Today a villancico along with two interpretations. One is a video of La Macanita singing in Carlos Saura's Flamenco and the other is Manuel Lombo performing live at the cathedral in Sevilla.

Villancicos de Gloria

Los caminos se hicieron,
con agua, viento y frío.
Caminaba un anciano,
muy triste y afligido ¡A la Gloria!
A su bendita madre, victoria!
Gloria al recién nacido, ¡Gloria!

Llegaron a un mesón,
para pedir posada,
El mesonero ingrato
iba y se la negaba. ¡A la Gloria!
A su bendita madre, victoria!
Gloria al recién nacido, ¡Gloria!

Yo no doy posada,
yo no doy posada
A las dos de la noche,
la mujer embarazada. ¡A la Gloria!
A su bendita madre, victoria!
Gloria al recién nacido, ¡Gloria!

Si es que traes dinero,
toda la casa es tuya,
pero si no lo traes,
no hay posada ninguna. ¡A la Gloria!
A su bendita madre, victoria!
Gloria al recién nacido, ¡Gloria!

Y desde allí se fueron,
a un portal recogido,
y entre el buey y la mula,
nació el verbo divino. ¡A la Gloria!
A su bendita madre, victoria!
Gloria al recién nacido, ¡Gloria!

Here's the first video. It's La Macanita with singers from La Peña Tío José de Paula with Juan Parrilla and Niño Jero on guitar. I was mesmerized by La Macanita in this clip the first time I watched it forever ago, and I'm still mesmerized today. And watching the expression on the faces of the chorus and the guitarists fills me with so much joy! (By the way, be sure to check out the zambombas and the tambourines, two signature instruments of the villancico.)

Christmas Carol of Glory

The paths were made
with water, wind, and cold.
An old man walked,
very sad and distraught. To glory!
To his blessed mother, victory!
Glory to the newborn son, Glory!

They arrived at an inn
to ask for lodging,
The ungrateful innkeeper,
left and denied them. To glory!
To his blessed mother, victory!
Glory to the newborn son, Glory!

I will not give you lodging,
I will not give you lodging.
At two o'clock in the morning,
to the the pregnant woman. To glory!
To his blessed mother, victory!
Glory to the newborn son, Glory!

If you bring money,
the whole house is yours,
but if you do not,
there's lodging for no one. To glory!
To his blessed mother, victory!
Glory to the newborn son, Glory!

And from there they went
to a secluded barn,
and between the ox and the mule,
the divine word was born. To glory!
To his blessed mother, victory!
Glory to the newborn son, Glory!

And here's the second video of Manuel Lombo live at the Catedral de Sevilla. Notice the differences in this version, both in the interpretation and the words. I love the way this one starts.(By the way, the song begins about one minute in...)

Ready for More?

You can hear José Mercé sing it here and you can hear Manuel Lombo sing it again here.

You might also enjoy this version from a traditional zambomba here. as well as this one of some people singing in the streets in Sevilla.

You can hear both Pitingo and Arcángel sing it here.

(Each is a bit different, combining different verses.)

I understood that the words were traditional anonymous verse though the soundtrack lists the version I posted here from the movie Flamenco as written by Manuel Fernández.

You can learn about villancicos here.

I'm Guessing You Have Some Time Away

from your dance classes for the holidays. If you're looking to keep dancing, why not revisit (or visit for the first time) the Dance As If You Were in Class With Mercedes Holiday Challenge? (It's basically seven days of pretending to be in class with Mercedes Ruíz from the comfort of your own home for whatever amount of time you choose to help remind you of certain flamenco best practices and to keep them at the forefront of your mind.) I'll be doing it, so why not join me? You can check out the warm-up activity here. (And below find links to each day of the challenge.)