Carols

[fuchsoid]

Listening to the very interesting history of carols on BBC Radio 4, I discovered that "While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night" fits'Haexactly to the tune of "On Ilkley Moor Ba'T'Hat", and sounds much better.

Comments

[pondhopper]

Hmmmm...I never realized that!

[gwendraith]

Hmmm, a good quiz question!

[fuchsoid]

I'm listening to the I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue Christmas special on the radio, and it seems you can also fit "Silent Night" too the tune of "Tequila", if you just shout out the words where you would normally shout "tequila".

[sollersuk]

Last week I went out to Glossop for a Derbyshire carol evening with the folkies. Not all from Derbyshire; some familiar ones, some familiarish (for example "Nos Galan", the original New Year version of "Deck the Halls") and some completely unfamiliar and very local; every village in the area used to have its own carol. There were at least three different tunes for "While Shepherds Watched" and one was very like "On Ilkley Moor".

[sollersuk]

BTW, I have indeed sung it to "On Ilkla Moor" and it's great fun; lots of opportunities for harmonising. Giraldus Cambrensis was right in saying that what the people in Wales and the people in Yorkshire had in common was a propensity to sing in harmony.