Tudor Christmas Carols

Not Just the Tudors

History Hit

History

4.8 • 3K Ratings

🗓️ 19 December 2022

⏱️ 60 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

A Tudor Christmas would have probably featured as much singing as we have today, if not more, and surprisingly many of the carols would have been the same: In Dulci Jubilo, The Coventry Carol, Gabriel’s message were among the yuletide hits that would have resounded through Tudor era churches.

In this episode of Not Just the Tudors, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb finds out more from Lisa Colton, Professor of Musicology and Head of the Department of Music at the University of Liverpool.

Music credits:

Pastime with Good Company performed by Jay Britton

Coventry Carol

There Is No Rose of Such Virtue performed by Guildford Cathedral Choir

This Is The Record of John performed by Guildford Cathedral Choir

Marvel Not, Joseph performed by University of Surrey Chamber Choir

This episode was edited by Aidan Lonergan and Joseph Knight, and produced by Elena Guthrie & Rob Weinberg.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	As with so many religious festivals, Christmas can be a delight for the senses.
0:06.4	That the smell of pine needles as we bring Christmas trees into our home,
0:10.8	or perhaps the warm, aromatic spices for gingerbread, mince pies and mould wine.
0:17.2	There's the visual delight of twinkling lights, pushing back the darkness in the Western Hemisphere at least,
0:23.2	and of course, there's the music.
0:25.7	Whether you love nothing more than the sounds of shaking Stevens or Slade,
0:30.2	beautiful choral arrangements, or traditional carol, there is music to delight every ear.
0:36.6	It's on the radio in shops, in places of worship and concerts, in theatres and in homes.
0:43.6	In short, at Christmas time, music is everywhere.
0:47.8	But what about in Tudor England?
0:50.8	What music would we have heard if we visited the Court of Henry VIII in the Christmas period?
0:56.8	How about if we ended a parish church?
0:59.5	What music might we have heard as we sat amongst the other parishioners?
1:04.0	And would we have heard festive music or singing if we walked the streets of a city like London?
1:10.5	To learn about the music and carols of Henry VIII's England, I'm joined today by Lisa Colton,
1:16.7	Professor of Musicology and Head of the Department of Music at the University of Liverpool.
1:22.1	She's published widely on many of one early modern music, including her book,
1:26.5	Female Voice Song and Women's Musical Agency in the Middle Ages, and her article High or Low,
1:32.8	many of her English carols as part of vernacular culture, 1380 to 1450, which she co-wrote with Dr. Louise McKinnis.
1:40.4	But today, I've asked her to talk to me about music and carols in the early 16th century.
1:55.3	Thank you so much for coming on to the podcast and talking to me about music.
2:00.5	I'm really excited to talk about this. I've been listening in advance to the carols and
	...

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