Mary and the Baby, Sweet Lamb

About the Christmas folk song Mary and the Baby, Sweet Lamb

This happy song is full of celebration. Mary and the Baby, Sweet Lamb is in call-and-response style. The lyrics are sweet and the mood is full of energy. The arrangement moves the lead line from part to part. It’s fun to sing!

On some of the verses, soloists jump out of their section to sing a call. But you can use the full choir if needed.

1. Oh, Mary and the Baby, sweet Lamb…
2. It’s a holy Baby, sweet Lamb…
3. Oh, Mary and the Baby, sweet Lamb…
4. Oh, love that little Baby, sweet Lamb…
5. Oh, Mary and the Baby, sweet Lamb…

Mary and the Baby, Sweet Lamb appears in Ruth Crawford Seeger’s American Folk Songs for Christmas. It hails from Texas. Her source was the Archive of American Folk Song, Folklore Section, Library of Congress.

Mary and the Baby, Sweet Lamb is part of a larger cantata, Shepherds and Angels, with violin, harp, and tambourine. Instrumentally, that set aligns well with Britten’s Ceremony of Carols or Susa’s Carols and Lullabies. Teach your chorus Mary and the Baby, Sweet Lamb this year, and expand to Shepherds and Angels next season.

View and listen

Preview score  Click the big button to download a free perusal score. The watermarked PDF is disabled for printing.

Listen  The Master Singers of Lexington, MA sang Mary and the Baby, Sweet Lamb in 2010 in the Shepherds and Angels version with violin and harp.

Purchase options

Ready to purchase? You’ve got two options:
1. Buy a single copy. At the top of the page, choose Single Copy as the music format, and click the Add to Cart button.

2. Buy printing rights for your whole chorus for one low price. At the top of the page, choose Duplicate for Ensemble as the music format, and click Add to Cart.

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