Pipes and Drums
I played the Minstrel Boy because the words and music seemed the most appropriate I could think of
(Private J Brown, Pipes and Drums)
In the accounts of men who survived the ordeal of the Somme it is recounted the role played by the Pipes and Drums of the Regiments as they exited the trenches and started what for many would be their final walk; a walk into no man's land and the hail laid down by german machine gunners.
Men talked about the beat of the big drum as they marched forward and others recounted hearing the pipes playing all along the frontline.
One piper of the Tyneside Irish, Private Brown later said he played the Minstrel boy because the words and music seemed the most appropriate he could think of at that moment in time.
But why The Minstrel Boy?
Well, The Minstrel Boy has always resonated among Irish men as evoking a sense of selfless devotion to one’s country; the country of Ireland.
Written by Thomas Moore, it is set to an old traditional irish folk song and speaks of the sense of freedom that the irish people sought when tied to the British Empire and its popularity resonates as much today as it did when Moore first published it as part of his collection of songs and melodies or when the men of the Tyneside Irish entered the hell of the battlefield on the first of July 1916.
It is set to an old Irish folk tune called The Moreen but Its true origins are unknown. Moore first published The Minstrel Boy in his collection of songs and poems called Irish Melodies.There were many other fine songs in the collection, but it was The Minstrel Boy that went on to capture people’s imaginations all over the world and it’s still the song for which Moore is best known today.
THE MINSTREL BOY
by Thomas Moore
The Minstrel Boy to the war is gone
In the ranks of death you will find him;
His father's sword he hath girded on,
And his wild harp slung behind him;"
Land of Song!" said the warrior bard,
"Tho' all the world betrays thee,
One sword, at least, thy rights shall guard,
One faithful harp shall praise thee!"
The Minstrel fell! But the foeman's chain
Could not bring that proud soul under;
The harp he lov'd ne'er spoke again,
For he tore its chords asunder;
And said "No chains shall sully thee,
Thou soul of love and brav'ry!
Thy songs were made for the pure and free,
They shall never sound in slavery!"
The Minstrel Boy will return we pray
When we hear the news we all will cheer it,
The minstrel boy will return one day,
Torn perhaps in body, not in spirit.
Then may he play on his harp in peace,
In a world such as Heaven intended,
For all the bitterness of man must cease,
And ev'ry battle must be ended.
(Private J Brown, Pipes and Drums)
In the accounts of men who survived the ordeal of the Somme it is recounted the role played by the Pipes and Drums of the Regiments as they exited the trenches and started what for many would be their final walk; a walk into no man's land and the hail laid down by german machine gunners.
Men talked about the beat of the big drum as they marched forward and others recounted hearing the pipes playing all along the frontline.
One piper of the Tyneside Irish, Private Brown later said he played the Minstrel boy because the words and music seemed the most appropriate he could think of at that moment in time.
But why The Minstrel Boy?
Well, The Minstrel Boy has always resonated among Irish men as evoking a sense of selfless devotion to one’s country; the country of Ireland.
Written by Thomas Moore, it is set to an old traditional irish folk song and speaks of the sense of freedom that the irish people sought when tied to the British Empire and its popularity resonates as much today as it did when Moore first published it as part of his collection of songs and melodies or when the men of the Tyneside Irish entered the hell of the battlefield on the first of July 1916.
It is set to an old Irish folk tune called The Moreen but Its true origins are unknown. Moore first published The Minstrel Boy in his collection of songs and poems called Irish Melodies.There were many other fine songs in the collection, but it was The Minstrel Boy that went on to capture people’s imaginations all over the world and it’s still the song for which Moore is best known today.
THE MINSTREL BOY
by Thomas Moore
The Minstrel Boy to the war is gone
In the ranks of death you will find him;
His father's sword he hath girded on,
And his wild harp slung behind him;"
Land of Song!" said the warrior bard,
"Tho' all the world betrays thee,
One sword, at least, thy rights shall guard,
One faithful harp shall praise thee!"
The Minstrel fell! But the foeman's chain
Could not bring that proud soul under;
The harp he lov'd ne'er spoke again,
For he tore its chords asunder;
And said "No chains shall sully thee,
Thou soul of love and brav'ry!
Thy songs were made for the pure and free,
They shall never sound in slavery!"
The Minstrel Boy will return we pray
When we hear the news we all will cheer it,
The minstrel boy will return one day,
Torn perhaps in body, not in spirit.
Then may he play on his harp in peace,
In a world such as Heaven intended,
For all the bitterness of man must cease,
And ev'ry battle must be ended.