Bellman – a Swedish poet in the 18th century (69)

If you want to know some about the Swedish song traditions you must know a little about Bellman. On could call him a national poet/troubadour. This singer/troubadour lived between 1740 and 1795. He accompanied his songs with a lute (a cittern). He always had economic problems. Once he had to escape to Norway to flee the creditors. He spent some time in jail, but king Gustav III helped him to a job. Bellman wrote songs that honored the king and performed in the castle. The themes of his songs were simple and the people who appear in them are dropouts, women of little chastity, boozers and whores. Some well known characters are Mowitz, Fredman and Ulla Winblad. He describes them without moralizing, raw and unembellished. He describes them as they are with sympathy and empathy. His most well known works are The epistles of Fredman and The songs of Fredman. Here is a verse from one of his songs. It´s called Dear brothers sisters and friends. I´ve tried to translate it but without rhyme – it´s almost impossible to translate his poetry. This is at least a try. Dearest friends, brothers and sisters see father Berg screwing and stretching strings on his fiddle and taking the bow in hand. His eye is missing, cleft is his nose look how he is standing spits on the screw; the jar on the chair; he is plucking a little now: ta, ta, ta, ta, ta, grinning in the sun ta, ta, ta, ta, ta, paining his fiddle loosing himself, sometimes he trills. Dearest brothers, on toes you should dance, hats on your heads and gloves in your hands Look on maiden Lona wearing shoes with red bands her socks are new and they are blue! He borrowed melodies from others (there was no copyright those days). If he hadn´t done it the melodies would have been unknown today. He also wrote his own melodies and some of the best are from his hand. He also was a very good impersonator and he could sound like an orchestra when he sang and accompanied himself on the lute imitating different instruments. There is a biography about Bellman in English. Paul Britten Austin: Carl Michael Bellman. Genious of the Swedish Rococo (Malmö 1967). An English singer Martin Best has translated and interpreted some of his songs. They are on Youtube on these addresses: Songs: Sit down around the spring here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qlg1yIifEQY (Vila vid denna källa) Ou´r the misty park of Haga: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACyYbupyNgc&feature=PlayList&p= 36D8BFED8321EA2E&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=88 (Fjäriln vingad syns på Haga) Come forth O lord of Night: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y2sveX2ytQ&feature=PlayList&p= 36D8BFED8321EA2E&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=89 (Träd fram du nattens gud)