First attempt in arranging German folk song for Dulcimer

jost
06/29/21 07:07:29PM
@jost

Hello everybody,

I tried to adopt the German folk song Klein Wild Vögelein for the Dulcimer noter/drone style by transcriping the sheet music with MuseScore 3 and it's dulcimer plugin.

At least in the synthie of the software it sounds okay (it's to late now for trying it on the MD my neighbours would kill me :) ) and the relation seems to be logical. I'm not quite sure though since I'm not very good in reading and writing musical notation. 

Klein_wild_Voegelein-1.png

So: What do you think? Is the transscription ok? Or is there something to correct? The one note with no position on the C-scale is marked with X (indicating a playing break). The tune is in Aminor.

About the song: It's from Romania, there used to be a German minority ("Siebenbuergen Saxons"). The song is originally in their dialect (see the German Folk Song encyclopedia for dialect lyrics ) but it was translated to high German in the 19th century. I took my notation from the Zupfgeigenhansel song books. 

The lyrics tell the story of a little, wild,  bird (meaning fair young maiden) which sings quite lovely. A rich man try to court her bei impressing her with his riches. He fails: She prefer to be a small, wild, bird, even when he implies that she will suffer from her rejection of him: The sun will still shine and warm her. 

I think, that's quite a lovely although a little dark song

The German lyrics: 
1. Es saß ein klein wild Vögelein 
auf einem grünen Ästchen, 
es sang die ganze Winternacht, 
die Stimm tät laut erklingen. 
Es sang die ganze Winternacht, 
die Stimm tät laut erklingen
  
2. "O, sing mir noch, o sing mir noch, 
du kleines, wildes Vöglein! 
Ich will um deine Federlein 
dir Gold und Seide winden.
Ich will um deine Federlein 
dir Gold und Seide winden." 
  
3. "Behalt dein Gold, behalt dein Seid, 
ich will dir nimmer singen. 
Ich bin ein klein wild Vögelein, 
und niemand kann mich zwingen.
Ich bin ein klein wild Vögelein, 
und niemand kann mich zwingen." 

  
4. "Geh du heraus aus diesem Tal, 
der Reif wird dich auch drücken." 
"Drückt mich der Reif, der Reif so kalt, 


English translation (from Deepl):

1. there sat a small wild birdie 
on a green branch, 
singing all winter night, 
Its voice would ring out loudly. 
It sang the whole winter night, 
the voice would ring out loudly
  
O, sing to me yet, O sing to me yet, 
You little wild bird! 
I will wrap your feathers 
I will wrap gold and silk around your feathers.
I will wrap your feathers 
I will wrap gold and silk around your feathers." 
  
3. keep your gold, keep your silk, 
I will never sing to you. 
I am a little wild bird, 
and no one can force me.
I am a little wild bird, 
and no one can force me." 

4.  "You go out of this valley, 
The hoar frost will press you too." 
"The frost presses me, the frost so cold,
Frau Sonn will refresh me.
If the frost presses me, the frost is so cold,
Ms. Sun will refresh me."  

I will try to record it in the next days and upload the audio then. I will also upload the tab then to the resources section in the forum. 

Regards, Jost.