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Sample songs below.
In performing 16th and 17th century broadside ballads, we have carefully considered a number of factors that impact the interpretation of the ballad as song. It is impossible for us to know exactly how the ballads were sung during that time. What we do know about the vocal timbre and inflection of British ballad singing, as it has survived in contemporary tradition, comes from field recordings made in the mid 20th century. While these recordings inform our vocal production, we wanted to avoid imitation, especially in regards to accent, making pronunciation choices sometimes difficult. While we did not attempt to imitate English accents, we found that certain rhyme schemes and scansions worked better when we adopted archaic speech patterns. We chose to use a comfortable, “natural” speaking tone, tending towards clear articulation, with minimal ornamentation and vibrato, so as to not obscure the basic melody or text. In some cases we used conventional ornaments when we felt it would enhance the effect of the lyrics.
We also decided to record most of the ballads a cappella, for several reasons. Our primary purpose is to help people connect the ballad with the tune. A solo voice gives the most unadorned version of the melody possible, so as to clearly illustrate the connection between words and
music. While instrumental accompaniment was appropriate in many contexts, particularly in the theatrical ballads and jigs, the ballad tradition is a singer’s tradition, and we wanted to highlight the art of unaccompanied balladry. We have provided several examples of theatrical ballads, with tunes written or adapted by Henry Purcell, upon which we are accompanied on a virginal (a small harpsichord), to demonstrate a style of period accompaniment. By keeping our presentations simple and unadorned we sought to make the ballads as intelligible as possible.
There are only a handful of works on the tunes of the broadsides, starting with William Chappell’s Popular Music of the Olden Times, which laid the foundation upon which subsequent collections were built. Today, however, the most comprehensive and well-researched work is still Claude Simpson's The British Broadside Ballad and its Music (1966), which provides transcriptions of unadorned melodies, painstakingly researched and reconstructed, combined with detailed references to the historical sources of the tunes. We chose the tunes we did for a variety of reasons. In some cases, as in the Purcell tunes, we wanted to illustrate the theatrical style of broadside music.In other cases we chose tunes that were very common, such as “Fortune my Foe” or “Jasper Cunningham,” to show how different ballad texts bring out different aspects of the melody. In other cases we chose particular ballads with interesting subject matter, such as “Battle of the Birds,” which also happened to have a unique and beautiful tune. The eventual goal of this project is to provide sound recordings of every ballad for which there is a known tune, but since this is somewhere in the neighborhood of a thousand ballads, for now we will provide a sampling that we hope will be interesting and useful to students and researchers.

Pepys 1.74-75 A wonder beyond mans expectation,/ In the preseruation of eight men in Greenland from one season to another,/ the like neuer knowne or heard of before, which eight men are come all safely from/ thence in this last Fleet, 1631. whose names are these, William Fakely Gunner, Edward Peliham Gun-/ ners Mate, Iohn Wise Robert Goodfellow Seamen, Thomas Ayers Whalecutter, Henry Rett Cooper,/ Iohn Dawes, Richard Kellet Land men.
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Pepys 2.33v A Letter for a Christian Family. / Directed to all true Christians to Read. / Which being sealed up in heart and mind, / Nothing but truth in it you'l find. / Both old and young, both Rich and Poor, / Bear it in mind, keep it in store: / And think upon the time to come, / For time doth pass, the Glass doth run, / Therefore whilst thou hast time and space, / Call to the Lord above for Grace, / Then he will surely thee defend, / And thou shalt make a happy end.
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Pepys 2.38 The Lamenting Ladies last Farewel to the / WORLD. / Who being in a strange Exile, bewails her own misery, complains / upon fortune and destiny, describeth the manner of her breeding, / deplores the loss of her parents, wishing peace and happines to / England, which was her native Country, and withal resolving for / death, chearfully commended her Soul to Heaven, and her bo-/dy to the earth, and quietly departed this Life, Anno 1650.
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Pepys 2.75 The Bedford-shire VVidow; / OR, / The Poor in Distress Reliev'd, / Being a full and true Relation, of a poor Widow, whose Hus-/band was dead, and she turn'd out of doors by her Creditors, and forced with / her three Children to lye in the street, and Beg for Bread; and how that Queen Mary, walking in her / Garden, and hearing her Beg, came to her, and caused her children to be cloathed and put to Nurse, / and gave the poor widow a weekly pension, to maintain her as long as she liv'd.
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Pepys 2.136 STRANGE and DREADFUL / News from Holland; / OR, / The Sad and Lamentable Account of a Fearful STORM, / that continued for the space of two Days, by which the Seas were inraged to / that degree, that overflowing the Dykes, they broke the Banks, and layed all / the Country of 20 miles, under Water, to the Ruine of many hundred Familys; / Drowning divers Islands in the River Elbe; together with the Villages of Batten-/Rug and Groverot: As likewise, many Houses, Stacks of Corn, Trees, People, / and a great number of Cattle; overthrowing the Chimneys and the tops of the / Houses, the like never heard of before.
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Pepys 2.152 Sad and Dreadful News from / Horsly-Down, in the Parish of St. Mary Magdalen Bermondset; / OR, / A Warning to Brokers, Tally-men, and such like unconscionable Carter-pillars; by the sad Example of Dorothy / Winter-bottom, Alias Dirty-Doll, late of Horsly-Down, who according to her own Report, as 'tis Credibly / attested, by contending with the Devil, received such mortal Bruises, as occasioned her death, she dying on / the 27th. of August, and war buried at St. Olives Southwark, on the 28th. of the same month, 1684. / Reader, behold what Mortals are, when sin / Opens the Gate and lets the Tempter in, / As by this Story may too plain be seen.
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Pepys 2.153 CRIMINALS CRUELTY. / Giving a Just and true Account of one Iohn Wise, who together with Richard Iones, and Charles Tooley yet untaken, / did one Sunday night being the twentieth of April, commit that Barbarous and Unnatural Murther on Elizabeth / Fairbank, Widdow, who lived in a Seller, at Picadilly, that Robbed and Rifled her, being of Money and Plate, / and Rings, for which fact Iohn Wise at present was found guilty, and accordingly received the due Sentance of / Death, the which was Executed on Friday, the 17tnth, of this instant October, 1684. at PICKADILLY.
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Pepys 2.189 The Kentish VVonder. / OR, / The Unmerciful Farmers Misfortune. / Containing an Account of an Old Miser, living in the Town of Maulden in the / County of Kent, that kept his Corn so long, in hopes it would be still Dearer, that at length the very Hogs would / not eat it. Likewise in his Field this Summer, a sheaf of Corn was heard to cry like a young Child while it was / bound, but when it was open, and spread, it ceased; but when bound up again it did the like, to the astonishment of / all Spectators.
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Pepys 2.317 K. William's March to Ireland:/ OR,/ The earnest Prayers and hearty Resolutions of the Noble General, Collonels, Captains,/ and all other Officers and Soldiers, that God would bless the Arms of King William, and/ conquer his Foes, and return in Triumph to his Royal Throne./ His Majesty intending in this His Royal Expedition to lye at these places following:/ Wednesday at Northampton, Thursday at Litchfield, Friday at Whitchurch, Saturday/ at Collonel VVhitleys between Chester and High-lake.
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Pepys 3.93 The Power and Pleasure of Love./ Is here describ'd an Antidote of joy,/ Against all grief, which doth the heart annoy;/ For the greatest Monarch, Clown, and Fool,/ Loves power doth conquer, and keeps all in rule:/ And those who Love, and kind and constant be,/ Live in a continued Extasie;/ But those who do in sorrows constant dwell,/ Were ne'r in Love, and can't it's pleasure tell.
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Pepys 3.165 The Wandring Maiden,/ Or, True Love at length United./ She searcht the Hills and Mountains round,/ in grief and discontent,/ At length her dearest love she found,/ for whom she did lament:/ Then all her tears, and sighs, and fears/ was turned into bliss,/ And in his arms, a thousand charms,/ she sealed with a kiss.
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Pepys 3.342 The Musical Shepherdess, or, Dorinda's Lamentation for the loss of Amintas./ Amintas all Arcadia's Glory was,/ A youth so sweet that all he did surpass,/ But Times all mowing Sith this flower did cut,/ fate to his days the last period put:/ For Musick, and for singing, who but he,/ Was fit to help the Gods with Harmony?/ His fair Dorinda, seeing he was gone,/ And she poor Mournful Damsel left alone./ Invokes the Nymphs to sing his praise,/ Whilst she a Garland Weaves, then ends her days./ Resolving not to stay behind her Love,/ She being deny'd him here, mounts up above.
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Pepys 4.81 A Looking-Glass for Ladies,/ OR,/ A mirrour for married-women./ Lively setting forth the rare Constancy, Chastity, Patience, and purity of Penelope the/ Wife of Ulisses, one of the Grecian Generals, who during the Ten Years absence of her/ Husband at the siege of Troy, was solicited, and importun'd, by numbers of Emminent/ Suitors; who attempted her chastity, and endeavoured to violate her Honour, but never/ could prevail. She addicted her self wholly to Charity, and good Housewifery, until her Husbands return./ Which may serve as a Pattern for all Ladies, Gentlewomen, and others to/ Imitate her vertuous Example.
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Pepys 4.117 Mirth for Citizens: Or, A Comedy for the Country./ Shewing,/ A young Farmer his unfortunate Marriage,/ His Wife is so churlish, so currish in Carriage,/ He married her for beauty, for his own delight,/ Now he repents it both day and night./ By Physognomy, adviseth young men that at (Wenches skip/ To be sure to look before that they lip;/ To leap at a venture and catch a fall,/ Raising the Fore head, breaks Horns and all.
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Pepys 4.144 Mirth for Citizens: Or, A Comedy for the Country./ Shewing,/ A young Farmer his unfortunate Marriage,/ His Wife is so churlish, so currish in Carriage/ He married her for beauty, for his own delight,/ Now he repents it both day and night./ By Physognomy, adviseth young men that at (Wenches skip,/ To be sure to look before that they lip,/ To leap at a venture, and catch a fall,/ Raising the Forehead, breaks Horns, and all.
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