The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #13582   Message #112599
Posted By: Philippa
08-Sep-99 - 06:36 PM
Thread Name: Callino Casturame
Subject: Calen o custure me
One version of the Scottish Gaelic "Chailin òig as Stiùramaiche" with English translation can be found in Colm O'Boyle, ed.; Meg Bateman, translator: "Gàir nan Clàrsach / The Harp's Cry" (1994). I also have photocopied pages of several other versions collected in the Western Isles (outer Hebrides) of Scotland, along with copious notes about the song's history. But unfortunately I don't have the bibliographic reference to show what book they were taken from. Possibly one of John Campbell's books. a waulking songs collection? I will try to check this out, but it may take time.

From the afore-mentioned notes: "On 3/12/1908 Malcolm MacFarlane read a paper to the Gaelic Society of Inverness on 'Studies in Gaelic Music' in which the Irish origin of this song was discussed, including the possible identity of its refrain with the unintelligible words spoken by Pistol in Shakespeare's 'Henry V', "Calen O Custure Me". MacFarlane gave the Óranaiche version of the words accompanied by the Irish tune from A P Graves 'Irish Song Book'..."

The articles in Éigse (journal of Irish studies) were by Gerard Murphy and Colm O Lochlainn. I only have second-hand knowledge of them.