Coventry Carol (Lully, lulla) | Carols from King's 2019

Carols from King's 2019 is available to download from: bit.ly/carols-2019
'Coventry Carol' by Kenneth Leighton from BBC Carols from King's 2019. Broadcast in the UK on Christmas Eve 2019.
Distributed under licence from the British Broadcasting Corporation.

[@tomarmstrong1281]

As an ex-choir boy from many years ago, the memories of effortlessly soaring to those high notes with my friends makes me feel sorry for boys who never were as fortunate. The boys voice lasts for such a short time. A wonderful gift which only a few are privileged to appreciate.

[@freddiegardner2010]

or they could get the 'chop'...

[@Demetri450]

You feel sorry because they were not in a choir? 🤔😏😒

[@johnmorris8799]

Sorry I guess because so few boys have the gift of such a voice. In a kind of way, the treble voice proves the existence of (a) god - for one it is ephemeral, and therefore its beauty is tinged with sadness too. There is also seemingly no evolutionary tie-in. Just a thought.

[@tomarmstrong1281]

@@johnmorris8799 Except that as a small boy going to a village school. With few exceptions all of the boys were in the church choir. Where we were trained and rehearsed. Some had better voices that others, but we all could sing our allotted parts. It was a lot of fun.

[@johnmorris8799]

@@tomarmstrong1281 You must have had a charismatic choir director! Wonderful memories for you- how sad that all that great music is now unsung except in the cathedrals and special choral schools.

[@potatosoupgirl]

1:31 * Monster intro intensifies *

[@le8837]

OMDSSSSSSS AND I WAS WONDERING WHERE THE SONG WAS ORIGINALLY FROM 😮❤

[@Crunk9]

The only reason I came here lmao

[@yanlee7035]

Amazingly accurate intonation from the soloist. The quality of his voice is a perfect match for the melody written by Kenneth Leighton. The slight drop in pitch by the soloist during some of the long sustained notes only adds to the carol's sadness. Easily the highlight for me of 2019's televised 'Carols from Kings'.

[@bethcrawford6094]

This is a healing balm, and I will be listening to this long past Christmas.

[@yihui31]

Just here to say that I heard this in One Day, and I thought I was hallucinating since this is one of my favourite carols from King's and I never expected to hear it in a TV series! My worlds are colliding ❤

[@sharonmayo5578]

The most ethereal Carol, sang beautifully.

[@TheMag625]

Wonderful singing, the boy did the solo has the most beautiful and angelic voice for carols!!!

[@peterandalisonyearsley1967]

Quite agree - perfect.

[@erasmushousepublishing6190]

One of the most beautiful things I have ever heard. Astounded that two people gave it a 'dislike'.

[@renuahuja43]

5 dislikes already!!!!😔

[@bashkillszombies]

They probably wanted to listen to ... you know, the song it claims to be. Not a weird remix?

[@ko-iz3yp]

I don’t like the sound of boy choristers compared to sopranos personally, but I will give it to the soloist he has a great voice!

[@kathycurry5349]

11

[@amanullah1707]

Soloist is an absolute genius, well done !

[@angelosterizakis7635]

I love the angelic voice of the soloist and the harmonies blending with it. However, I am devastated by the death of Sir Stephen Cleobury. He was a rare case. Very few people have such a talent to conduct a choir and provide such a uniquely perfect performance of traditional carols. He has even arranged some carols himself. I still love this version of Coventry Carol conducted by Daniel Hyde and I am optimistic that he will maintain the high standards of King's College choir and its excellent worldwide reputation.

[@Grabyrdy]

Sir Stephen was not only a fine musician, but a real gentleman.

[@markswintonorganist8227]

@A-Plus Computer Services Whilst one can agree with you that it is right and important to preserve the composition of King's College Choir as it has been for centuries, and you are sadly right to observe that other choirs have altered the composition of theirs for no better reasons than "jumping on the PC bandwagon," you might care to reflect upon a few things. Over the course of the late twentieth century, musical education in state schools has been ravaged by funding cuts and curricular meddling by successive governments of all stripes. Thus the pool of aspiring prospective boy choristers is much smaller than it once was. If you consider some of the other choirs you mentioned - Clare College, or Trinity College for that matter - those were indeed all male as King's, but have since become mixed. Is it not possible that where once each choir had four vacancies to fill each year and so many boys applying that they could turn candidates away, with a diminishing pool of candidates it was eventually the case that there would only be four boys applying for places as a whole? And if King's got first refusal, that could easily translate to zero candidates for the others. That may or may not be true of Cambridge, but it has certainly been true elsewhere, and in any case, if you were the director of such a choir, faced with a choice between admitting girls or women to your choir or watching it slowly wither and die in the name of maintaining it for boys alone, what would you do? It's worth reading P. D. James "Children of Men," set in a dystopian future in which no children are being born; there is a scene set in Magdalen College Chapel where Evensong is accompanied by a recording, as the last boy choristers left years earlier and there were none to replace them. Would you rather have that than a live choir? Let me stress that I agree that we should fight to protect such jewels as the choir of boys and men, something no other country has had for so long or honed to such a high quality as ours. Let us also, however, keep some perspective on what it is all about and note that there may be more to decisions taken by some choral foundations than might seem to be the case.

[@mrhilma]

Best thing I have heard this Christmas.

[@simonblake3722]

Daniel Hyde already continuing the ethereal ebb and flow of the King's sound. Glorious!

[@MikeyMonahan-h2t]

beautiful heavenly voices

[@marnixpeeters2675]

that tone though.. chills!

[@Daveinnorfolk]

Fascinating the changes of tone that Mr Hyde has brought to the choir. I’m excited to hear them continue.

[@GZ9090]

@@Daveinnorfolk It has definately gotten some of it's former boldness, brightness and passion back. Whilst the passing of Stephen Cleobury is incredibly depressing I'm sure he would be proud of Daniel and his direction for this genius choir.

[@martinefourrier-chahine1204]

The Coventry Carol Lullay, Thou little tiny Child, By, by, lully, lullay. Lullay, Thou little tiny Child. By, by, lully, lullay. O sisters, too, how may we do, For to preserve this day; This poor Youngling for whom we sing, By, by, lully, lullay. Herod the King, in his raging, Charged he hath this day; His men of might, in his own sight, All children young, to slay. Then woe is me, poor Child, for Thee, And ever mourn and say; For Thy parting, nor say nor sing, By, by, lully, lullay.

[@johnosborn6850]

I have been lucky enough to previously hear this carol 'live' at two different cathedral's carol services, and although they were extremely well performed, the 2019 King's College performance took this work to a new level. Not only did the whole of the King's College choir accompany the soloist with such immaculate 'sympathetic' singing (given the sadness of the lyrics), but the chosen soloist's voice was absolutely outstanding to fully convey the carol's theme.

[@timothyj1966]

His voice just soars! Just something else. Lovely.

[@Gravuun]

Their voices are simply amazing

[@jackwright6806]

Speechless no words could be put together to sum up how angelic this is.. wow

[@Richie016]

A tradition dedicated to worship & holyness. Spectacular!

[@johnmorris8799]

Simply wonderful! The voice of angel soars above a coherent harmony in gorgeous setting. Impossible to hold back the tears. As for the overall service, there is a audibly different sound already to that of the Cleobury era. Let’s see how it develops.

[@ronaldproctor1776]

Breathtakingly beautiful, and a lovely arrangement!!! Thank you most sincerely, Kings College singers! 👏

[@toddfouts]

Unspeakable heartbreak rendered as indescribably beautiful music

[@jerseycitysteve]

I have a friend who directed the Army Chorus in Washington DC many years ago. He recorded many records with choir as a boy soprano. When his voice changed he became just another good tenor.

[@LeatherCladVegan]

The arrangement is exceptional.

[@Engelhafen]

Excellent - great solo voice - better than ever - awesome job

[@mfrmll3786]

I CANNOT BEAR THE Overwhelming LOSS OF THIS GIFT AT NO CAUSE EXCEPT TIME AND MATURITY!!! ❤❤❤ What a HUGE UNIVERSAL JOKE!!! As female children we never face this DEVASTATION!!! I am desperately saddened. A beautiful vulnerability each of you bears like a CROSS of GLORY AND GRACE!!! BLESS YOU AND THANK YOU!!!

[@NUTTY1961]

Jesus would love all this :)

[@scotverdin9401]

oh, to have had this opportunity...but still thankful to hear this.....

[@tosinadelabuvoxcantus8323]

Good acoustic with good blending in their voices. Nice one!

[@GreenWyvern]

Brilliant sound and rendition! Daniel Hyde will take the choir from strength to strength. Stephen Cleobury certainly chose the right person to be his successor. He would be proud.

[@MS-19]

Cleobury didn't actually make the choice, but said he was glad about it.

[@GreenWyvern]

Technically the College decided, since the College is employing him. But in practice it was up to Stephen to make a recommendation, and the College wouldn't overrule him in a matter like that. Daniel Hyde was chosen as his successor in mid-2018.

[@MS-19]

@@GreenWyvern That wouldn't normally be the case in a Church of England choral foundation. Then again, King's is not just any choral foundation, and the circumstances were unusual, as Cleobury's departure and the process for replacing him followed a more advanced timescale than is usual. Daniel Hyde will surely take things forward on a good track. It's sad that Stephen Cleobury won't have the experience his own predecessors had, of seeing that a good choice of successor was made.

[@GreenWyvern]

As I understand it (subject to correction), it is a Collegiate Chapel, and far more self-governing and far less under the direct authority of the Church of England than say, a cathedral. In the case of King's this goes right back to Henry VI, who went to all the trouble of getting a special papal bull declaring that his foundation was not under the authority of the Archbishop of Canterbury, or any English clergy. King's has always been an exception, and tended to do its own thing.

[@ds1868]

@@MS-19 Just to clarify this further. King's College is NOT a Church of England choral foundation. It is a private chapel in the ownership of the Provost and Fellows of King's College. It does perform Church of England services but under special licence from the diocesan Bishop (the Bishop of Ely). Other than that it is entitled to conduct its own affairs on a strictly collegiate and private basis.

[@dwightmckay2036]

I think since King's College Cambridge chapel is a collegiate affiliate of Church Of Englandbut not a Church or a Cathedral Church there is a charter going back to King Henry VI that specifies only boys and lay clerks or gentlemen singers in the choir So i dont think that can be altered or changed and therefore shouldn't be Simple as that!!

[@claireakaforestgreenorgang9506]

I fervently wish I had gotten to meet Sir Stephen. I would have loved to have played the organ for him & sung FOREST GREEN for him (just the one hymn because I'm not much of a singer) but I would have wanted to play all my Top Ten Favorite hymn tunes on the organ for him. The Choir of King's College, Cambridge is the World's Best Choir in the World's Most Beautiful Chapel. I love the fan vaulted ceiling & the tall, wide windows. Perpendicular Gothic is the best architecture.

[@markussolveig2342]

Stunning! Absolutely stunning!

[@facitenonvictimarum]

King's has been the best for decades and will continue to be the best. After all, they have been singing since 50 years before Columbus discovered America! They sang in the Chapel with the stained glass windows removed while Hitler was bombing England. They are part of my life and I live in Northern California 5,300 miles away -- and will never meet them. 🇺🇸 ¯\_(ツ)_/¯🇬🇧

[@facitenonvictimarum]

@@acbulgin2 Thank you so much for sharing your experience with the choir. I would have loved to have seen them perform in the Chapel at Cambridge, especially to see Stephen Cleobury, my hero for reasons few might understand, including him. He was a conduit to God, a "Temporary Angel," over and over again. The young men in the choir are also, but they likely don't know it either. We all are or can be as well, even intermittently, and that is what I learned from Sephen Cleobury and the choir. We don't have to be 'good' or perfect, just try a little, God does the rest. His music did more than all the spoken words of all the clergy I've ever heard. You are a man of music, I hope you are also a "TA." Seriously. (God works in mysterious ways, maybe through even this conversation :) --- The King's Men also did "I Get Around" about 5 years ago. This is the YT link: _Watch "The King's Men: Get Around" on KZbin_ kzbin.info/www/bejne/oGa9lJ6lf852j6c Thank you again.

[@claireakaforestgreenorgang9506]

Exactly. King's will always be the best! I live in...oops, I can't be too specific...someplace on the East Coast.

[@claireakaforestgreenorgang9506]

@@facitenonvictimarum Sir Stephen was, & will always be, my musical hero along with Handel & RVW. In fact, Sir Stephen's the most important of the three because for 37 years he conducted the WORLD'S BEST CHOIR!

[@claireakaforestgreenorgang9506]

@@acbulgin2 Don't be ashamed of feeling like a King's College Choir "groupie"; I have wanted to be one ever since 1994! Sir Stephen was, & still is, a big deal to me as well. I also liked Sir David Willcocks. Both of them are my favorite choir directors/organists. I wish I could have met Sir Stephen at least, if not both of them, years ago. The King's College Choir is the world's best choir, in my opinion, & I am a proud "groupie".

[@claireakaforestgreenorgang9506]

@@facitenonvictimarum Another comment from me: I believe in God, but His ways get me down often, all the "Thou shalt not..." I only believe in Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, & thou shalt not bear false witness. The rest is altogether too much for me. I don't like to be bogged down with rules & strictures. So in a way, I prefer angels (such as Sir Stephen, Sir David, RVW, & my deceased relatives & friends) over Him. I like the way you said "Say to he Universe, to Darkmatter, to a Black Hole, to a Big friggin' Bang, etc". So when I am not feeling particular receptive towards God Himself, I pray to the angels & to trees (the most beautiful thing God ever made). Again, I do believe in God, but when I am frustrated with Him for any reason, I pray to Someone or Something else. *I hope nobody rants at me for what I said; not everyone is as open-minded about paganism/idols as you are. If they do rant at me for my comment, I will block their comment if I can.* Let's pray to Sir Stephen & the trees! BTW, even if FOREST GREEN had a different name, I'd still love the tune. It's the best melody ever composed; the fact that it is named after my favorite part of nature & my favorite color is a coincidence.

[@claireakaforestgreenorgang9506]

I hope O Little Town of Bethlehem is on this. Forest Green is the best melody ever composed. However, this will be bittersweet because both my favorite King's Directors of Music are dead (Sir Stephen & Sir David). RIP Sir Stephen, you are sorely missed.

[@jacquimoran6312]

Thomas Armstrong's descant is world famous.

[@andanini]

Its amazing.

[@DepotUK]

1:10 wow!

[@searchingforbutterflies]

It's a bit sad to not see Sir Cleobury conducting the choir. Sir Hyde is a great director too. Sending appreciation from Italy by a 14 years old girl who is a beginner soprano

[@claireakaforestgreenorgang9506]

It's VERY sad, for me. Daniel is okay but I was biased towards Stephen, so nobody else can (in my opinion) measure up.

[@bornforbanning]

Claire Dixon People made similar comments when Stephen took over 38 years ago or so...it took him some years to be established as a force. History repeats

[@claireakaforestgreenorgang9506]

@@bornforbanning But I was biased toward Sir David before I knew about Sir Stephen, then after I heard Sir Stephen's arrangements of preexisting carols, I was biased towards him (as well as Sir David) & have been biased towards those two for years & years. I am totally indifferent to Mann, Ord, & Darke.

[@bornforbanning]

Claire Dixon I expect you couldn’t possibly be biased towards the latter three unless you’re 95+ years old and had heard them in person, as there is limited recorded material from any of them to make that decision (one from Mann and none from Duke). I think the only living chorister from that era is David Briggs, who is now 102. Willcocks, Ledger and Cleobury were all great.

[@litoboy5]

amazing

[@Unleashed_bot]

Astonishing 💖

[@Iwillfindonesoon]

Exceptional.😇

[@walbrzych9975]

Marvellous

[@森川三智代]

美声 心が癒やされます❤️ありがとう♿️

[@patybieber1997]

🥰🥰🥰

[@JohnWilliams-dx6dr]

Who’s the soloist

[@thelutheranorganist4846]

Is it just me, or is it weird seeing Daniel Hyde directing the choir instead of Stephen Cleobury

[@jackmorrison7379]

Different but not weird particularly for those of us who saw Daniel Hyde conduct a boy/adult choir at St. Thomas New York City, his last post.

[@el7284]

Just you

[@claireakaforestgreenorgang9506]

Not weird, but sad. Sir Stephen was my favorite.

[@ThomasDawkins88]

Sir Stephen would not have been conducting this year as he had retired after 37 years; unfortunately he did not live to see much retirement. Any change after so long is jarring, but without change the world doesn't go on.

[@claireakaforestgreenorgang9506]

@@ThomasDawkins88 I don't have to like change. I can let it make me cry. I am a highly sensitive person & I hate change. That's the way my brain is wired.

[@Hhhhhhhhhhhha]

😢

[@johnwallace6513]

Who is the soloist?

[@yuehchopin]

Gottes Segen

[@lukasmiller486]

Could someone please give me the lyrics?

[@WillZhao8]

Also for my own convenience ;) 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 own 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.

[@orasaltaee3572]

💖🌷😉

[@montyxv500]

This melody sounds different from I've heard before. Can someone explain?

[@markswintonorganist8227]

Kenneth Leighton took the familiar Coventry Carol text and composed a new musical setting, that doesn't make reference to the original music. It's one of three carols he wrote (all for solo treble / soprano with choir) in his student days.

[@ชัยยุทธสิงห์โต-ฅ4ฌ]

Avagrad

[@ชัยยุทธสิงห์โต-ฅ4ฌ]

Snow brod loy fa

[@johnwallace6513]

Good to see no girl choristers

[@lordpotato9453]

Why?

[@ds1868]

@@lordpotato9453 The statutes of King's College laid down by King Henry VI in 1441 state that the choir will be made up of sixteen male voices in the treble line. The choir was up and running in 1449 and has been the same ever since.

[@el7284]

@@lordpotato9453 all boy choirs are rare.

[@ginhollow22]

No gurlz allowed.

[@ds1868]

Nope.

[@markswintonorganist8227]

Actually, King's College School (where the choristers are educated) admits girls, and I believe some of them can be heard singing on the choir's recording of the St Matthew Passion, as the ripieno chorus. Whilst the College Chapel Choir as shown here does not admit girls, due to the statutes that govern it and specify that it should have places for 16 boy choristers, the College also maintains a choir (King's Voices) that sings in the chapel and admits women. Cambridge University Musical Society is another means whereby women can sing in King's College Chapel, albeit for concerts rather than services.

[@SuzanneJosiephine]

Susie Cave's aka The Vampire's Wife "Stuff Page" brought me here. 🖤