At this weekend’s last Notre Dame Football home game of the season, the band takes time to honor the senior students. At the end of our halftime show, we perform the Alma Maters for Holy Cross College, Saint Mary’s College, and the University of Notre Dame.
While the majority of our students know the words to Notre Dame’s Alma Mater, a small number know our own Alma Mater! Now, this is very understandable, considering we hear Notre Dame’s all the time. However, ours is beautiful and certainly worth taking the time to learn. (If not by this weekend, then at least by the time you graduate!)
I am sure that some of you are asking- we have an Alma Mater!? Why yes we do! The lovely tune The Bells of Saint Mary’s! This song was actually composed back in 1917 by a man named A. Emmett Adams. He was inspired to write the tune after his visit to St. Mary’s Church in Southampton, England. The song was made popular after being featured in a 1945 film called, none other than, The Bells of Saint Mary’s. Mr. Bing Crosby himself starred in this film and did an awesome performance of this song. Check out this video below!
There are several verses to this song and each group performs it differently. The Saint Mary’s College Women’s Choir performs the version with these lyrics below. While the original lyrics were written by Douglas Furber, Saint Mary’s College president from 1934-1961, Sister Madeleva Wolff, wrote these alternate lyrics for a final verse. These are probably the verses that ours students know the best. Study up ladies!
“Oh Belles of Saint Mary’s,
We always will love you.
With your inspiration
We never will fail.
Your chimes will forever
Bring sweet memories of you.
So proudly ring out while we sing out
Hail, hail hail.
Saint Mary’s, Saint Mary’s,
We hear your voice calling.
Your old girls, your young girls,
The girls you love best.
To you Alma Mater,
With beauty enthralling,
We bring our hearts, we sing our praise
Beloved and best.
Saint Mary’s, Saint Mary’s, Saint Mary’s,
Saint Mary’s, Saint Mary’s.”
Now here’s a version of our acapella group, Bellacappella, performing The Bells of Saint Mary’s. Even though they sing different verses, watch this video to get a better idea of how the tune sounds.
Since the marching band performs an arrangement that combines both Holy Cross College’s and Saint Mary’s Alma Maters, the song is not played to its entirety. Based off of the lyrics mentioned, this version goes from “Oh bells of Saint Mary’s, we always will love you” to “so proudly ring out while we sing out hail, hail, hail”. These are the words that I encourage all of you Smicks to sing at tomorrow’s game. This is super short, so you have no excuse as to why you do not know it!
We know that the singing of Notre Dame’s Alma Mater brings tears to many people’s eyes. So let’s make the same thing happen when we sing the Saint Mary’s Alma Mater! Be proud of your school and belt it out ladies!