It would be tough to find a person who doesn’t recognize the classic Christmas song, “Silent Night.” Even tougher to find, though, might be someone whose ancestor was one of the choir members who debuted the song way back in the early 19th century.
But hey, that one’s easy-peasy for August Gmachl of Cedar Hill.
His great-grandmother, Maria Broesinger Gmachl, then 53, was a member of the choir at St. Nikola Church in Obendorf, Austria, in 1818. When the church organ broke down, organist Franz Gruber, Maria’s friend, was stumped for something to perform at Christmas Eve services.
Church vicar Joseph Mohr had written a poem, which Gruber set to a simple melody. The song, originally titled “Song from Heaven,” was first performed at the church that Christmas Eve, sung by the choir with only a guitar accompaniment.
“The family story is that my great-grandmother, a few years later, was surprised to learn it was still being sung,” Gmachl said. “Her kids came back from the service at Christmas and she asked if they were still playing ‘Franz’s little song,’ as she called it.
“When they said yes, she said, ‘I can’t believe it.’ It was one of those situations where nobody thought much of it at the time.”
The song lived on, however.
“It was so different, I think it stuck in people’s minds,” Gmachl said.
The song gradually was popularized throughout Europe by groups like the Tyrolean Singers, who brought it to the U.S., where it acquired its current name. The song was declared an “intangible cultural heritage” by UNESCO in 2011.
Maria and Joseph Gmachl had a son, August, who emigrated to the U.S. in 1892. He worked in the restaurant industry, eventually owning and operating a series of restaurants in downtown St. Louis, the last one the Gmachl Cafeteria on Sixth Street. He died in 1964 and his oldest son operated the restaurant until it closed in the 1960s.
His other son, August, died at age 98 in 2019.
The current August Gmachl, who goes by his middle name, Wayne, is now 75. He said it is “kind of cool” to have a family link to what is now a timeless Christmas classic.
“My grandfather was 80 when I was born,” he said. “My great-grandparents were long gone by then, so I never knew them.
“But it’s nice to hear the song and know I have that connection.”