| Author | Topic: Added: The Minstrel Boy | |
| dmcg | Posted - 17 Feb 07 - 09:45 am | |
The minstrel boy to the war is gone; In the ranks of death you'll find him. His father's sword he has girded on, And his wild harp slung behind him "Land of song", said the warrior bard, "Though all the world betray thee, One sword at least thy rights shall guard, One faithful harp shall praise thee." (Additional verse that was not in the pamphlet follows:) The Minstrel fell! But the foeman's chain Could not bring that proud soul under; The harp he lov'd ne'er spoke again, For he tore its chords asunder; And said "No chains shall sully thee, Thou soul of love and brav'ry! Thy songs were made for the pure and free They shall never sound in slavery! Source: Singing Together, Summer 1951, BBC Publications Notes: Identified simply as "Irish Melody." According to Wikipedia, "The Minstrel Boy" is a song written by Thomas Moore (1779-1852) who set it to the melody of The Moreen, an old Irish air. It is widely believed that Moore composed the song in remembrance of a number of his friends, whom he met while studying at Trinity College, Dublin and who had participated in (and were killed during) the 1798 rebellion of the United Irishmen. However, the song gained widespread popularity and became a favorite of many Irishmen who fought during the United States Civil War. Roud: 2454 (Search Roud index at VWML) | ||
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Posted - 17 Feb 07 - 01:44 pm | |
From: Radford THE MINSTREL BOY The minstrel boy to the war is gone, In the ranks of death you'll find him; His father's sword he hath girded on, And his wild harp slung behind him; "Land of Song!" cried the warrior bard, (Should) "Tho' all the world betrays thee, One sword, at least, thy rights shall guard, One faithful harp shall praise thee!" The Minstrel fell! But the foeman's steel Could not bring that proud soul under; The harp he lov'd ne'er spoke again, For he tore its chords asunder; And said "No chains shall sully thee, Thou soul of love and brav'ry! Thy songs were made for the pure and free They shall never sound in slavery. These are the words I have and the tune is one that is used on the church Carillon at Adderbury, Oxfordshire, ST MARYS the Virgin - Built c1250 The Carillon was installed - 1880 - 1st played Sept 4th. The tunes are played every three hours throughout the day, with a different tune each day. SUN - O WORSHIP THE KING MON - HARD TIMES COME AGAIN NO MORE TUE - HANDEL�¢â?¬â?¢S MARCH - FROM SPIPIO WED - BLUEBELLS OF SCOTLAND THU - MINSTREL BOY FRI - LAST ROSE OF SUMMER SAT - HOME SWEET HOME Adderbury is famous for its Morris Dance tradition, and I was one of the people who revived this in 1974, and as Bluebells was a dance the team did - I decided to use The Minstel Boy for a new dance to celebrate the revival - and called the dance The Bell, which is named after our favourite village pub in the High Street. Tim Radford | ||