Traditional French carol · Key of G · Public domain
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This chart is written in G. Tap any key above the chart to see the whole song in that key, with every chord already worked out. To stay in G with different chord shapes, play it capo 3 with the E shapes, or capo 5 with the D shapes, or capo 7 with the C shapes. Singing with a group? Pick the key where the highest note is comfortable for everyone, then print that page.
Angels We Have Heard on High is the English form of a French carol, Les Anges dans nos campagnes, "the angels in our countryside," which comes from the south of France and was first printed in the 1840s. The English words are a free paraphrase made in 1862 by James Chadwick, the Catholic bishop of Hexham and Newcastle.
The verses are simple, almost conversational: shepherds are asked what all the celebrating is about. Then comes the reason everyone remembers the carol, the refrain, where the single word Gloria is stretched across a long cascading run of notes (a melisma, in music terms) before "in excelsis Deo," Latin for "glory to God in the highest." In Britain the same French tune is sung to another text, Angels from the Realms of Glory. Tune and English words are in the public domain.
The verses could hardly be easier: G and D, back and forth, two chords for four lines. The refrain is where your hands get busy. Under the long "Gloria" the chords step through G, Em, Am, D, then G, C, D, changing about once per bar while the melody tumbles down, so keep a steady strum and let the singers do the acrobatics. Take a breath before the Gloria; it is longer than it looks. If G is too high for the room, try the key of F or E above the chart.
Tap any chord for its diagram, other voicings, and the notes inside it.
More Latin in the refrain: O Come, All Ye Faithful chords and lyrics
All the Christmas carol chord sheets, each one in every key.
Further reading: Angels We Have Heard on High at Hymnary.org (texts, tunes, and history)
