'Dancing Day'

At Morning Prayer this coming Sunday, January 31, the Canterbury Choir will sing the well-known carol, Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day, set by David Willcocks. Although the shortened version we all know became associated with Christmas, and, indeed, though the full text was published by the antiquarian William Sandys just prior to the Victorian revival of Christmas, Dancing Day is a poetic tour of the entire Temporale: that cycle of the church year highlighting Christ’s life. The verses in bold below show the portion usually set by modern composers.

N.B. The verse referring to the Jewish leaders of Jesus’ day may well have an anti-Semitic ring to our ears, so it’s worth noting that the text has sometimes been modified to the alternate version in brackets.

Justin Appel, Director of Music

(See YouTube performance link below these lyrics.)

Tomorrow shall be my dancing day;
I would my true love did so chance
To see the legend of my play,
To call my true love to the dance.

Refrain:
Sing, oh! My love, oh! My love, my love, my love,
This have I done for my true love.

Then was I born of a virgin pure;
Of her I took fleshly substance.
Thus was I knit to man’s nature
To call my true love to the dance.

In a manger laid and wrapped I was,
So very poor; this was my chance,
Betwixt an ox and a silly poor ass,
To call my true love to my dance.

Then afterwards baptized I was;
The Holy Ghost on me did glance,
My Father’s voice heard from above
To call my true love to my dance.

Into the desert I was led,
Where I fasted without substance;
The devil bade me make stones my bread,
To have me break my true love’s dance.

The Jews [my foes] on me they made great suit,
And with me made great variance,
Because they loved darkness rather than light,
To call my true love to my dance.

For thirty pence Judas me sold,
His covetousness for to advance:
‘Mark whom I kiss, the same do hold!’
The same is he shall lead the dance.

Before Pilate the Jews [my foes] me brought,
Where Barabbas had deliverance;
They scourged me and set me at nought,
Judged me to die to lead the dance.

Then on the cross hanged I was [then hanged was I on the rood],
Where a spear my heart did glance;
There issued forth both water and blood,
To call my true love to my dance.

Then down to hell I took my way
For my true love’s deliverance,
And rose again on the third day,
Up to my true love and the dance.

Then up to heaven I did ascend,
Where now I dwell in sure substance
On the right hand of God, then man
May come unto the general dance.