This anthology comprises 201 carols (many in more than one musical setting) supplemented with extensive notes on historical background and performance. Period settings and primary sources are used wherever possible, with an overriding concern for historically informed performance across the variety of different repertories included. The Oxford Book of Carols, first published in 1928, was a pioneer work, and is still considered the most famous, most complete and most widely used of all carol books. However, 60 years on, significant developments in musicology now necessitate a radical reappraisal of the repertory and a fresh approach to it. This new volume is more diverse in content than its predecessors.