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Old & New Cornish Christmas Carols Cornish Carols - A Tradition For The World
Fowey
The Federation of Old Cornwall Societies wish you all Nadelek Lowan.
Counting Carols have always been popular and the "Seven Joys of Mary is one of the ancient ones recorded by Cornishman Davies Gilbert in 1822. Click here to hear it being sung by over 200 children from seven schools accompanied by the Cornwall Youth Brass Band. They all attended a Cornish Carol day at St Just organised by "Cornwall World Heritage" and Cornwall Art Centre Trust. We thank them for making this recording available.
The picture of Bodinnoc Ferry, Fowey c.1832 was drawn by Thomas Allom a watercolourist and illustrator, an architect and topographical draughtsman. He practiced as an architect mainly in London, notably on the Kensington Park Estate in the 1850s and was a founder member of the Royal Institute of British Architects. Allom was most prolific and successful as a topographical artist during the 1830s and 1840s. This and other of his prints were engraved on steel and produced as black and white illustrations in "Cornwall Illustrated" which was published in 1831 by Fisher, Son & Co of London. The picture has been digitally enhanced by George Pritchard using Corel Photo-paint.
William Bottrel, (Old Celt)* wrote the following in the Christmas 1872 edition of "One & All" :- Some
of us remember when it was a custom, in the parishes of West Cornwall, for a few
elderly persons to meet in Church,
late on Christmas Eve, and sing till after midnight, a good number of cheerful,
quaint old carols, which were quite different from the solemn Christmas hymns
that have supplanted them. Such,
for instance, are the circumstances referred to in the Cherry-Tree carol,
beginning with Many
other examples might be given of these legendary pieces, which are now almost
forgotten. We
were delighted, however, last Christmas, to hear a few youngsters singing in
Penzance streets the pleasant one called the Sunny Bank, or the Three Ships,
which is also very old. Among
those of special interest may be noticed “In those Twelve Days,” “The Joys
of Mary,” and “Man’s Duty.” Slightly different versions of these are
common here and in Wales; and according to Mr. W. Sandys, there is a Breton
song, as old as the fifth century, in the dialect of Cornouaille, called “Ar
Rannou,” or “Lea Series," arranged as a dialogue between a Druid and
his disciple on their ancient maxims and rites, which is similar in idea and
construction to “In those Twelve Days,” or “What is that which is but one
I” The
early missionaries engrafted on this ancient Armorican poem a Latin hymn, in the
same form, where the series of twelve subjects in connected with the Christian
religion and agrees with those of the carol, “What
is that which is but one?” At the end of each verse in the Druids song, the Latin hymn, and the three last mentioned carols, all the previous subjects are repeated in the style of “The House that Jack built.” The whole piece can be constructed from the last verse. That of “The Joy of Mary,” is given as an example, below. Old
country folk may still be often heard chanting this ancient effusion, with all
its repetition it is more frequently, however, recited or taught to children as
a kind of pious exercise for their memories at Christmastide. Cornish
people have been famous for their carols from an early date. Scawen says :—“
They had them at several times, especially at Christmas, which they solemnly
sung, and sometimes used in their churches, alter prayers, the burthen of them
being “Novell, Novell, goad news, good nova, of the Gospel.” These old joyful Christmas songs have long held their own— thanks to there wonderfully interesting legends and their lively tunes, that seem like the echoes of merry peals of bells. The
first good joy that Mary had, it was the joy of one, The
second good joy that Mary had, it was the joy of two, To
make the lame to go, good man, and blessed may he be The
third good joy that Mary had, it was the joy of three, To
make the blind to see, good man, and blessed may he be The
next good joy that Mary had, it was the joy of four, To
read the Bible o'er, good man, and blessed may he be The
next good joy that Mary had, it was the joy of five, To
bring the dead alive, good man, and blessed may he be The
next good joy that Mary had, it was the joy of six, Upon
the cruifix, good man, and blessed may he be The
last good joy that Mary had, it was the joy of seven, To
wear the crown in heaven, good man, and blessed may he be *William Bottrell is probably the best known recorder of Cornish folk-lore. Born in St Levan he collected folk tales in different parts of the world as well as in his native Cornwall. Thanks to Hymns and Carols for making the midis scores available to use.
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