Price codeB
ScottishCatalogue no. 1021
The wee sma’ glen
Music: Frances Cockburn, Words: Marion Angus (1865-1946)
Voicing: SATB
Performance time approx: 1m 15s
Range S: d' – e♭'' / A: b – b' / T: d – d' / B: G – a
Price code: B
Complexity:
This piece is part of the set "Three Marion Angus songs".
The set also includes:
When the beauty of a small valley brings a woman to tears, God knows that he has not made the place in vain. Frances Cockburn’s simple strophic setting is sweet and gentle.
The recording is by Rudsambee Company of Singers, dir. Frances Cockburn, and is available on the album Bottled At Source (RUBEECD003)
The water dreeped frae stane tae stane,
The wild rose bloomed and dee'd its lane,
But lip tae praise it there was nane,
Till Mary cam' tae the Wee Sma' Glen.
It wasna when she pu'ed the briar
Nor lauched tae see the rowans' fire,
But when her e'en grew saft and weet
At sichts ower fair and soonds ower sweet.
The whisper gaed frae hill tae hill,
The very herps o' Heaven grew still;
God minded on the Wee Sma' Glen,
And kenned it wasna wrocht in vain.
Marion Angus
Words in copyright and used with permission from Alan Byatt
Glossary
cam' - came
dee'd - died
dreeped - dripped
frae - from
gaed - went
herps - harps
its lane - alone
lauched - laughed
kenned - knew
minded on - thought about
nane - none
ower - extremely, unusually
pu'ed - pulled
rowan - a native Scottish tree whose leaves turn bright red and orange in autumn
saft - soft
sichts - sights
soonds - sounds
stane - stone
tae - to
wasna - was not
wee - small
weet - wet
wrocht - wrought