Tales of the Supernatural (2002)

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Tales of the Supernatural was the winner of the Classical Music Award for Vocal or Choral Work of the Year in 2005.

Program note

Andrew Ford: Tales of the Supernatural (2002) folk songs for voice and string quartet

1. Niin minä neitonen (Finland)
2. The Great Silkie of Sules Skerry (Scotland)
3. Den förtrollade barnaföderskan (Sweden)
4. The Bay of Biscay (England)
5. The House Carpenter (England/Appalachian Mountains)
6. The Unquiet Grave (England)
7. Niin minä neitonen

The folk songs that comprise Tales of the Supernatural are largely about ghosts or other shape shifters, but they are also all songs about love. The Finnish song that begins and ends the cycle is the voice of a composer, dedicating the sequence of songs to his or her lover.

‘The Great Silkie of Sules Skerry’ concerns a half-man/half-seal who returns from the sea to his earthly lover, the mother of his child, begging her to allow him to take their young son swimming. He goes on to predict that she will marry a proud gunner and that this gunner, with his very first shot, will kill both father and son as they swim at Sules Skerry. In ‘Den förtrollade barnaföderskan’ (‘The Enchanted Childbearer’), a woman is advised by her mother-in-law that the standard human gestation period is seven years and forty weeks. After giving birth to seven-year-old twins, the woman dies. ‘The Bay of Biscay’ is an English song and this particular version is from the time of the Peninsular war. A woman has waited for her sailor lover for seven years. When he finally turns up at her bedroom door, he is a ghost. ‘The House Carpenter’ (sometimes known as ‘The Demon Lover’) tells of a woman lured from domestic bliss with a house carpenter, only to discover, too late, that she has run away off the Devil and he’s taking her to hell. In ‘The Unquiet Grave’, a woman lies dead and buried, while her former betrothed sits despairing at her graveside. At length, she speaks to him, explaining that until he accepts the situation she will never rest in peace.

There are many different versions of most of these songs, and in some cases I have made my selection of verses from more than one source. Particularly in the case of ‘Den förtrollade barnaföderskan’, I have mixed and matched verses from three different versions of the song. With ‘The House Carpenter’ I have interleaved verses from an English version of the song with the version performed by the great Appalachian singer, Clarence Ashley.

Tales of the Supernatural was composed between December 2001 and March 2002. It was commissioned by the Ian Potter Foundation.

© A.F.

Song texts and translations

Niin minä neitonen

Kullalleni minä laulelen
ja kellekäs minä muille.
En minä laula kallioille
enkä metsän puille.

This is how I sing to you, maiden

To my darling I sing my songs.
Who else would I sing them for?
I don’t sing for the rocks or the stones,
or for the forest’s trees.

The Great Silkie of Sules Skerry

An earthly norris sits and sings
And aye she sings, “Ba lilly ween,
And little ken I my bairn’s father
Far less the land that he dwells in.”

Then one arose at her bedfoot
(A grumbly guest I’m sure was he),
Saying, “Here am I, thy bairn’s father
Although I be not full comely.

I am a man upon the land,
I am a silkie on the sea,
And when I’m far and far from land
My home it is in Sules Skerry.”

And he has ta’en a purse of gold
And he has put it on her knee,
Saying, “Give to me my little young son
And take thee up thy nurse’s fee.

And once upon a summer’s day
When the sun shines hot on every stone,
Then I shall take my fine young son
And teach him how to swim the foam.

And you shall marry a proud gunner
And a right fine gunner will he be.
And the very first shot that e’er he shoots
He’ll kill both my young son and me.”

Den förtrollade barnaföderskan

Min fader gav mig så danner man
– allt under den linden så gröna –
den unge herr Olof så hette han
– i riden så varliga genom lunden med henne –

Min kära svärmoder hon gav mig råd
– allt under den linden så gröna –
hur länge plägar kvinnan med barnen gå
– i riden så varliga genom lunden med henne

“I fyrtio veckor på det åttonde år,
så länge plägar kvinnan med barnet gå”

När som det led till det åttonde år
Kjerstin går sig för sin herre att stå:

“Nej jag vill icke på dette landet dö.
Du ska föra mig dit där du togen mig mö.”

Herr Olof han sadlade gångaren grå
Och så lyfter han liten Kjerstin uppå.

Silibrand körde uppåt höga loftet svala
då fick han se sin dotter i lunden fara.

“Å hör ni min fader vad jag frågar eder åt:
Hur länge plägar kvinnan med barnen gå?”

“Fyrtio veckor det vet jag för visst.
Så länge gick Maria med Jesus Krist.”

Å Silibrand lämnar ut kappan blå.
Där föder hon två karska svenbarnen på.

Den förste reste sig och kamma gult hår
“Jag är fyrtio veckor på mitt åttonde år.

Vår farmor sku vi steka som fisken på glöd
Ty hon har vållat vår moders död.”

Det ena så för dom till Kristi dop.
– allt under den linden så gröna
Det andra så för dom till kyrkogård.
– i riden så varliga genom lunden med henne.

—

The enchanted childbearer

My father he gave me a cowardly man
– all under the linden tree so green
young master Olof that was his name
– you rode so gently through the grove with her

My mother-in-law gave me advice
– all under etc . . .
on how long a woman should carry a child
– you rode etc . . .

“For forty weeks into the eighth year,
that is how long a woman bears a child”

When the eighth year arrived
Kjerstin went to stand before her master:

“I don’t want to die in this country.
You shall take me where I became your bride.”

Master Olof saddled a brown mare
and lifted little Kjerstin to the saddle.

Silibrand went up to his high balcony
and saw his daughter ride through the grove.

“Oh listen my father when I ask you this:
How long does a woman bear her children?”

“Forty weeks. I know that for sure.
That is how long Mary went with Jesus Christ.”

Silibrand spread out his blue cloak.
That’s where she gave birth to two boys.

The first boy arose and combed his golden hair,
“I am forty weeks into my eighth year of life.

We’ll fry our grandmother like a fish on a fire
Because she has caused our mother’s death.”

The first boy they drove to be Christened.
– all under the linden tree so green
the other one they drove to the graveyard.
– you rode so gently through the grove with her.

The Bay of Biscay

My William sailed on board the tender,
And where he is I do not know.
For seven long years I have been waiting
Since he has crossed the Bay of Biscay-O.

One night as Mary lay a-sleeping,
A knock came to her bedroom door,
Saying, “Arise, arise my lovely Mary,
It is your true lover William-O.”

So Mary rose, put on her clothing –
So quick she’s opened up the door –
And there she sees her William standing
But his cherry cheeks they are as white as snow.

“Oh William, love, where are your blushes?
Your blushes you had so long ago?”
“Oh Mary, love, the clay has changed me.
I am the ghost of your William-O.

And Mary, love, the dawn is breaking.
The time is come for me to go,
And I must leave you broken-hearted,
Since I have crossed the Bay of Biscay-O.”

And if I had all gold and silver
And all the money in Mexico,
I would give it all to the Queen of England
For just one kiss from my William-O.

For my William sailed on board the tender, etc.

The House Carpenter

“Well met, well met, my own true love.
Well met, well met,” said he.
“I’ve just returned from the salt, salt sea
And it’s all for the love of thee.

Oh I could have married the King’s daughter dear
And she would have married me
But I refused the crown of gold,
And it’s all for the love of thee.”

“Oh I could have married the King’s first son,
And a fine young man was he.
But now I’m married to a house carpenter,
And a nice young man is he.”

“Oh will you forsake your house carpenter
And go along with me?
I’ll take you to where the grass grows green
On the banks of the river Dee.”

“What have you got to maintain me upon
And keep me from slavery?”
“I have seven ships and a hundred jolly boys,
And they at your command shall be.”

She’s calling now her two pretty babes
And gave them kisses three,
Saying, “Stay right here with the house carpenter
And keep him company.”

She’s dressed herself in her Sunday best
Like a high-born lady was she
She shimmered and she shimmered and she proudly stepped
As they walked by the banks of the Dee.

They had not sailed but a short, short time
When she started to weep full-sore,
“I would give all the gold in this round world
Just to see my babes once more.”

“If you had all the gold and silver too
That ever crossed the sea,
You’d never go to land any more
And your babes you will never more see.”

Well they had not sailed but a short, short time
About two weeks, no more
When their ship sprang a leak and they were doomed
And they were far away from the shore.

“I see bright hills of Heaven, my dear,
Where angels come and go.”
“I see dark hills of Hell, my dear,
Where you and I must go.”

—

The Unquiet Grave

Cold blows the wind to my true love,
And gently drops the rain,
I never had but one sweetheart
And in greenwood she lies slain.

I’ll do as much for my sweetheart
As any young man may.
I’ll sit and mourn all on her grave
For twelve months and a day.

When twelve months and one day were past,
The ghost began to speak:
“Why sittest here all on my grave,
And will not let me sleep?”

“There’s one thing that I want, sweetheart,
There’s one thing that I crave,
And that’s a kiss from your lily-white lips,
Then I’ll go from your grave.”

“My breast it is as cold as clay,
My breath is earthly strong;
And if you kiss my cold clay lips,
Your days they won’t be long.”

“When shall we meet again, my love?
When shall we meet again?”
“When all the leaves that fall from the trees
Spring up and grow again.”

—

Kullalleni minä laulelen
ja kellekäs minä muille.
En minä laula kallioille
enkä metsän puille.

To my darling I sing my songs.
Who else would I sing them for?
I don’t sing for the rocks or the stones,
or for the forest’s trees.

Translations from Finnish and Swedish © Anni Heino

Reviews

This cycle of folk songs turned out to be a cleverly integrated work, with suitably spectral interludes linking imaginative settings coloured by propulsive ostinato rhythms, unsettling tremolos, throbbing pizzicatos and bagpipe-like droning . . .

Edwards's voice was uniformly warm and subtly coloured. She appreciated the individual character of these haunting songs and her heartfelt singing was aided by the [Brodsky] quartet's sensitive, well-blended accompaniments.

This is one of Ford's finest and most appealing compositions.

Murray Black, The Australian

Andrew Ford's cycle Tales Of The Supernatural made a major impact. These songs are melodically fairly straightforward . . . but are punctuated by striking instrumental interludes, often the sort of music you wouldn't like to hear alone in a forest on a dark night. This is a compelling work; a recording is desirable.

Fred Blanks, North Shore Times (Sydney)

The low range of the vocal part (written with Robyn Archer's voice in mind) meant that some amplification is necessary. This had the benefit of freeing the singer from the need to project: these are ghost stories, to be sung in a hushed voice around the dying fire. Edwards and the [Brodsky] quartet were master storytellers, drawing the audience in with deliciously covert artistry.

Harriet Cunningham, The Sydney Morning Herald

Andrew Ford's new folksong cycle, Tales of the Supernatural, performed by soprano Jane Edwards with the Australian String Quartet, stood out strikingly. Beguilingly simple in melody but replete with wonderfully inventive string writing, it had one's ears sharply pricked throughout.

Graham Strahle, The Australian