LL-L "Literature" 2004.08.16 (04) [E/S]

[Lowlands-L]

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L O W L A N D S - L * 16.AUG.2004 (04) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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A=Afrikaans Ap=Appalachian B=Brabantish D=Dutch E=English F=Frisian
L=Limburgish LS=Lowlands Saxon (Low German) N=Northumbrian
S=Scots Sh=Shetlandic V=(West)Flemish Z=Zeelandic (Zeêuws)
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From: John Duckworth <jcduckworth2003 at yahoo.co.uk>
Subject: Literature


Ron, you said:

"A'm screengin aboot fur the wirds o fower Scots renaissance sonnets (o the
year 1545 lik), bit A canna git thaim oniegate."

I have found two of them for you:

Lusty May.

[Anonymous, 16th cent.]

O LUSTY May, with Flora queen!
The balmy dropis from Phoebus sheen
         Preluciand beams before the day:
By that Diana growis green
         Through gladness of this lusty May.

Then Esperus, that is so bricht,
Til woful hairtis castis his light,
         With bankis that bloomis on every brae;
And schouris are shed forth of their sicht
         Through gladness of this lusty May.

Birdis on bewis of every birth,
Rejoicing notis makand their mirth
         Richt plesantly upon the spray,
With flourishingis o'er field and firth
         Through gladness of this lusty May.

All luvaris that are in care
To their ladies they do repair
         In fresh morningis before the day,
And are in mirth ay mair and mair
         Through gladness of this lusty May.
O LUSTY May, with Flora queen!
The balmy dropis from Phoebus sheen
         Preluciand beams before the day:
By that Diana growis green
         Through gladness of this lusty May.

Then Esperus, that is so bricht,
Til woful hairtis castis his light,
         With bankis that bloomis on every brae;
And schouris are shed forth of their sicht
         Through gladness of this lusty May.

Birdis on bewis of every birth,
Rejoicing notis makand their mirth
         Richt plesantly upon the spray,
With flourishingis o'er field and firth
         Through gladness of this lusty May.

All luvaris that are in care
To their ladies they do repair
         In fresh morningis before the day,
And are in mirth ay mair and mair
         Through gladness of this lusty May.


Depairte, Depairte.

[Based on a poem by Alexander Scot.]
depairte [depairte] depairte
allace i most depairte
frome her that hes my hart
with hairt full soir
aganis my will in deid
and can find no remeid
i wait the panis of deid
can do no moir

[now most] i go allace
ffrome sicht of hir sueit face
the grund of all my grace
& souerane
quhat chans that may fall me
sall i nevir mirry be
vnto the tyme i se
my sweit agane

i [go and] wait no quhair
i wandir heir and thair
i weip and sichis rycht sair
with panis smart
now most i pas away [away]
in wildirnes & wilsum way
allace this wofull day
we suld depairte

my spreit [dois] quaik(s) for dreid
my thirlit hairt dois bleid
my panis dois exceid
quhat suld i say
i wofull wycht allone
makand ane petous mone
allace my hairt is gone
for evir and ay

throw langour of my sueit
so thirlit is my spreit
my dayis ar most compleit
throw hir absence
chryst sen scho knew my smert
ingrawit in my hairt
becaus i most depairte
ffrome hir presens

adew [my awin] sueit thing
my ioy and comforting
my mirth and sollesing
of erdly gloir
fair weill my lady bricht
and my remembrance rycht
ffair weill and haif gud nycht
i say no moir_Wo worth the tyme_ was written by Robert Carverin 1545 (which
is why, I suppose, you must have mentioned that date.)I don't seem to be
able to find you the lyrics though.John DuckworthPreston, UK----------




From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Literature

Thank you so much, John!  This has been a great help.

It's interesting to see courtly verse in Scots.  In Lowlands Saxon (Low
German) -- with which I often compare it, as you well know -- works of this
genre are apparently quite rare, probably because the language was never
associated with aristocratic spheres.  The Old Saxons had no royalty and
despised the mere idea of it, and after they had come to be forced into the
Frankish-dominated empire of Charlesmagne and his heirs, the only dominant
role their language ever had was in commerce.

Here is a rare "elegant" Renaissance (1550) verse in Middle Saxon:

   Van Boleren
   Frouwe Venus

   Id sy frouwe, man effte knecht
   De wârheyt my gar frömde ys
   De truwe gar selten, dat ys wyß
   Ick thee to my der narren vyl
   Und make eynen goek vth wêm yck wyl

My translation:

   About Courtship
   Mistress Venus

   Be it woman, man or boy,
   The truth is rather strange to me,
   Fidelity quite rare, for sure
   I attract a multitude of fools
   And make a dupe of whom I will

However, I would not call this particularly "courtly," or even great poetry,
rather "pseudo-courtly" in a moralistic way.

I wrote:

> The teetles:
>
> Wo worth the tyme
> (Midi: http://members.fortunecity.com/flatpickin/woworth.mid)
>
> O lusty may
> (Midi: http://members.fortunecity.com/flatpickin/lustymay.mid)
>
> Depairte, depairte
> (Midi: http://members.fortunecity.com/flatpickin/depairte.mid)
>
> How Suld My Febil Body Fure
> (Midi: http://members.fortunecity.com/flatpickin/howsuld.mid)

Sorry.  I didn't realize that you can't access these directly, that you need
to access them from the web page I took them from:
http://members.fortunecity.com/flatpickin/mididl.html

I particularly love the tune of "Wo worth the tyme."  It reminds me of the
first time I heard it performed by the King Singers.

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

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