Coventry Carol

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STFx1RiuTL0 Being performed by the 'One Voice' Choir live on Earlsdon Street, 15th December 2012. Incredibly, when I posted this to YouTube a 'copyright infringement' notice appeared from EMI Publishing. Suffice to say I disputed that and asked how EMI could possibly have copyright of a 16th Century carol! The claim was promptly dropped. More information on the choir can be found here: http://www.chrishoskins.co.uk/

If anyone doesn't know the story of the carol, then this might be of interest.

Roger Bailey gives a talk and 'Blast From The Past' perform a version of it at the Coventry Music Museum. The Coventry Carol

That was fascinating - very well told by Roger, and beautifully and authentically performed by Chris & Sophie of "Blast from the Past", as always. Many thanks for pointing us to that BrotherJoybert.

More on the carol.

The last episode of the Muskeeters on BBC1 featured a scene where a few lines of the Coventry carol was sung.. The "Coventry Carol" is an English Christmas carol dating from the 16th century. The carol was traditionally performed in Coventry as part of a mystery play called The Pageant of the Shearmen and Tailors. The play depicts the Christmas story from chapter two in the Gospel of Matthew: the carol itself refers to the Massacre of the Innocents, in which Herod ordered all male infants under the age of two in Bethlehem to be killed, and takes the form of a lullaby sung by mothers of the doomed children. Lully, lullay, Thou little tiny Child, Bye, bye, lully, lullay.Lullay, thou little tiny Child, Bye, bye, lully, lullay. O sisters too, how may we do, For to preserve this day This poor youngling for whom we do sing Bye, bye, lully, lullay. Herod, the king, in his raging, Charged he hath this day, His men of might, in his owne sight, All young children to slay. That woe is me, poor Child for Thee! And ever mourn and sigh, For thy parting neither say nor sing, Bye, bye, lully, lullay. For those of you who haven't heard it, many performers have recorded the song, including Sting, Charlotte Church, Mark Lanegan, Elisabeth Schumann, Anthony Newley, Annie Lennox, Christine McVie, Suzanne Vega, Mediæval Bæbes, Tori Amos, Elaine Paige, Joan Baez, Alison Moyet, John Denver, Anúna, Loreena McKennitt, The King's Singers, Eileen Farrell, Hayley Westenra, the Kingston Trio, Kate Miller-Heidke, Bobby Breen, Chanticleer, Dinah Shore, Sufjan Stevens, Alex Kingston, Milocraft, Jessye Norman, Deas Vail, Kristina Caruana, and Heather Dale among others. This Mediaeval Baebes version is excellent.

Good for you JoyBert BTW! Edited by member, 7th Mar 2014 10:22 am