Guild Tidings
January 2023
The official publication of
The International Songwriters Guild
Volume 28, No. 01
Live meetings are Cancelled due to CoronaVirus.
However, we will be having on-line Zoom meetings.
The next zoom feedback session will be January 1st.
We will send details under a separate e-mail,
and an announcement on the Facebook group page.
If you want the zoom meeting details,
please e-mail us at isgorlando@gmail.com
Hopefully we will soon be meeting in person again.
Please stay tuned for more info.
Any Details not in this newsletter are at:
If you wish to join our Facebook group, please check us out at
https://www.facebook.com/groups/831814850193553/
WebChatter
by CyberToad
We are asking members to renew their dues for 2023. It costs only $5 per year,
and it helps us to defray costs for the zoom meetings.
We have 2 methods of payment. Either paypal to our treasurer Asli Goncer's
paypal account. The paypal access is at aslivision@gmail.com
or you can mail a $5 check to
Asli Goncer
2849 Babylon Court
Oviedo, FL 32765
Either way, we appreciate your continued support.
The Coventry Carol
by Jackie Mason
I promised last month that I would write more about an interview between Taxi president Michael Laskow and songwriter Marty Dodson. It is, however, the holiday season and I thought that this subject may be more fitting with the time of year. So more on Songcraft next month. Today I want to write about a peculiar Christmas song, ”The Coventry Carol.” It’s not a traditional Christmas carol nor is it a typical Christmas song. There’s no mention of Santa Claus, reindeer or sleighs. There are no snow scenes and cozy log fires to sit beside. You won’t find any gifts under sparkling trees. It’s a grim subject matter. Here is the third verse.
“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, lullay, lullay.”
It is about the murdering of babies. Journalist Rebecca Jennings writes in her 2018 article.
https://www.vox.com/2018/12/19/18138242/coventry-carol-history-plays
“Indeed “Coventry Carol” is a reference to the Massacre of the Innocents, an event described in the Gospel of Matthew. In it, King Herod orders the execution of all male children in Bethlehem under the age of 2. The story goes that Herod did this because he heard of the birth of a baby who would become the king of all Jews — news that was relayed to him by the Magi (or the three wise men referred to in the carol “We Three Kings”). Yet Joseph, having been warned by an angel, escapes Bethlehem with Mary and the newborn Jesus to Egypt. The song, then, is a lullaby.” supposedly sung by the mothers of Bethlehem to their doomed sons.”
It’s a beautiful lullaby with a haunting melody. I’ve written here before about songs with strange and unexpected histories. The Irish classic “Danny Boy” and Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” are a couple of examples that spring to mind. The melody employs a musical trick known as a “Picardy Third” and perhaps it’s the reason so many people are drawn to it. Here is a definition of a “Picardy Third.” “A picardy third is a major tonic chord that is written into the end of a song in a minor key. This happens when you raise the usual minor third in a tonic chord to a major third, creating the major chord that is interesting and unexpected to the listener.”
https://yonamariemusic.com/yona/blog/117/the-simple-brilliance-of-the-picardy-third
One of my favorite Beatle’s songs "I'll Be Back” makes use of the chord trick. Yona Marie’s excellent article gives us more examples to listen to and she tells us more about the origin of the “Picardy Third.”
Historians seem to agree that the “Massacre of the Innocents” never happened. The story is never mentioned in the other three Gospels. Perhaps it’s derived from Moses in Egypt or other cruel events linked to King Herod.
"The Coventry Carol” was copied by Robert Croo in the 1530’s. It’s surmised that he was the composer but like the story it is shrouded in mystery and by time. It was used as part of a play presented by the Shearers and Taylors’ Guild, “The Pageant of the Shearmen and Taylors.” It dramatized the “Massacre of the Innocents.” These plays were presented to celebrate The Festival Of Corpus Christi in May or June. They were known as mystery plays and could be very raucous, depending on how much beer and wine was consumed. Rebecca Jennings in her interesting article describes how the plays were banned. “The Protestant Tudor monarchy eventually banned the performance of the Coventry Plays due to their Catholic origins.” Copies of the play have survived, sometimes it seems by luck. The original Croo’s copy was destroyed in a fire in 1879. Fortunately others had the foresight to make their own copies and so this peculiar song survives. I leave you with this wonderful BBC podcast in which people tell how this song has inspired them. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000cl39
I love the song and it has been a source of inspiration to me. Season’s greetings from the Melody Motel.
ISG Bulletin Board
Meeting space graciously provided by Central Florida Musicians Association,
Local 389. You are invited to join the largest union in the world, representing the
interests of the professional musician. Visit their website at afm389.org for more
information. You may reach them by phone at: 407-894-8666.
Why isn't your gig or live stream announced here? Members in good standing call SusieCool with your
appearance schedule! 407-760-2153 or e-mail her the details at isgorlando@gmail.com
If you are interested in open mics in the Central Florida area, SusieCool has compiled a list.
Steve Hodak hosts several newly listed open mics on the East coast.
https://sites.google.com/site/susiecoolsongs/Home/open-mic-directory-central-florida
SusieCool is the admin for a Facebook group called "Orlando Creative Music Network"
where we give out info on songwriter meetings, playing circles, open mics, workshops and concerts.
We have a Facebook page for this group if you want to join.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/274152179716552/
No Critique scores for December, since no live meeting.
New members and guests are always welcome!
© 2023 ISG