The Northumbrian bagpipes (William Whittaker)
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- (Posted 2023-12-20) CPDL #78392:
- Editor: David Anderson (submitted 2023-12-20). Score information: Letter, 12 pages, 631 kB Copyright: Personal
- Edition notes:
General Information
Title: The Northumbrian bagpipes
Composer: Anonymous (Traditional)
Arranger: William Whittaker
Lyricist: Thomas d’Urfey
Number of voices: 4vv Voicing: SATB, A divisi
Genre: Secular, Partsong, Folksong
Language: English
Instruments: A cappella
First published: 1920 Bayley & Ferguson
Description: Note by Whittaker: The Northumbrian or Small Pipes differ from their better known Scottish brethren in several particulars .They are small, the tone is sweet and chirping, but not strong, and bellows are held under the arm. The end of the fingerpipe is stopped, which enables the executant to play staccato at will, a device which adds many characteristics to the tunes composed for or adapted to the instrument. (This point must be borne in mind when singing this choral setting). Quick runs, arpeggi, scales, trills, and embellishments of all kinds are possible, and, moreover, in keeping with the quality of tone, and are therefore largely indulged in by performers.
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Original text and translations
English text
A shepherd sat him under a thorn,
He pull’d out a pipe, and began for to play,
It was on a Midsummer Day in the morn,
For honour of that holiday.
A ditty he did chant along,
That goes to the tune of “Cater Bordee;”
And this was the burden of his song:
If thou wilt pipe, lad, I’ll dance to thee,
To thee, to thee, derry, derry, to thee;
To thee, to thee, derry, derry, to thee;
And this was the burden of his song:
If thou wilt pipe, lad, I’ll dance to thee.
And while his harmony he did make,
A country damsel from the town,
A basket on her arm she had,
A-gathering rushes from the down,
Her bongrace was of wended straw,
From the sun’s beams her face to free,
And thus she began when she him saw—
If thou wilt pipe, lad, I’ll dance to thee,
To thee, to thee, derry, derry, to thee;
To thee, to thee, derry, derry, to thee;
And this was the burden of her song:
If thou wilt pipe, lad, I’ll dance to thee.
Wit and Mirth: Or Pills to Purge Melancholy (1698)