This is a Christmas song that I was not familiar with until last week when I was doing my preparation for the songs of Christmas that I wanted to feature. There has been a longstanding tradition of Protestants and Independent Christians to underemphasize the role of Mary – lest they be accused of elevating her to a status similar to that of the Roman Catholic Church.
In an effort to be disassociated from the Marian dogmas, non Catholics have swung the pendulum concerning Mary to the complete opposite direction. As there is some variance of opinion, I am not certain how most Anglican and Orthodox Churches treat Mary's importance; however, I would guess that she is regarded as having a higher status than most Protestants give her due.
Dogma aside, Mary was a very important scriptural character. The angel Gabriel’s opening salutation to Mary was, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” To reassure her, he continued, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God.” When told why she was chosen of God and who her Son would be, Mary graciously accepted this awesome responsibility and said, “I am the Lord's servant. May it be to me as you have said.”
This young woman was willing to serve in one of the most honored roles given among humankind and we can recognize her ultimate responsibility as the mother of the Christ. While we may not agree concerning everything about Mary, I believe all Christendom can concur that Mary was truly a special person who fulfilled God’s plan. She is a central figure in the Christmas account.
Today’s Christmas carol dwells on the joys experienced by Mary concerning her son Jesus. It can be dated to the fourteenth century song “Joys of Fyve.” A later rendition added two additional “joys” to the song making it the “Joys of Seven.” Later versions expanded it to ten and twelve. All in all, there are 14 different joys that have been used for this song.
The most common arrangement, however, follows the first seven as was recorded by Loreena McKennitt. This song was rediscovered in the 1830s and had a resurgence during the mid 19th century when carol singing gained popularity during the Victorian Age. Prior to this though, the song traveled across the Atlantic, as musicologist John Jacob Niles discovered versions of it in Appalachia and the Great Smokey Mountains.
The arrangement of this song is beautiful. The interplay between the viola, violin, and cello is simply enchanting. The strings display a flutelike quality – with the viola taking the alto and violin the soprano parts. The cello rounds out the faux woodwind section by mimicking an oboe.
The rhythm is handled by a Celtic bouzouki and a Greek lute (also known as a lautoa), which is related to the oud. Of course, Loreena McKinnitt’s voice is perfect for this type of music. The instrumentation is listed below:
Loreena McKennitt: vocals, harp, & accordion
Simon Edwards: acoustic bass
Brian Hughes: Celtic bouzouki
Caroline Lavelle: cello
Hugh Marsh: violin
Stratis Psaradellis: Greek lute (lautoa)
Donald Quan: viola
Like many of Loreena’s recordings, there is an unlikely pairing of instruments – but it works. It is next to impossible to hear all of the instruments on this song, as the mix has the more rhythmic instruments combined into one synergistic sound. The lautoa and the bouzouki have been segregated to their own speaker – one in the left and the other in the right. Because the range is similar in these two instruments, it is impossible for me to tell for which one is which. Although, the lautoa is a full bodied instrument while the smaller bodied bouzouki is thinner sounding. My guess would be that the bouzouki is on the right and the lautoa is on the left.
The strings move to forefront when necessary and Loreena’s harp and accordian are present to add a flavored accompaniment. While the 19th century version of this song was written in Em, Lorenna moves it to Dm. As a bouzouki player, I prefer Dm over Em any day. At the end of the song, it resolves to D major. This is a nice, but unexpected surprise ending.
The Seven Rejoices of Mary
The first good joy that Mary had
It was the joy of one.
The first rejoice that Mary had
Was to see her new born Son.
To see her new born Son good man,
And blessed may He be.
Sing Father, Son, and Holy Ghost
To all eternity.
The next good joy that Mary had
It was the joy of two
To see her own son Jesus
Make the lame to go.
The next rejoice that Mary had
It was the joy of three
To see her own son Jesus,
To make the blind to see
To make the blind to see good man
And blessed may He be.
Sing Father, Son, and Holy Ghost
To all eternity.
The next good joy our Lady had
It was the joy of four.
It was the rejoice of her dear Son,
When he read the bible o’er.
The next good joy that Mary had
It was the joy of five.
To see her own son Jesus,
To make the dead alive.
To make the dead alive good man
And blessed may He be.
Sing Father, Son and Holy Ghost
To all eternity.
The next rejoice our Lady had,
It was the rejoice of six
To see her own son Jesus
To bear the crucifix.
The next good joy that Mary had,
It was the joy of seven
To see her own son Jesus,
To wear the crown of he’ven
To wear the crown of heaven good man
And blessed may He be.
Sing Father, Son, and Holy Ghost
To all eternity.
And glory may he be,
And blessed now be she.
And those who sing the seven long verses
In honor of our Lady.
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