Folklore: St Cecilia's Day

Subject: St Cecilia's Day
From: Fiolar
Date: 22 Nov 01 - 09:12 AM

Today November 22nd is the feast day of Saint Cecilia who is the patron saint of poets, singers, music and musicians. According to legend she was martyred in the reign of the emperor Alexander Severus in the early third century. The executioner who was sent to behead her botched the job and she took three days to die. Her status as music patron dates from the 16th century. Fans of The Canterbury Tales will recall her story is told by the Second Nun.

Subject: RE: St Cecilia's Day
From: Áine
Date: 22 Nov 01 - 12:43 PM

Thanks, Fiolar.

I found this site with links to some lovely images of Saint Cecilia. Enjoy!

-- Áine

Subject: RE: St Cecilia's Day
From: GUEST,Roger the skiffler
Date: 23 Nov 01 - 06:41 AM

My prayer to St Cecilia:

When are you going to grant me the ability to sing in tune, in tempo and sing the verses in the right order? Please, St Cecilia, you're breaking my heart, you're sapping my confidence daily, I'm down on my knees, I'm telling you please...
RtS (Sorry, Mr Simon)

Subject: RE: St Cecilia's Day
From: Cappuccino
Date: 23 Nov 01 - 02:44 PM

"St. Cecilia" was also the name used by the British band who had a hit with a song called (honest) "Leap Up and Down and Wave your Knickers in the Air." I suspect it may have been an alias for the record producer who went to jail this week.

- Ian B

Subject: RE: St Cecilia's Day
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 23 Nov 01 - 05:13 PM

Are you not talking about the Spitting Image crew, with the song from the series of the same name? Nothing at all to do with Mr King, everything to do with Luck and Flaw. The original was 'hold a chicken in the air, stick a deckchair up your nose, buy a jumbo jet and then bury all your clothes, paint your left knee green and extract your wisdom teeth, learn Arapaho and pretend your name is Keith.'

LTS

Subject: RE: St Cecilia's Day
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 23 Nov 01 - 07:16 PM

Nope - leap up and down and wave your knickers in the air was something entirely different. For me at any rate.

I was a young shy 17 year old Gnome. Courting the lovely Elaine, Mrs G to be. She met my Russian Orthodox side of the family for the first time. It was the graveyard do. You know - the one where food Russian orthox christians liturge aroung the graveside annd leave goodies for the departed who will get up at midnight and eat them.

Becuase my departed Grandad was a well respected priest a Bishop )from the USA no less!) was shipped in to perform the rights around his final resting place.

Elaine was just getting really worried - with all the 'Gospadie pamilues' (scuse the phonetics), the candle wax dripping down her arm and the bowls of rice and raisins on the grave when from the Miners Welfare Club next to graveyard came the strains of the first record of the summer féte...

You've guessed it.

'Leap up and down and wave your knickers in the air'

Well. She married me. so I guess it must've done the trick!

I still have a copy of the one you mention btw, LtS. It was the first song performed by my two eldest sons at a folk festival.

You have it slightly wrong, btw. It goes -

The Chicken Song
It's the time of year, now that spring is in the air
When those two wet gits, with their girly curly hair
Make another song, for marronic holidays
that nausiate-ate-ates in a million different ways
From the shores of Spain, to the coast of southern France
No matter where you hide, you just can't escape this dance

Hold a chicken in the air, stick a deck-chair up your nose
Buy a Jumbo-Jet, and then bury all your clothes
Paint your left knee green, then extract your wisdom teeth
Form a string quartet, and pretend your name is Keith.

Skin yourself alive, learn to speak araphahoe
Climb inside a dog, and behead an Eskimo
Eat a Renault 4, wear salami in your ears
Cassarole your gran, dis-embowel yourself with spears

The disco is migrating, the sound is loud and grating
It's truly nausiating - let's do the dance again.

Hold a chicken in the air, stick a deck-chair up your nose
Buy a Jumbo-Jet, and then bury all your clothes
Yes you'll hear this song, in the holiday discos
And there's no escape, in the clubs or in the bars
You would hear this song, if you holidayed in Mars

Skin yourself alive, learn to speak araphahoe
Climb inside a dog, and behead an Eskimo
Now you've heard it once, your brain will spring a leak
And though you hate this song you'll be humming it for weeks

Hold a chicken in the air, stick a deck-chair up your nose
Buy a Jumbo-Jet, and then bury all your clothes
la la la la la la la....

Cheers

DtG

Subject: Folklore: St Cecilia's Day
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 22 Nov 08 - 06:55 AM

Patron saint of musicians.

It's her day today, and we should celebrate it.

JM

Subject: RE: Folklore: St Cecilia's Day
From: Snuffy
Date: 22 Nov 08 - 07:02 AM

Here's a song for Nov 22

Subject: RE: Folklore: St Cecilia's Day
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 22 Nov 08 - 07:14 AM

Just noticed it's also the 45th anniversary of the assassination of JFK.

JM

Post edited........ Mudpiskie

Subject: RE: Folklore: St Cecilia's Day
From: The Borchester Echo
Date: 22 Nov 08 - 07:22 AM

. . . + 20 years . . .
I remember exactly what I was doing that evening 45 years ago when the news broke. It's frozen just like the memory of the early morning of 8 December 1980.

Subject: RE: Folklore: St Cecilia's Day
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 22 Nov 08 - 09:17 AM

Only two musical posts and then somebody starts talking politics.
=======
Whenever I think of St Cecelia I remember what's-his-name's 'Ode to St Cecelia.' A college friend had a recording of it, and I had never heard any music like that. Was it Purcell? Byrd? I don't have time to check.

I still sing 'Sound the Trumpet' sometimes when I'm especially happy.

Subject: RE: Folklore: St Cecilia's Day
From: bankley
Date: 22 Nov 08 - 10:06 AM

Sancta Caecilia

Patrona Musicae Sacrae

Ora pro Nobis


(the inscription on the back of an old silver bas-relief medallion in my possession.
the front depicts the lady with a halo playing on organ,,,,,,,, but it' not a B3 on a grassy knoll)

Subject: RE: Folklore: St Cecilia's Day
From: GUEST,Effsee, sans cookie
Date: 22 Nov 08 - 10:54 AM

45th Anniversary of my 17th birthday...oh boy, did I get drunk that night!

Subject: RE: Folklore: St Cecilia's Day
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 22 Nov 08 - 02:45 PM

A good recording-
Evensong for St. Cecilia. Jonathan Bielby, Priory Records, UK
Includes Evensong at Wakefield Cathedral, Cantantibus Organis Cecelia, motet for five voices by Peter Philips, music by Bach, etc.

And one I haven't heard, but for the season-
Christmas Chant, Benedictine Nuns of St. Cecelia's Abbey (Gregorian chant), New World Company.

Subject: RE: Folklore: St Cecilia's Day
From: katlaughing
Date: 22 Nov 08 - 02:53 PM

Not sure the song is specifically for St. Cecelia's Day, but the singers are the Dominican Sisters of Saint Cecelia and they sound beautiful.

I have always had a special place for her in my house. I have a beautiful old litho in a neat old frame I found at a store in New England years ago. It shows her at an organ with flowers and cherubs cascading down from above. I would always hand above the piano when I had one.

Subject: RE: Folklore: St Cecilia's Day
From: vectis
Date: 22 Nov 08 - 02:57 PM

They had a programme about her on Radio 4 (UK) and it seems she died a particularly gory death over three days or so but kept singing...

There are some acts out there like that today

I've got me coat and am going already...