Great, great. I'm glad we found Stephen's song.

Now, to get back to 'Peter's fountain,' which is a rough translation of the other song we've been discussing. I believe a 'Bruenne' (sp)is a well or spring.

I sang this song as an eighth-grader in Milwaukeeland, and the words were leearned were more faithful to the original. The tune was the same as Joe's MIDI above.

Oh, I go to Peter's fountain and what do I hear?
From the misty swamp far away, cuckoo calling so clear.

(yodel refrain from the igeb site)

Holare diria holare, guggu
Holare diria holare, guggu
Holare diria holare, guggu
Holare diria ho

'Tween Easter and Whitsuntide, all the snow melts away.
Then my girl goes and marries, leaving me in dismay.

(yodel refrain)

We sang a pallid and wispy nonsense refrain, which I now realize had been substituted for yodeling. The words just above, which come from a German-language site, are the most yodelable I have seen for this song, so I put them in. The e's in 'holore' would be short e's, which lets them slip off the tongue easily, and the r's should be trilled, which also makes them fast to say.


I would change the 'guggu' which must be a southern form, for kukku, which will make more sense to English speakers.

Whitsuntide is Pentecost.

I've never heard anything like the 2nd German verse, but I think it shows real promise:

Und der Adam hat Liab aufbracht
Und der Noah den Wein
Und der David das Zithernschlagn
Miaßn Steirer g'wen sein

Adam brought love (?)
and Noah brought wine
and David the harp-playing
??

...and I don't understand the last line! But if somebody could versify those thoughts, they would be a nice addition to world folksong. Esp the part about the harp. Can't have enough harp in this world.

After that, the verses degenerate into drivel. Something about a girl selling and not selling her clothes. Why bother?

One last thing, it seems natural to me to sing the first two syllables long with a swoop, beer-hall style. Esp when I'm making bratwurst and sauerkraut for dinner.