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The Baffled Knight
"The Baffled Knight" or "Blow Away the Morning Dew" () is a traditional ballad existing in numerous variants. The first-known version was published in Thomas Ravenscroft's ''Deuteromelia'' (1609) with a matching tune, making this one of the few early ballads for which there is extant original music. The song was included in such notable collections as ''Wit and Mirth, or Pills to Purge Melancholy, Pills to Purge Melancholy'' by Thomas d'Urfey (1719–1720) and ''Reliques of Ancient English Poetry'' by Thomas Percy (bishop of Dromore), Thomas Percy (1765). Versions were collected in England, Scotland, the USA, Canada. One version was recorded by Cecil Sharp from John Dingle (Coryton, Devon, 12 September 1905). The "Blow Away the Morning Dew" version was used in the third movement of Ralph Vaughan Williams' ''English Folk Song Suite'' (1923). Norfolk fisherman Sam Larner sang this same melody to Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger in 1958-60, then was filmed performing the song in 1962. S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wit And Mirth, Or Pills To Purge Melancholy
''Wit and Mirth: Or Pills to Purge Melancholy'' is the title of a large collection of songs by Thomas d'Urfey, published between 1698 and 1720, which in its final, six-volume edition held over 1,000 songs and poems. The collection started as a single book compiled and published by Henry Playford who had succeeded his father John Playford as the leading music publisher of the period. Over the next two decades, ''Pills'' went through various editions and expanded into five volumes; in 1719 Thomas D'Urfey reordered and added to the work to produce a new edition (also in 5 volumes) with the title ''Songs Compleat, Pleasant and Divertive'', published by Jacob Tonson. Volumes I and II now consisted entirely of songs with words by D'Urfey, "Set to Musick by Dr. John Blow, Mr. Henry Purcell, and other excellent masters of the town". The edition sold out quickly and in the second printing D'Urfey reverted to the ''Pills'' title. He added Volume 6 in 1720. The title itself may derive from a 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
English Folk Song Suite
''English Folk Song Suite'' is one of English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams' most famous works. It was first published for the military band as ''Folk Song Suite'' and its premiere was given at Kneller Hall on 4 July 1923, conducted by Lt Hector Adkins. The piece was then arranged for full orchestra in 1924 by Vaughan Williams' student Gordon Jacob and published as ''English Folk Song Suite''. The piece was later arranged for British-style brass band in 1956 by Frank Wright and published as ''English Folk Songs Suite''.Published score by Boosey & Hawkes, 1956, ref. B&H 18233 All three versions were published by Boosey & Hawkes; note the use of three different titles for the three different versions. The suite uses the melodies of nine English folk songs, six of which were drawn from from the collection made by Vaughan Williams’ friend and colleague Cecil Sharp.Garofalo, Robert and Graebe, Martin (2014) ‘Focus on Repertoire: Folk songs in Ralph Vaughan Williams' English Fol ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Child Ballads
The Child Ballads are 305 traditional ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants, anthologized by Francis James Child during the second half of the 19th century. Their lyrics and Child's studies of them were published as ''The English and Scottish Popular Ballads''. The tunes of most of the ballads were collected and published by Bertrand Harris Bronson in and around the 1960s. History Age and source of the ballads The ballads vary in age; for instance, the manuscript of "Judas" dates to the thirteenth century and a version of " A Gest of Robyn Hode" was printed in the late fifteenth or early sixteenth century. The majority of the ballads, however, date to the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Although some are claimed to have very ancient influences, only a handful can be definitively traced to before 1600. Moreover, few of the tunes collected are as old as the words. Nevertheless, Child's collection was far more comprehensive than any previous coll ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robene And Makyne
"Robene and Makyne" is a short poem by the 15th-century Scottish makar Robert Henryson. It is an early example of Scottish ''pastourelle'' written in a form of ballad stanza and is almost unique of its kind. Very simple in structure and plot, yet highly compressed, multi-layered and open in its possible interpretations, it exemplifies Henryson's ability to combine complexity and restraint. The brevity and balanced structure of the poem creates effects that invite comparisons with music. Outline Robene and Makyne (also spelt ''Mawkin'') are stock names for peasant characters, a shepherd and a country maiden. Henryson presents the two characters in the sparest of terms and much in the poem has to be inferred. Strictly speaking, nothing in the text verifies precisely who Makyne might be. In the first half of the poem she declares longstanding love for Robene but he is indifferent to her feelings. Minds quickly change and in the closing arc the hopeless declaration is from Roben ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Henryson
Robert Henryson (Middle Scots: Robert Henrysoun) was a poet who flourished in Scotland in the period c. 1460–1500. Counted among the Scots ''makars'', he lived in the royal burgh of Dunfermline and is a distinctive voice in the Northern Renaissance at a time when the culture was on a cusp between medieval and renaissance sensibilities. Little is known of his life, but evidence suggests that he was a teacher who had training in law and the humanities, that he had a connection with Dunfermline Abbey and that he may also have been associated for a period with Glasgow University. His poetry was composed in Middle Scots at a time when this was the state language. His writing consists mainly of narrative works. His surviving body of work amounts to almost 5000 lines. Works Henryson's surviving canon consists of three long poems and around twelve miscellaneous short works in various genres. The longest poem is his '' Morall Fabillis,'' a tight, intricately structured set of thi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peggy Seeger
Margaret "Peggy" Seeger (born June 17, 1935) is an American Folk music, folk singer. She has lived in Britain for more than 60 years, and was married to the singer and songwriter Ewan MacColl until his death in 1989. First American period Seeger's father was Charles Seeger (1886–1979), a folklorist and musicologist; her mother was Seeger's second wife, Ruth Crawford Seeger, Ruth Porter Crawford (1901–1953), a modernist composer who was the first woman to receive a Guggenheim Fellowship. One of her brothers was Mike Seeger, and Pete Seeger was her half-brother. Poet Alan Seeger was her uncle. One of her first recordings was ''American Folk Songs for Children'' (1955). In the 1950s, left-leaning singers such as Paul Robeson and The Weavers began to find that life became difficult because of the influence of McCarthyism. Seeger visited Communist China and as a result had her US passport withdrawn. In 1957, the US State Department had opposed Seeger's attending the 6th World Fe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ewan MacColl
James Henry Miller (25 January 1915 – 22 October 1989), better known by his stage name Ewan MacColl, was a folk singer-songwriter, folk song collector, labour activist and actor. Born in England to Scottish parents, he is known as one of the instigators of the 1960s folk revival as well as for writing such songs as "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and "Dirty Old Town". MacColl collected hundreds of traditional folk songs, including the version of " Scarborough Fair" later popularised by Simon & Garfunkel, and released dozens of albums with A.L. Lloyd, Peggy Seeger and others, mostly of traditional folk songs. He also wrote many left-wing political songs, remaining a steadfast communist throughout his life and engaging in political activism. Early life and early career MacColl was born as James Henry Miller at 4 Andrew Street, in Broughton, Salford, England, to Scottish parents, William Miller and Betsy (née Henry), both socialists. William Miller was an iron moulde ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sam Larner
Samuel James Larner (18 October 1878 – 11 September 1965) was an English fisherman and traditional singer from Winterton-on-Sea, a fishing village in Norfolk, England. His life was the basis for Ewan MacColl's song ''The Shoals of Herring'', and his songs continue to be recorded by revival singers.Roy Palmer, ‘Larner, Samuel James (1878–1965)’, ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, Sept 201accessed 4 May 2017/ref> Early life Sam Larner was born in 1878 to George Ezra Larner (1846-1925) and Jane Amelia Jones Larner () (1847-1926). He started singing from an early age, learning the songs his grandfather and others sang in the pubs at Winterton, and earning pennies by singing them to coach parties that visited the village. Fishing was an almost inevitable occupation for one of nine children of a fisherman father growing up in a village with a population of 800 people, 300 of whom were fishermen. Larner is quoted as saying "Wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over sixty years. Strongly influenced by Tudor music and English folk-song, his output marked a decisive break in British music from its German-dominated style of the 19th century. Vaughan Williams was born to a well-to-do family with strong moral views and a progressive social life. Throughout his life he sought to be of service to his fellow citizens, and believed in making music as available as possible to everybody. He wrote many works for amateur and student performance. He was musically a late developer, not finding his true voice until his late thirties; his studies in 1907–1908 with the French composer Maurice Ravel helped him clarify the textures of his music and free it from Music of Germany, Teutonic influences. Vaughan Williams i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas D'Urfey
Thomas d'Urfey (a.k.a. Tom Durfey; 165326 February 1723) was an English writer and wit. He wrote plays, songs, jokes, and poems. He was an important innovator and contributor in the evolution of the ballad opera. Life D'Urfey was born in Devonshire and began his professional life as a scrivener, but quickly turned to the theatre. In personality, he was considered so affable and amusing that he could make friends with nearly everyone, including such disparate characters as Charles II of England and his brother James II, and in all layers of society. D'Urfey lived in an age of self-conscious elitism and anti-egalitarianism, a reaction against the "leveling" tendencies of the previous Puritan reign during the Interregnum. D'Urfey participated in the Restoration's dominant atmosphere of social climbing: he claimed to be of French Huguenot descent, though he might not have been; and he added an apostrophe to the plain English name Durfey when he was in his 30s. He wrote 500 songs, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coryton, Devon
Coryton is a hamlet and civil parish in the West Devon district of Devon, England, to the north west of Tavistock. Coryton is in the valley of the River Lyd. It has a church and a former mill. There was formerly a railway station on the Launceston and South Devon Railway (later part of the GWR), closed in 1962. Coryton House is a former rectory built in 1836. It is a Grade II listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ir .... References External links Dartmoor Hamlets in Devon {{Devon-geo-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cecil Sharp
Cecil James Sharp (22 November 1859 – 23 June 1924) was an English-born collector of folk songs, folk dances and instrumental music, as well as a lecturer, teacher, composer and musician. He was the pre-eminent activist in the development of the folk-song revival in England during the Edwardian period. According to ''Folk Song in England'', Sharp was the country’s "single most important figure in the study of folk song and music." Sharp collected over four thousand songs from untutored rural singers, both in South-West England and the Southern Appalachian region of the United States. He published an extensive series of song books based on his fieldwork, often with piano arrangements, and wrote an influential theoretical work, English Folk Song: Some Conclusions. He also noted down surviving examples of English Morris dance, Morris dancing, and played an important role in the revival both of the Morris and English country dance. In 1911, he co-founded the English Folk Dance So ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
