Music and Texts of GARY BACHLUND
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On "Uiseag bheag dhearg" - (2017)
for piano
A lullaby from the Isle of Mann recalls, in part, a language almost extinct and now again being taught. In another version titled alternatively "Uiseag Bheag Ruaidh" (Little Red Lark), the text is a traditional Gaelic lullaby from the Isle of Mann. The first verse in Manx: "Uiseag bheag dhearg na monadh duibh / monadh duibh, na monadh duibh / Uiseag bheag dhearg na monadh duibh / Cait do chaidil thu'n raoir 's an i?" (Little red lark from the black moor / The black moor, the black moor / Little red lark from the black moor / Where did you nest last night?)
Graphic from the Moore collection of 1896.
The lyrics to this song were first published in Manx Ballads and Music, collected by A. W. Moore (1853-1909), 1896. No source for the folk melody is mentioned, as recently revisited by some artists, and another melody in the Moore collection suggested melding the two, one predominant and the other as episodic material embedded in the texture. The refrain ends with the sentiment: "And oh, my sleep was peaceful."
2 pages, circa 2' 30" - an MP3 demo is here:
The score is available as a free PDF download, though any major commercial performance or recording of the work is prohibited without prior arrangement with the composer. Click on the graphic below for this piano score.
