 2 moves to guitar 3, then guitar 1, etc...
As always, beautiful tone and dynamics are the most important concepts to focus on.