Love Songs of the Medieval World: Lyrics from Europe and Asia
Love was a very popular subject for songwriters across the medieval world, as it is today! This collection preserves lyrics on the topic of love from the Western European "courtly love" tradition, the Chinese genre of _ci_, and the Japanese genre of _waka_.
While many song lyrics survive, most often the musical notation—the melodies—have been lost. Exceptions in this collection include the songs published by Erhard Oeglin, who was a pioneer in European printing and who is responsible for creating many "part books": books which contain the notation for different voices so that they can be sung in harmony by a group of singers. The late medieval French songs in this collection, such as "Two or three days ago", are also written for multiple voices singing in harmony. By contrast, the Chinese song lyrics, also known as _ci_, would have been performed by solo female singers. These were most often composed by male writers, but this collection will also include songs by Li Qingzhao, a celebrated female songwriter of the Northern Song Dynasty.
Entre Sesa et Cintura
Between Sessa and Cintura
Zwischen perg und tieffe tal
Between hill and valley deep
Hertz liebstes pyld
Dearest sight of my heart
Ade mit layd
Farewell! It hurts
Gelück mir trost und hoffnug geit
Fortune grants me comfort and hope
戀歌一、９７９
From the 1st Book of Love. Poem 979.
戀歌二、1077
From the 2nd Book of Love. Poem 1077.
戀歌五、1384
From the 5th Book of Love. Poem 1384.
戀歌五、1388
From the 5th Book of Love. Poem 1388.
Zucht er und lob ir wonet bey
Grace, honor and praise are her domain
Hilf fraw von Ach
Help, our lady of Aachen!
“Atressi cum l’orifans”
Just as the elephant
Mein hertz hat sich mit lieb verpflicht
My heart has made a pact with love
Yetz schaydens wee ist worden kund
Now the depths of my heart
Ha, qu’il m’ennuie!
Oh, how it troubles me!
Unser pfarrer ist auf der pan
Our vicar is away
Le Printemps – L’hécatombe à Diane, VI
The Spring – The Hecatomb for Diane, VI
Le Printemps – L’hécatombe à Diane, VII
The Spring – The Hecatomb for Diane, VII
La fiance que j’ay en vous
The trust that I have in you
木蘭花 · 池塘水綠風微暖
To the tune "Magnolia Flower"—"The water in the pond is green
南歌子 · 鳳髻金泥帶
To the tune "Southland Song"—"Phoenix-like bun and gold-pleated ribbon
一剪梅 · 紅藕香殘玉簟秋
To the tune “A Single Cutting of Plum Blossom”—“The red lotus fragrance still lingered”
永遇樂 · 明月如霜
To the tune “Always Encountering Joy”—“The moon shines so brightly”
菩薩蠻 · 相逢欲話相思苦
To the tune “Bodhisattva Barbarians”—“When I met her, I wanted to tell her about my affliction with lovesickness”
過澗歇近 · 酒醒
To the tune “Cross the Stream and Rest Nearby”—“Sobered up”
醉花陰 · 薄霧濃雰愁永晝
To the tune “Drunk under the Shadow of Flowers”—"In thin fog and heavy mist
臨江仙 · 柳外輕雷池上雨
To the tune “Immortal by the River”—"Beyond the willows there is light thunder
玉蝴蝶 · 誤入平康小巷
To the tune “Jade Butterfly”—“By mistake, I enter a narrow alley in the Pingkang Ward”
玉樓春 · 當年信道情無價
To the tune “Jade Tower in Spring”—“Back then, I believed that love was priceless”
晝夜樂 · 洞房記得初相遇
To the tune “Joys of Day and Night”—“I remember the day we first met in the bedroom”
木蘭花 · 小蓮未解論心素
To the tune “Magnolia Flower”—“Xiaolian has yet to learn to unravel her heart’s tangled feelings”
鹊踏枝 · 檻菊愁煙蘭泣露
To the tune “Magpie Treads the Branch”—"Chrysanthemums by the railings wilt in the mist
留春令 · 畫屏天畔
To the tune “Making the Spring Stay”—“The scene on the painted screen resembles the place”
鳳凰臺上憶吹簫 · 香冷金猊
To the tune “On Top of the Phoenix Terrace, Recalling Flute Music”—"The incense chills in the golden lion
鷓鴣天 · 手撚香箋憶小蓮
To the tune “Partridge in the Sky”—“Holding the fragrant paper in my hand”
鷓鴣天 · 彩袖殷勤捧玉鐘
To the tune “Partridge in the Sky”—“Your colorful sleeves held the jade cup with affection”
採桑子 · 西樓月下當時見
To the tune “Picking Mulberries”—“Back then I met with her in the western building”
採桑子 · 別來長憶西樓事
To the tune “Picking Mulberries”—“Since we parted, I often recall the time in the western building”
江神子 · 乙卯正月二十日夜記夢
To the tune “River God”—Recording a Dream on the Night of the Twentieth of the First Month of 1075 CE
六麼令 · 綠陰春盡
To the tune “Six Beats”—“Green shades of the trees mark the end of spring”
洞仙歌 · 冰肌玉骨
To the tune “Song of the Immortal in the Grotto”—Skin of Ice and Bones of Jade
南歌子 · 天上星河轉
To the tune “Southland Song”—“In the sky, the starry river turns”
玉樓春 · 湖邊柳外樓高處
To the tune “Spring in the Jade Building”—“In a tall building behind the willows by the lakeside”
玉春樓 · 別後不知君遠近
To the tune “Spring in the Jade Building”—“Since we parted I do not know how far away you are”
锦堂春 · 墜髻慵梳
To the tune “Spring of the Brocade Hall”—“Drooping hair-bun, I am too listless to comb it”
定風波 · 自春來
To the tune “Still Wind and Waves”—“Since the spring came”
駐馬聽 · 鳳枕鸞帷
“Stop Your Horse and Listen”—“Phoenix pillows and curtains”
擊梧桐 · 香靨深深
To the tune “Strike the Parasol Tree”—“Her deep dimples are fragrantly powdered”
臨江仙 · 夢後樓臺高鎖
To the tune “The Immortal by the River”—“When I wake up from the dream”
西江月 · 梅花
To the tune “The Moon Over the West River”—Plum Blossom
添字醜奴兒 · 窗前誰種芭蕉樹
To the tune “Vile Charmer, Long Version”—"Who planted the banana trees in front of the window
浪淘沙 · 夢覺
To the tune “Waves Scour the Sand”—“I wake from a dream”
山亭柳 · 贈歌者
To the tune “Willows by the Mountain Pavilion”—To a singer
清平樂 · 留人不住
To the tune ”Qingping Music”—”I could not make him stay”
Passando por la Toscana
Traveling through Tuscany
Depuis deux ou trois jours enca
Two or three days ago
Jus lo front port vostra bella semblança
Underneath my forehead I carry your beautiful image
Saliendo de un oliuar
Walking out of an olive grove
Wer trew mit valsch vergelten wil
Whoever repays loyalty with falsehood