Coventry Carol

The “Coventry Carol” dates back to 16th century England. It was originally performed in Coventry as part of a play called The Pageant of the Shearmen and Tailors that depicts the Christmas story from chapter two in the Gospel of Matthew. The carol refers to the Massacre of the Innocents, in which Herod ordered all male infants under the age of two in Bethlehem to be killed. The lyrics represent a mother’s lament for her doomed child.

This arrangement for flute quartet is done in the style of William Byrd.