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Celtic Hist. Newsletter: Early Scottish Popular Song
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hist-@historicgames.com
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Sep 30, 2008 09:33 PDT
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The Celtic History Newsletter
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My apologies if this has gone out twice, but I noticed in the archive
of past articles ( http://lists.topica.com/lists/celtic_history/read )
the September issue of the The Celtic History Newsletter did not
appear, so I'm E-mailing it out a second time just in case something
odd happened the first time.
See you again in a couple days with the October issue.
Early Scottish Popular Song
Breaking forth in song is so natural that we can safely say it is
probably one of the earliest forms of literary composition in any
culture. In Scotland we know that the death of Alexander III (1286
A.D.) was mourned musically, and Scots sang ditties and songs about
Edward I, and Sir William. Wallace. Allusions to popular songs were
made in histories written in the 14th and 15th centuries and a whole
catalogue of songs were listed in the comic work ?Cockilby?s Sow.? An
interesting fact that persisted as late as the mid-1500s was that
while Scotland boasted a number of poets, few of their works were
intended to be set to music.
In all but comparatively recent times, the people have been the makers
of thwir won music. A man felt the charms of his mistress, and a song
came forth from his heart. A official got caught red-handed and some
quick wit came up with a satirical jingle to laughingly spread the
news of it through song. It was often ?beneath? the Poets of Culture
to use anything so natural and ?common? as a subject for their muses.
Of the poems in the ?Bannatyne Manuscript? (c. 1568 A 19th century
reprint is viewable through Google at
http://books.google.com/books?id=d18LAAAAIAAJ&printsec=toc&source=gbs_summary_r&cad=0 ) only two are known to have passed into collections as popular songs. Today anyone with a computer can save their songs (however inane) for posterity. But the tragedy is that only the titles, or at best odd lines and verses of so many early Scottish songs have been preserved. The most we know about the songs from the time of the Bruce and early Stuart reigns is that the existed - a fact that common sense would have assured
us.
It has been suggested that the period of religious struggles following
the Reformation helped rub out ?vulgar and sinful? popular songs.
Evidence of this appears in the ?Buke of Godly Sangs?, printed in
1599 and again in 1621. The ?Buke? was a collection of dull religious
songs, many of them composed to the tunes of vulgar songs in the hopes
of replacing them: -?for the avoidance of sin and harlotrie.? How
successful was this Calvinist musical plot to suppress thoughs of
bonny lassies, ale and merry-making? God and the devil only know, but
I?ll wager a shilling on human nature to the contrary.
This is not to suggest music itself was frowned upon, merely the
course, or ?childish? words that were sung to the music. From as early
as the reign of Charles I there survives the ?Skene Manuscript? which
contains 85 tunes, many of which were intended as dance music. It is
said to be the lute book of a lady of the family of Skene of
Hallyards. While some of the tunes may well have come from popular
airs of the day, only a few can be recognized as variations of
melodies that are still known in other forms. Only two tunes ?The
Flowers of the Forest? and ?Bonnie Dundee? appear under the same, or
nearly the same names.
It seems it was not until the reigns of Charles II and James II that
popular songs were recognized as having merit (or at least commercial
appeal) and Ironically it was in England, not Scotland, that they
began to emerge in polite society. Those who supplied music at the
court and its circles in London may be some of the saviors of early
Scottish popular songs as they wrote new verses to old tunes, or new
tunes in the ?Scotch manner.? Strange to say, some of the latter made
their way back to Scotland and were accepted as if they were true
Scottish productions.
Source: ?Songs of Scotland Prior to Burns,? Chambers, Robert. Ed.)
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