Hi to everyone!
I've found it occasionally - the famous song was written in Gaelic originally - wow! http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Zone/6338/mairbhan.html
Does anybody have a link to this variant (youtube or anywhere else)? OR ..(my favourite question ) how to prononce ?
Bren and Dafydd have got it right regarding Mairi/Mhari and girlwiththegreenfiddle has the pronounciation right.
Every Hebridian knows this tune but funnily enough I always thought the first line was 'Step the ceilidh on we go'. One thing I've always found strange about the English lyrics is that even though it was written in Gaelic probably in the late 1800's the English words rhyme?????? How the heck?????
Yikes!!!! Found some terrible pap when having a look for Mairi's Wedding on youtube. However, here's version by the legendary Jimmy Shand. (people don't dance like this in real life in the Highlands by the way!)
C- R- I -C -K- E -Y, sorry, I know this is my fourth post in a row on this subject but if anyone needs an ego boost put Mairi's Wedding into youtube. What the HECK are these people doing playing in public. It's breach of the peace at best!!!!!
Just been looking at the Digital Tradition website. Someone there is saying that it was "Written in Gaelic by Johnny Bannerman in 1938" and " Translated into English by Sir Hugh Robertson in 1939"
Amazing how much we've all found out as a result of a chance posting from a member in Russia!
Here is a cunning plan:
1) Study and learn everything that's ever been written in the discussion section of this website.
2) Enter as a contender on "Mastermind" (UK TV), with "traditional trivia" as one's specialist subject.
More trivia wanted?
- M.W. was a big hit in Canada for the Rankin family.
- Mairi's Wedding is a dance.
- So is Mairi's Divorce.
- "celtic" rock bands The Brogues, Cellarfolks und Fiddler’s Green recorded it and made it popular among younger people over here.
Look forward to seeing you as a contestant on Mastermind, then kuec! Specialist subject: M(h)airi's Wedding!
Though many would not agree, I think that it's a great little tune, (altough admittedly somewhat hackneyed). Its quite simple, yet somehow punches above its weight. Uses a hexatonic scale, and doesn't resolve on its keynote.
I would associate this tune very much with the Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem back in the 1960s - I think it was Liam that sang the solo verses. It was a great favourite in folk clubs or at "sing songs". Noel Hill does a lovely concertina version of the tune as a polka - see http://www.thesession.org/recordings/display/1656 and played like that that, I can't see any reason why it shouldn't be played in a session.
Be warned - the link given on the Noel Hill recording listing for Mairi's Wedding leads to the wrong melody and the correct one has already been listed by Kenny above.
MixO - am I right in assuming that this hexatonic scale is typically Scottish? The first bars of each part sound like a central European polka but the ends don't.
Mairi's Wedding fits on the Highland Bagpipe in D apart from having a top b note (that a piper could find a substitute for). Yes, it's hexatonic in that all the notes of the major scale are there except the 7th. But what the Gaelic music of Scotland is well known for is having a lot of *pentatonic* tunes: in the case of major tunes, they omit the 4th and the 7th. If you want to hear really good singing and playing of songs in this tradition, listen to the albums of Julie Fowlis.
For the record, I think Mairi's Wedding is a really good, sparkly tune.
kuec - as nicholas rightly says, Scottish tunes not using the full scale tend to be pentatonic - i.e. with two missing notes, rather than one, as is the case with Mairi's Wedding. I think that is what makes it distinctive - along with not resolving on its keynote. Its actually quite difficult to find another tune to set with it - any suggestions, anybody? Preferably another Scottish tune.
Mix O'Lydian - The Barren Rocks Of Aden which is normally played in D could accompany M's W. I can't think of anything else right away, but a check through polkas in D might turn up a few more Scottish quicksteps in that key. (And same applies to polkas in other keys, if desired.)
A good very suggestion, nicholas. Come to think of it, that tune "sparkles" as well. So if you could think of another similar to make a set of three, 'twould be a veritable packet of sparklers!
Although I know MW and BROA, my knowledge of Scottish quicksteps is somewhat scant. Keen to find out more.
Ooops - and Bonny Hieland Laddie - don't believe I know that one - unless it's the same tune as the one I know simply as "Hieland Laddie" (similar to the song "Donkey Riding") ...
An excellent suggestion, oldstrings. And convenient too, as I already know it. Another tune with many names, of course. I learnt it many years ago, and the person who gave it to me told me it was called "The Liberton Pipe Band". Only later did I find out the various other names - I believe that "Maids of Ardagh" is the one most commonly used today.
Mairi's Wedding
Mairi's Wedding
Hi to everyone!
) how to prononce ?
I've found it occasionally - the famous song was written in Gaelic originally - wow!
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Zone/6338/mairbhan.html
Does anybody have a link to this variant (youtube or anywhere else)? OR ..(my favourite question
thanks for the help
# Posted on September 23rd 2008 by severus
Re: Mairi's Wedding
"Mairi's" is pronounced "MARR-iz" (it rhymes with "carries", "marries", "Gary's", "Barry's", and so on.
I assume Mairi is a Gaelic form of the name Mary.
# Posted on September 23rd 2008 by nicholas
Re: Mairi's Wedding
John Martyn did a great version of this, in English
# Posted on September 23rd 2008 by bodhran bliss
Re: Mairi's Wedding
He also did a version of Spencer the Rover that has stuck in many peoples' heads.
# Posted on September 23rd 2008 by Guernsey Pete
Re: Mairi's Wedding
I don't know if it's a Cape Breton variant generally, or just unique to her, but Mairi Rankin and her bandmates in Beolach pronounce it "Maddy".
# Posted on September 23rd 2008 by GaryAMartin
Re: Mairi's Wedding
and what about the spelling of the lyric?
# Posted on September 23rd 2008 by severus
Re: Mairi's Wedding
I was in the Milwaukee Irish Fest Choir a few years ago and we always sang it Marri (rhymed with tar-y). Huh.
# Posted on September 23rd 2008 by girlwiththegreenfiddle
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Guernsey Pete wrote:
>[John Martyn] also did a version of Spencer the Rover that has stuck in many peoples' heads.
I rather like his version of "Eibhlí Gheal Chiún Ni Chearbhaill," with the phasing effect from the Leslie speakers.
And, of course, there's his rendition of "Johnny Too Bad"...
# Posted on September 23rd 2008 by sts
Re: Mairi's Wedding
step we gaily on we go!
heel for heel and toe for toe...
incidently i went to a wedding a couple of years ago where somebody called Mairi was getting married.
NOBODY SANG THIS TUNE!
i was shocked and saddened.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by DubChieftain
Re: Mairi's Wedding
If it's written Mhairi, they pronounce it Vary.
It's a good toe-tapper and also puts me in mind of Richard Thompson's excellent "Nobody's Wedding"
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Bren
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Billy Connolly's yer man.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Kenny
Re: Mairi's Wedding
You would only say Mhairi if you were addressing Mairi." Oh Mary,would you come here please" would start "A Mhairi."
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by dafydd
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Hi Sev - the tune originates from the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides (off the North West coast of Scotland).
Further to DunChieftain's comment, I thought I might as well post all the lyrics:
Step we gaily on we go
Heel for heel and toe for toe
Arm in arm and row and row
All for Mairi' s wedding
Over hill-way up and down
Myrtle green and bracken brown
Past the shieling through the town
All for Mairi's wedding
Plenty herring plenty meal
Plenty peat tae fill her creel
Plenty bonny bairns as weel
That's the toast for Mairi
Cheeks as bright as rowans are
Brighter far than any star
Fairest of them all by far
is my darling Mairi
Over hill-ways up and down
Myrtle green and bracken brown
Past the sheiling through the town
All for sake of Mhairi
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Bren and Dafydd have got it right regarding Mairi/Mhari and girlwiththegreenfiddle has the pronounciation right.
Every Hebridian knows this tune but funnily enough I always thought the first line was 'Step the ceilidh on we go'. One thing I've always found strange about the English lyrics is that even though it was written in Gaelic probably in the late 1800's the English words rhyme?????? How the heck?????
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Bogman
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Yikes!!!! Found some terrible pap when having a look for Mairi's Wedding on youtube. However, here's version by the legendary Jimmy Shand. (people don't dance like this in real life in the Highlands by the way!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCptMS8IZvA
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Bogman
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Or maybe that should read Islands rather than Highlands
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Bogman
Re: Mairi's Wedding
C- R- I -C -K- E -Y, sorry, I know this is my fourth post in a row on this subject but if anyone needs an ego boost put Mairi's Wedding into youtube. What the HECK are these people doing playing in public. It's breach of the peace at best!!!!!
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Bogman
Re: Mairi's Wedding
bogman - my understanding is that the lyrics are of known authorship (Hugh Roberston), and post-date the tune.
Q. If so, was Hugh Roberston a Scots Gaelic speaker? Does anyone know?
Q. Does anyone have a Gaelic version of the lyrics?
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Addendum:
Just been looking at the Digital Tradition website. Someone there is saying that it was "Written in Gaelic by Johnny Bannerman in 1938" and " Translated into English by Sir Hugh Robertson in 1939"
Is this information correct?
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Just found this, with the date given as 1935
'S i mo ghaol-sa Màiri Bhàn
Màiri bhòidheach sgeul mo dhàin,
Gaol mo chridh'-sa Màiri Bhàn,
'S tha mi 'dol 'ga pòsadh.
Thuit mi ann an gaol an raoir,
Bha mo chridhe shuas air beinn,
Màiri Bhàn ri m' thaobh a' seinn;
Tha mi 'dol 'ga pòsadh.
'S ann aig céilidh aig a' Mhòd
Thachair mise ris an òigh'
'S i-se choisinn am Bonn Òir;
'S tha mi 'dol 'ga pòsadh.
Bi mo ghaol do Mhàiri Bhàn
Dìleas, dùrachail gu bràth,
Seinnidh sinn d'a chéil' ar gràdh;
'S tha mi 'dol 'ga pòsadh.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
... I guess this would explain the rhyming achieved by the Robertson "translation" - it's not a direct translation - more of a "free" translation ...
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Sometimes called "Lewis Bridal Song"
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Bren
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Yes, indeed Bren. I added that name as an alternative in the tune section earlier today!
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Amazing how much we've all found out as a result of a chance posting from a member in Russia!
Here is a cunning plan:
1) Study and learn everything that's ever been written in the discussion section of this website.
2) Enter as a contender on "Mastermind" (UK TV), with "traditional trivia" as one's specialist subject.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
See the mudcat cafe thread:
http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=110510
I love the traditional trivia idea as I spent some time researching this.
http://www.celtic-rock.de/archives/779
(Use babelfish and see what happens
If you must sing this song at all use Ian McCalman's lyrics:
Sell we gaily on we go
Down at heel so we must blow
Hills and islands row on row
All for the sake of money
Her father died, the land was sold, Marie tried to keep a hold
Scottish law and foreign gold - cancel Marie's wedding
All you need for stream and ben ... is Deutschmark, Guilder, Franc or Yen
Then ... sell it on again for the sake of money
Buy a castle, buy a glen, sitting tenants "no prob-lem"
Highland clearances again for the sake of money
Plenty fish to fill the creels, plenty agents fixing deals
Lawyers dancing jigs and reels for the sake of money
Other countries you will find, it's not allowed but never mind
Here's our land for auld lang syne, all it takes is money
You think you're safe - you spoke too soon; they've seen the film, they've hummed the tune
'Braveheart' meets 'Brigadoon', all for the sake of money
Tune Mairi's Wedding (Lewis Bridal Song)
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by kuec
Re: Mairi's Wedding- see comments...
http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display.php/706
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Kenny
Re: Mairi's Wedding
>[John Martyn] also did a version of Spencer the Rover that has stuck in many peoples' heads.
continuing the trad trivia subthread, can anyone confirm that this is the only traditional song to namecheck Rotherham?
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Mike Floorstand
Spencer the Rover
I suppose you're right, Mike but who could prove it?
And don't forget the version by Robin and Barry Dransfield.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by kuec
Re: Mairi's Wedding
More trivia wanted?
- M.W. was a big hit in Canada for the Rankin family.
- Mairi's Wedding is a dance.
- So is Mairi's Divorce.
- "celtic" rock bands The Brogues, Cellarfolks und Fiddler’s Green recorded it and made it popular among younger people over here.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by kuec
Spencer The Rover
Muckram Wakes - A MAP OF DERBYSHIRE (Trailer)
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Niles H
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Look forward to seeing you as a contestant on Mastermind, then kuec! Specialist subject: M(h)airi's Wedding!
Though many would not agree, I think that it's a great little tune, (altough admittedly somewhat hackneyed). Its quite simple, yet somehow punches above its weight. Uses a hexatonic scale, and doesn't resolve on its keynote.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
I would associate this tune very much with the Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem back in the 1960s - I think it was Liam that sang the solo verses. It was a great favourite in folk clubs or at "sing songs". Noel Hill does a lovely concertina version of the tune as a polka - see http://www.thesession.org/recordings/display/1656 and played like that that, I can't see any reason why it shouldn't be played in a session.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Bannerman
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Be warned - the link given on the Noel Hill recording listing for Mairi's Wedding leads to the wrong melody and the correct one has already been listed by Kenny above.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Bannerman
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Did I imagine it or was there a Jewish parody of this on "Mudcat" at one point, "Moshe's Wedding", which started off "Schlepp we gaily... " ?
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Kenny
Re: Mairi's Wedding
... or was it "Schtupp we gaily..." ?
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Kenny
Re: Mairi's Wedding
"Schlepp" would make more sense meaning - to pull, carry a heavy load. If it was on Mudcat I should have come across it but it's new to me.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by kuec
Re: Mairi's Wedding
MixO - am I right in assuming that this hexatonic scale is typically Scottish? The first bars of each part sound like a central European polka but the ends don't.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by kuec
Re: Mairi's Wedding
I remember singing as child in school in Glasgow,and they called it The Lewis Bridal Song I believe that is the original title.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by dafydd
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Thanks for the McCalman words, kuec!
Mairi's Wedding fits on the Highland Bagpipe in D apart from having a top b note (that a piper could find a substitute for). Yes, it's hexatonic in that all the notes of the major scale are there except the 7th. But what the Gaelic music of Scotland is well known for is having a lot of *pentatonic* tunes: in the case of major tunes, they omit the 4th and the 7th. If you want to hear really good singing and playing of songs in this tradition, listen to the albums of Julie Fowlis.
For the record, I think Mairi's Wedding is a really good, sparkly tune.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by nicholas
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Thanks for that , Nicholas. Never heard of Julie before, she has a really nice voice.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Ramiro
Re: Mairi's Wedding
kuec - as nicholas rightly says, Scottish tunes not using the full scale tend to be pentatonic - i.e. with two missing notes, rather than one, as is the case with Mairi's Wedding. I think that is what makes it distinctive - along with not resolving on its keynote. Its actually quite difficult to find another tune to set with it - any suggestions, anybody? Preferably another Scottish tune.
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
.... and yes, "sparkly" describes it very well!
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Mix O'Lydian - The Barren Rocks Of Aden which is normally played in D could accompany M's W. I can't think of anything else right away, but a check through polkas in D might turn up a few more Scottish quicksteps in that key. (And same applies to polkas in other keys, if desired.)
# Posted on September 24th 2008 by nicholas
Re: Mairi's Wedding
A good very suggestion, nicholas. Come to think of it, that tune "sparkles" as well. So if you could think of another similar to make a set of three, 'twould be a veritable packet of sparklers!
Although I know MW and BROA, my knowledge of Scottish quicksteps is somewhat scant. Keen to find out more.
# Posted on September 25th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Try The Banks of Inverness or its close cousin, Salmon Tails Up The Water.
# Posted on September 25th 2008 by oldstrings
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Or Jamie Allen, or Bonnie Hieland Laddie.
# Posted on September 25th 2008 by oldstrings
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Quicksteps ? "King George V's Army" or "Barbados Bells".
# Posted on September 25th 2008 by Kenny
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Thanks for the suggestions, oldstrings and kenny.
Already know Salmon Tails and Jamie Allen, and probably wouldn't play either as I feel that these two have probably been played to death.
Don't know Banks of Inverness, King George V's Army or Barbados Bells, so I'lll certainly give those three a try.
# Posted on September 25th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Ooops - and Bonny Hieland Laddie - don't believe I know that one - unless it's the same tune as the one I know simply as "Hieland Laddie" (similar to the song "Donkey Riding") ...
# Posted on September 25th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Yes, same tune, Mix. How about Maids of Ardagh (I Have A Bonnet Trimmed With Blue) instead?
# Posted on September 26th 2008 by oldstrings
Re: Mairi's Wedding
An excellent suggestion, oldstrings. And convenient too, as I already know it. Another tune with many names, of course. I learnt it many years ago, and the person who gave it to me told me it was called "The Liberton Pipe Band". Only later did I find out the various other names - I believe that "Maids of Ardagh" is the one most commonly used today.
# Posted on September 27th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Not in Scotland.
# Posted on September 27th 2008 by Kenny
Re: Mairi's Wedding
My very favorite recording is done by the High Kings.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JddRkt_FYDY
# Posted on September 29th 2008 by JulieDunne
Re: Mairi's Wedding
kenny - by what name is the "Maids of Ardagh" tune most commonly known in Scotland?
# Posted on September 29th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: Mairi's Wedding
errr......"The Liberton Pipe Band" - [ and it has 4 parts ].
# Posted on September 29th 2008 by Kenny
Re: Mairi's Wedding
Ah - that would be Liberton near Edinburgh, then!
# Posted on September 30th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian