New Christmas carol 'Manger of Bethlehem' by LDS composer Rob Gardner gains popularity on YouTube (+ video)

Latter-day Saint composer Rob Gardner recently released a new Christmas carol, "Manger of Bethlehem" which highlights his non-profit choir and a soprano boy soloist.

Gardner, known for writing several sacred oratorios such as "He is Jesus Christ," "Joseph Smith the Prophet," "Saints and Pioneers," and most recently, "Lamb of God" released the video for "Manger of Bethlehem" on YouTube Wednesday and has garnered more than 11,000 views.

He is co-founder and president of Spire Music, a nonprofit organization dedicated to producing concerts and superior music recordings of a sacred and inspiring nature. The new carol features a boy soprano soloist Josh Mortensen, the Spire Chorus and the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Gardner.

The video features clips of the actual audio recording, as well as scenes from the video "The Nativity Story," a 2006 movie directed by Catherine Hardwicke that focuses on the period in Mary and Joseph's life where they journeyed to Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus.