Tag Archives: lullaby

A Georgian Healing Lullaby

იავნანა, ბატონებო, ვარდო ბატონებო, | o violetnana, o spirit lords, o rosenana, o spirit lords,
იავნანა, ბატონებო, ვარდო ბატონებო, | o violetnana, o spirit lords, o rosenana, o spirit lords,
დატკბით, დატკბით, დაშოშინდით, ვარდო ბატონებო | Enjoy, be calm, o rosenana, o spirit lords,
დატკბით, დატკბით, დაშოშინდით, ვარდო ბატონებო | Enjoy, be calm, o rosenana, o spirit lords.

Context:

This Healing lullaby was collected form an informant who grew up in Georgia. It is only performed when a child is very sick and only by female family members, usually the mother.

Analysis:

In ancient Georgian belief, measles were caused by angry spirits called “ბატონები”. Once a child is
visited by spirits they must be pleaded with to leave. This lullaby contains many religious artifacts from a time when Georgians worshiped pagan gods. Their names remain in Georgian folklore as vocables. For
examples the vocable “ნანა” is through to be derived from a name of a pagan mother goddess. These
vocables, combined with common flowers in Georgian culture such as violets and roses, are used to
decorate the spirits’ names. Combined with this lullaby the child’s room is decorated with flowers and
various fruits. When used in this context we can think of the lullaby as a healing spell to ward off evil
spirits and sway the child into a peaceful sleep. This Georgian lullaby is passed down the
maternal line. The healing ritual is only performed by women and highlights the traditional role of a
maternal figure in Georgian culture as a caretaker.

Moon Song

Song:

“I see the moon and the moon sees me,

The moon sees somebody I wanna see

God bless the moon, and God bless me:

And God bless that somebody I wanna see.”

Context: The informant’s mother sang this song to them as children. The informant is from the East Coast and their mother is from the Southern United States. Informant’s mother was taught this song by their mother growing up as a lullaby to put her to sleep.  


Analysis: This is a children’s lullaby passed through oral tradition across generations. From mother to child, it passes down, connecting generations through song. While the child does not necessarily understand the words being sung to it, the song itself is a family tradition. The purpose of the song (putting a child to bed) holds greater meaning than the actual lyrics of the song. Because it is passed down through song, it is an important oral tradition for this family.

Frère Jacques

TEXT: Frère Jacques

Frère Jacques

Dormez vous? 

Dormez vous?

Sonnez les matines

Sonnez les matines

Ding ding dong

Ding ding dong

INFORMANT DESCRIPTION: Female, 42, French

CONTEXT: This woman’s mother used to sing this song to her, in her crib, when she was a baby. Then she grew up and sang it to her children. It is a French nursery rhyme used to put children to sleep. She said she sometimes even still sang it to her adult children when they had trouble sleeping. It is very tender to her and a very sweet memory. She hopes to sing it to her grandchildren. 

TRANSLATION: Are you sleeping

Are you sleeping?

Brother John

Brother John?

Morning bells are ringing

Morning bells are ringing

Ding ding dong

Ding ding dong

THOUGHTS: The translation has been adapted to English. Changing a typical French name of Jacques to John. Interestingly so because it seems the point of the French words are their melodic quality and annotation that don’t translate to english. I have definitely heard this song before but did not know the context. 

Hush little baby…

Content:

“Hush little baby, don’t say a word

Mama’s gonna buy you a mockingbird

And if that mockingbird won’t sing, 

Mama’s gonna buy you a diamond ring

And if that diamond ring turns to brass,

Mama’s gonna buy you a looking glass.

And if that looking glass gets broke,

Mama’s gonna buy you a mountain goat.”

Background: The informant, S, is a 21 year old who grew up in the southeast United States. Her mother often sang her this song to get her to fall asleep as a child. S’s mother and grandmother are from the southeast U.S., as well. 

Context: S asked her mother what the lyrics to the “mockingbird lullaby” she often sang to S were. S then typed the lyrics and sent them to me via email. 

Analysis: This song, which is sung to babies to fall asleep, is thought to be a regional lullaby for the Southeast United States. It was first collected in Virginia in 1918, and another version with different lyrics was found shortly after in North Carolina. S heard this song when she was living in Georgia. 

See also: For a published literary adaptation of this lullaby, see: Frazee, Marla. Hush, Little Baby: A Folk Song with Pictures. United States, Browndeer Press, 2003.

Per Spelmann

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Nationality: American
Age: 52
Occupation: General Contractor
Residence: Cloverdale, California
Performance Date: May 3, 2021
Primary Language: English

Background:

My informant for this piece is an American of Scandinavian descent. He lived in Norway for a time during high school and learned the language while he was there. He also still keeps in contact with his host family from his time living there, and his son recently spent a year abroad there as well. he recalls this song fondly because “we used to sing [it] when our daughter was upset or crying, and it was the only thing that could get her to sleep.”

Context:

Per is a common older name in Norway, and Spelmann is a name too but it literally means “player.” In Norway, a classical or folk musician is called a spelmann. My informant learned the song living Norway in high school when he was learning folk dance, and when they were done dancing he’d “jump up and kick the hat off the stick!” To understand this song, it’s important to know that it is about a musician who had to trade his violin in order to feed his family. Here, he gets it back:

Main Piece

“Per Spellmann han hadde ei einaste ku, Per Spellmann han hadde ei einaste ku,

Per Spellmann (Player) had only one cow, (repeat)

Han bytte bort kua fekk fela igjen, han bytte bort kua fekk fela igjen,

He traded away the cow to get the fiddle back, (repeat)

Det gode, de gamle, fiolin, det fiolin, det fela mi!

The good, the old, violin, violin, that fiddle of mine, (repeat)

Per Spellmann han spelta aa fela hu laat, (repeat)

Per Spellmann played and the fiddle laughed

Saa gutterne dansa, aa jenterne graat, (repeat)

The boys danced and the girls cried.

Det gode, de gamle fiolin, det fiolin, det fela mi!”

Analysis:

This old Norwegian folk song tells us a great deal about the culture and beliefs of Norway’s people. Its basic concept–a man trading his violin to support his family and trading it back for his last cow–is not hard to understand, but it’s very valuable. It might seem that the man simply doesn’t love his family very much, but this isn’t the case. At first, he does trade away his instrument for them, showing how much he cares. But in the end, he trades his last possession of value–his only cow–to get his fiddle back. Although it’s sad for his family, the song shows that this culture values happiness over everything because life is nothing without it. This cultural value is still reflected in Norway’s present-day laws, which factor citizens’ happiness into other national measures of success, ensuring that the people are well taken care of.