Mannheim Steamroller has an excellent version of this song, but tripped over this version. David Archeleta was a contestant on American Idol.
From Wikipedia:
"Patapan" (or
"Pat-a-pan") is a French
Christmas carol in
Burgundian dialect, later adapted into English. It was written by
Bernard de La Monnoye (1641–1728) and first published in
Noël bourguignons in 1720.
[1] Its original title is
"Guillô, Pran Ton Tamborin" ("Willie, Bring Your Little Drum" or "Willie, Take Your Little Drum").
The carol revolves around the birth of
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus_Christ, and is told from the perspective of shepherds playing simple instruments—flutes and drums—the
onomatopoeic sound of which gives the song its name; "patapan" is meant to mimic the sound of the drum, and an accompanying lyric, "tu-re-lu-re-lu," the flute. This is similar conceptually to the carol "
The Little Drummer Boy", with its chorus of "pa-rum-pa-pum-pum."