The establishment of a fine choral foundation was part of the original vision of the founder of Westminster Cathedral, Cardinal Herbert Vaughan. Vaughan laid great emphasis on the beauty and integrity of the new Cathedral’s liturgy, and regarded a residential choir school as essential to the realisation of his vision. Daily sung Masses and Offices were immediately established when the Cathedral opened in 1903, and have continued without interruption ever since. Today, Westminster Cathedral Choir is the only professional Catholic choir in the world to sing daily Mass and Vespers.
Richard Terry, the Cathedral’s first Master of Music, proved to be an inspired choice. Terry was both a brilliant choir trainer and a pioneering scholar, one of the first musicologists to revive the great works of the English and Continental Renaissance composers. Terry built Westminster Cathedral Choir’s reputation on performances of music – by Byrd, Tallis, Taverner, Palestrina and Victoria, among others – that had not been heard since the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and Mass at the Cathedral was soon attended by inquisitive musicians as well as the faithful. The performance of great Renaissance masses and motets in their proper liturgical context remains the cornerstone of the choir’s activity.
George Malcolm consolidated the musical reputation of Westminster Cathedral Choir during his time as Master of Music – in particular through the now legendary recording of Victoria’s Tenebrae Responsories. More recent holders of the post have included Colin Mawby, Stephen Cleobury, David Hill and James O’Donnell. The choir continues to thrive under the current Master of Music, Martin Baker, who has held the post since 2000.
In addition to its performances of Renaissance masterpieces, Westminster Cathedral Choir has given many first performances of music written especially for it by contemporary composers. Terry gave the premières of music by Vaughan Williams (whose Mass in G minor received its liturgical performance at a Mass in the Cathedral), Gustav Holst, Herbert Howells and Charles Wood; in 1959 Benjamin Britten wrote his Missa brevis for the choristers; and since 1960 works by Lennox Berkeley, William Mathias, Colin Mawby and Francis Grier have been added to the repertoire. Most recently four new Masses – by Roxanna Panufnik, James MacMillan, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Judith Bingham – have received their first performance in the Cathedral. In June 2005 the choristers performed the world première of Sir John Tavener’s Missa Brevis for boys voices.
Westminster Cathedral Choir made its first recording in 1907. Many more have followed, most recently the acclaimed series on the Hyperion label, and many awards have been conferred on the choir’s recordings. Of these the most prestigious are the 1998 Gramophone Awards for both ‘Best Choral Recording of the Year’ and ‘Record of the Year’, for the performance of Martin’s Mass for Double Choir and Pizzetti’s Requiem. It is the only cathedral choir to have won in either of these categories.
The choir’s recordings include two discs of Palestrina on the Hyperion label – the Missa Hodie Christus natus est with motets for Advent and Christmas, and the Missa Dum complerentur with Pentecost motets and plainchant. In addition, the choir has recorded MacMillan's Mass and a complete Mass for Easter Sunday on the Herald label. More recent recordings include a disc of Victoria Marian music and Vaughan Williams’s Mass in G minor which was recorded last July.
When its duties at the Cathedral permit, the choir also gives concert performances both at home and abroad. It has appeared at many important festivals, including Aldeburgh, Cheltenham, Salzburg, Copenhagen, Bremen and Spitalfields. It has appeared in many of the major concert halls of Britain, including the Royal Festival Hall, the Wigmore Hall and the Royal Albert Hall. The Cathedral Choir also broadcasts frequently on radio and television.
Westminster Cathedral Choir has recently undertaken a number of international tours, including visits to Hungary, Germany and the USA. The choristers participated in the 2003 and 2006 International Gregorian Chant Festival in Watou, Belgium, where they plan to return to in 2008, and the full choir performed twice at the Oslo International Church Music Festival in March 2006. In April 2005, 2007 and 2008 they performed as part of the “Due Organi in Concerto” festival in Milan.
Holly and the Ivy
Westminster Cathedral Choir Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When they are both full grown,
Of all the trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown.
The rising of the sun,
And the running of the deer,
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.
The holly bears a berry,
As sweet as any flower,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
To be our sweet savior.
The rising of the sun,
And the running of the deer,
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.
The holly bears a berry,
As red as any blood,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
For to do us sinners good.
The rising of the sun,
And the running of the deer,
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.
The holly bears a prickle,
As sharp as any thorn,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
On Christmas day in the morn'.
The rising of the sun,
And the running of the deer,
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.
The holly bears a bark,
As bitter as any gall,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
For to redeem us all.
The rising of the sun,
And the running of the deer,
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.
"The Holly and The Ivy" is a traditional English Christmas carol that showcases the festive atmosphere of the holiday season. The lyrics mainly focus on the various attributes of the holly plant that are associated with Christianity's central figure, Jesus Christ, and his mother, Mary. In the first stanza, the holly plant is compared to other trees in the woods, but it stands out as it "bears the crown," symbolizing Christ's ultimate sacrifice as the King of the Jews.
The second and third stanzas concentrate on the holly's berries, which are compared to flowers and blood. The reference to Mary bearing Jesus Christ relates to the virgin birth, and the blood-red berries symbolize Christ's sacrifice on the cross. The sharp prickle of holly leaves and the bitter bark are metaphors for the pain Jesus experiences, but they are included as part of the celebratory mood of the song, in which the organ plays and choirs sing.
Overall, the message of the song is one of reverence and praise for Jesus and Mary, as well as an appreciation for the beauty of nature that surrounds the Christmas season.
Line by Line Meaning
The holly and the ivy,
The holly and the ivy are both evergreen plants.
When they are both full grown,
When they are both mature and fully grown.
Of all the trees that are in the wood,
Out of all the trees in the forest.
The holly bears the crown.
The holly is considered the most important tree.
The rising of the sun,
The sun rising in the morning.
And the running of the deer,
Deer running through the forest.
The playing of the merry organ,
The sound of an organ being played joyfully.
Sweet singing in the choir.
Beautiful singing by the choir.
The holly bears a berry,
The holly plant produces berries.
As sweet as any flower,
The berry is as sweet as any flower.
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ.
To be our sweet saviour.
Jesus Christ is considered the savior of humanity.
The holly bears a berry,
The holly plant produces berries.
As red as any blood,
The berry is as red as blood.
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ.
For to do us sinners good.
Jesus Christ was born to save sinners.
The holly bears a prickle,
The holly plant has sharp thorns.
As sharp as any thorn,
The thorns are as sharp as any other thorn.
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ.
On Christmas day in the morn'.
Jesus Christ was born on Christmas morning.
The holly bears a bark,
The holly plant has bark.
As bitter as any gall,
The bark is as bitter as gall (a bitter liquid).
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ.
For to redeem us all.
Jesus Christ was born to redeem all people.
The playing of the merry organ,
The sound of an organ being played joyfully.
Sweet singing in the choir.
Beautiful singing by the choir.
Lyrics © DELLA BLUE MUSIC LLC
Written by: NICK MUNRO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind