Preview: Coventry Carol
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Coventry Carol
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SKU: A0.933472
Composed by Mark Kline. Arranged by Mark Kline. 20th Century,Christian,Christmas,Sacred. Octavo. 5 pages. Mark Kline #2335401. Published by Mark Kline (A0.933472).Traditional-yet quite unalike to other standard Christmas carols, the "Coventry Carol" is a lullaby sung for the innocent children of Bethlehem who were slaughtered by King Herod.
While most Christmas music rightly focuses on the joyful celebration of the mystery of the Word-Made-Flesh, the "Coventry Carol" is a reminder of the rejection, suffering, and death which was present from the moment the Light entered the World.
Even when Jesus was born, He was on His way to the Cross, so that through suffering and death He might show us the glory and hope of the Resurrection. As a memorial for the innocents and as a foreshadowing of the Cross, songs in the spirit of "Coventry Carol" deserve inclusion in Christmas concerts and worship services.
The original Coventry Carol was part of the Nativity play of Coventry, England, with a text from before 1534 and melody before 1591.
Lully, lullay, thou little tiny child,
Bye bye, lully, lullay.
O sisters too, how may we do
For to preserve this day
These poor younglings for whom we sing,
"Bye bye, lully, lullay"?
Herod the king, in his raging,
Chargèd he hath this day
His men of might in his own sight
All young children to slay.
While departing from the typical "four-part hymn accompanied by piano", Mark Kline’s setting of the Coventry Carol is designed to be very performable, requiring only a few voices and a pianist. Having children sing the melody with the choir can be especially poignant for this piece. The Coventry Carol is excellent for Christmas Pageants, Madrigals, and other Christmas activities, and continues to work well in its original context as part of a Nativity play.
2016 Choral Contest Entry
This product was created by a member of ArrangeMe, Hal Leonard’s global self-publishing community of independent composers, arrangers, and songwriters. ArrangeMe allows for the publication of unique arrangements of both popular titles and original compositions from a wide variety of voices and backgrounds.
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