What is a carol? by David Farr

WHAT IS A CAROL?

David Farr, Director of Music

There is no simple answer to this question, as one quickly realizes by scanning an eleven-page article in the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. There are carols from at least the past 600 years, from every Christian tradition, and for all seasons – not just Christmas – of the Church Year.

Generally speaking, a carol is a festive song, usually religious but not necessarily connected with church worship, and often with a dance-like or popular character. The word carol is probably derived from the French word caroler, a circle dance accompanied by singers. The carol was very popular as a dance song from the 1150s to the 1350s. After that, its use expanded as a processional song sung during festivals or as an accompaniment to religious mystery plays. Note, for instance, the Coventry Carol (1591).

Carols were considered too frivolous for most Protestant reformers, although some Renaissance composers created motet-like works for Christmas that they termed carols. Nevertheless, folk-carols continued to be sung in rural areas.

The 19th century brought a renewed interest in ancient carols, culminating finally in Percy Dearmer, Ralph Vaughan Williams and Martin Shaw’s massive collection The Oxford Book of Carols, published in 1928. There are 197 carols in this mainstay of English carol tradition. (Its sequel, The New Oxford Book of Carols (1992) has 201 carols.) An exhaustive introduction to the first edition by Percy Dearmer explains much of the history of carols; the notes accompanying each of the carols in the second edition provide stunning details about the history and development of each carol in the collection. The two volumes assure the English-speaking world of carol repertoire, adapted from foreign sources as well as English traditions.

Our own hymnal has many early carols, especially in the Christmas section. I point to three among them: "Lo, how a Rose e’er blooming," which is German (Hymn 81), "On this day earth shall ring," which is Latin (Hymn 92), "Angels we have heard on high," which is French (Hymn 96). Of course, once carol-singing became popular in the 19th century, poets and hymn-writers began adding to the repertoire with hundreds of newer examples, many of which are now perennial favorites. (Note, for instance, "Hark! the herald angels sing" [Hymn 87] and "Joy to the world! the Lord is come" [Hymn 100].)

Carols, like hymns, come in simple arrangements for community singing (which is what The Oxford Book of Carols and Hymnal 1982 are all about) and more complex versions for choral performance. There seems to be no end to the opportunities for enjoying carols, especially in Christmastide.