Angels We Have Heard on High — Free Lead Sheet PDF (Eb, Bb, Concert)

Traditional (French), English translation by James Chadwick · 18th century · Traditional Christmas carol · Melody & chords only

Not sure which to pick? Our interactive saxophone transposition chart can help. PDFs open in a new tab — right-click (or long-press on mobile) and choose “Save as” to download.

About Angels We Have Heard on High

A Traditional French Carol

Angels We Have Heard on High traces back to an anonymous eighteenth-century French carol, “Les Anges dans nos campagnes,” whose text retells the shepherds' visitation from the Gospel of Luke. The tune is best known today for its soaring “Gloria” refrain, which stretches a single syllable across a rolling melodic run that has become one of the most recognisable phrases in the entire carol repertoire.

The English words sung today were translated by the Catholic bishop James Chadwick in 1862, and the now-standard musical arrangement was set by the American organist and composer Edward Shippen Barnes in 1916.

If you are also building a Christmas set, The First Noel is another free carol on this site worth pairing it with.

The Tune & Chords

A Melody Built Around One Big Phrase

Structurally, Angels We Have Heard on High is a simple verse-and-refrain carol, but the refrain's cascading “Gloria” run gives it a very different feel from most other carols on this page — it rewards a singer or horn player with genuinely good breath control and legato phrasing, and it is a favourite choice for a saxophone or clarinet feature precisely because that long melismatic line lets an instrumentalist show off tone and phrasing in a way a simple hymn tune usually doesn't.

One simplified concert-pitch harmonisation — traditional carols were passed down as melodies, so chord choices vary between arrangers and songbooks.

Using This Lead Sheet

Bright, Open and Great for a Feature

Because the refrain sits so well on a single sustained harmonic idea, this is a good tune to open up for a soloist — many bands stretch out the “Gloria” line over a vamp and let a horn or vocalist improvise around it before returning to the written melody for the final verse. It works equally well played straight for a carol service or given a light swing feel for a more relaxed gig.

If you would like one-to-one guidance building a Christmas set or working on your reading and improvisation more generally, saxophone lessons in person in South East London or online are available. You can also browse the full Christmas lead sheet index for more free carols, including Auld Lang Syne.