This is the time of year that is kind of warm and fuzzy with snowflakes, candy canes, jolly white-bearded guys in red suits, angelic cherubs and cuddly shepherds singing sweet carols of Christmas. But not all of the tunes written for this season are happy, slappy , sappy songs. Some are rather melancholy and somber with a hint of irony. The list is not too long, but here are a few from my collection of off-kilter, but relevant Christmas tunes..some not quite carols that have spoken to my soul at one point or another during my lifetime:
1. "The Coventry Carol" dates back to the 16th Century and is part of a play remembering the slaughter of the Innocents during the reign of Herod during which the Christ Child escapes to Egypt with the Holy Family. It is set as a lull-a-bye sung by the mothers of the slaughtered children to the babes they will hold no more. How is that for melancholia?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIvH5GdY4JE
2. "Gabriel's Message" is a Basque folk tune and 13th century carol that came into the English lexicon in the 19th century. It recounts the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary by the Angel Gabriel that she would bear the Savior, the Son of God. It also echoes the opening of the Magnificat, one of the canticles used in Morning Prayer. Sting's recording is probably the most familiar. I do like this one, but I am a sucker for any Sting tune.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GF2BzUDeTkY
3. "In the Bleak Mid-Winter" was written by English poet Christina Rossetti in response to a magazine that wanted to publish a Christmas poem. After her death, it was put to music and placed in the Anglican hymnal...so the Episcopal church included it in theirs. I happen to like this one quite a lot. It just speaks to me, even though I find its theology a bit simplistic. But, that is another discussion.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0aL9rKJPr4
4. "I heard the Bells on Christmas Day" was written in 1863 by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow after receiving new that his son was seriously injured in a battle during the Civil War. It was first called "Christmas Bells' and was actually written on Christmas Day. In its entirety, it references events that happened during the war that impacted Longfellow's thoughts. At the end, the bells bring hope for peace...a sentiment we can still relate to.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccHLJ7J84k4
So, there they are. I am sure you have your favorites. But I think I need to end this on a lighter note, so I am including a link to my new favorite Chanukah song that I heard at a recent concert. It is sung in Ladino, a dialect spoken for centuries by Sephardic Jews living in Spain and along the Mediterranean. It is called "Ocho Kandelikes"; I hope you like it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9h3u88wLrAQ
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