OT Advent Calendar (& Hannukah!) Day 2: Straddling The Line Between Wassail and Hymn
Advent has always been my favorite time of year. Not only does it lead up to the festival of Christmas, but my birthday falls right around half way through. What’s more, I grew up in snowy Central New York—that’s the barren hinterlands of Upstate, for those in the city so nice they named it twice—and if I didn’t get a White Christmas, the Great Lakes were good for a storm around my birthday so there’d at least be a good beginning to the winter.
Advent is far from an untouched subject around these parts, so I’m clearly not alone.
Your OT Advent Calendar this year will be musical. We’ll talk about diamond-in-the-rough traditional tunes just waiting for renewed popularity, crimes against Christmas, the silly songs and the songs that have become modern traditions. We’ll also talk about the notion of true Christmas Carols, those which address the twelve days festival beginning on Christmas itself, including not just the one day-counting song but another.
Let’s dive in, shall we?
Todays songs are “God Bless the Master” and the English and Yiddish song “Hannukah, Oh Hannukah.”
Another wassail, though this one straddles the line between wassail and hymn. It was collected by Cecil Sharp[LINK] in 1909 in Hampshire, England. It is thus probable that the song had been current in the area for some time previous.
Song collecting began as concerned and educated people, Brits in this case, realized that many hyper-local folk traditions were threatened or near extinction. Collectors travelled about, listening to traditional songs and hymns, Cecil Sharp being a prominent example.
Steve Roud, who has complied and categorized about 25,000 song in the English tradition.
“God Bless the Master of This House” is number 1066.
The lyric, so easily imagined sung before some gentle’s threshold, is simple, endearing and genuine. If you imagine yourself opening this Advent calendar further, be prepared to meet again The Watersons, my absolute favorite vocal folk quartet.
Their version is entitled “God Bless the Master.”
“God bless the master of this house
And send him long to reign;
Wherever he walks wherever he rides,
𝄆 Lord Jesus be his guide. 𝄇
God bless the mistress of this house
With a gold chain round her breast;
Amongst her friends and kindred
𝄆 God send her soul to rest. 𝄇
From morn till morn remember thou
When first our Christ was born,
He was crucified between two thieves
𝄆 And crowned with a thorn. 𝄇
From morn till morn remember thou
When Christ lay on the rood,
‘Twas for our sins and wickedness
Christ shed his precious blood,
Christ has shed his precious blood
From morn till morn remember thou
When Christ was wrapped in clay;
He was put into some sepulchre
𝄆 Where never no man lay. 𝄇
God bless the ruler of this house
And send him long to reign,
And many a merry Christmas
𝄆 We may live to see again. 𝄇
Now I have said my carol
Which I intend to do;
God bless us all both great and small
𝄆 And send us a happy New Year. 𝄇”
Myself? I would be humbled to have such a wassail or carol sung at my door. A grandee witnessing a chorus of the same would very likely have passed out some treat or another. Huzzah!
Today is also the first night of Hanukkah. I’ll turn it over to my great friend Cantor Jessica Epstein of Temple B’nai Abraham in Livingston, New Jersey.
“Oh Chanukah” (“also Chanukah, Oh Chanukah”) is an English version of the Yiddish song, “Oy Chanukah” (Yiddish: חנוכּה אױ חנוכּה Khanike Oy Khanike). The English words, while not a translation, are roughly based on the Yiddish. This upbeat playful children’s song has lines about dancing the horah (a traditional circular dance), playing with dreidels, eating latkes, lighting the candles, and singing happy songs. The song was written by Mordechai (Mark) Rivesman (1868 – 1924), and first published in Susman Kiselgof’s 1912 Lider-Zamlbukh [Song anthology].
It is an incredibly popular song that is taught to every Jewish child, most have no idea it was a composed piece!
For more on Mordechai (Mark) Rivesman, a short biography and bibliography can be found here.
English and Yiddish lyrics are available here.
Yiddish version here by the Klezmer Conservatory Band:
English version by Barenaked Ladies:
