I liked the doggerel rhymes in which the three shepherds praised the angel's song - "cracked it", "lacked it", "knacked it" and then had a small spat over whether the first shepherd could sing as well - "Let see how ye croon, Can ye bark at the moon?" But these "silly" shepherds betray a highly technical knowledge of medieval musical notation - a notation developed and used by monastics - when the second shepherd mentions "three breves and a long", which were the medieval predecessors of the quarter and half notes in music notation. Speaking of music, I wondered if the closing gift giving dialogue was meant to be sung as the three shepherds and then Mary each have nine lines, rather like the 19th century nativity play carol, 'We Three Kings', where each king sings about his gift in turn.
I know nothing about music, so this is such a fascinating and interesting point about the shepherds’ musical knowledge. Thank you for that. Love the link to monastic life. And now I also wonder about that last part. I wonder how the few productions I see out there online (but haven’t watched) perform that bit.
Thank you again for your explanations. I wasn't so confused by the shift in geography as I was the shift in chronology! The shepherds refer to Our Lady and St. Nicholas before the birth of Christ is announced? How beautiful to remember that He is unfettered by time or space and comes to us wherever and whenever we respond to His call to come and see.
Happy New Year!
I liked the doggerel rhymes in which the three shepherds praised the angel's song - "cracked it", "lacked it", "knacked it" and then had a small spat over whether the first shepherd could sing as well - "Let see how ye croon, Can ye bark at the moon?" But these "silly" shepherds betray a highly technical knowledge of medieval musical notation - a notation developed and used by monastics - when the second shepherd mentions "three breves and a long", which were the medieval predecessors of the quarter and half notes in music notation. Speaking of music, I wondered if the closing gift giving dialogue was meant to be sung as the three shepherds and then Mary each have nine lines, rather like the 19th century nativity play carol, 'We Three Kings', where each king sings about his gift in turn.
I know nothing about music, so this is such a fascinating and interesting point about the shepherds’ musical knowledge. Thank you for that. Love the link to monastic life. And now I also wonder about that last part. I wonder how the few productions I see out there online (but haven’t watched) perform that bit.
Karen, thank you so much for these lessons. I am completely ignorant about mystery plays, so this is fascinating.
Thank you for reading and coming along! 😀
Karen, you’re an excellent teacher. I did find the play difficult reading, and am now prepared to reread it with more understanding!
This is very high praise. Thank you, Matt. It means a lot! Hope the next read is rich and revealing! It is a tough one!
Thank you again for your explanations. I wasn't so confused by the shift in geography as I was the shift in chronology! The shepherds refer to Our Lady and St. Nicholas before the birth of Christ is announced? How beautiful to remember that He is unfettered by time or space and comes to us wherever and whenever we respond to His call to come and see.
The miracle plays I’ve read all have these delightful anachronisms. So fun. But it is jarring!
*Miracle and mystery plays