Saxon and Frisian Music

I was born in and grew up in a remote Saxon farming village in North Germany. We were isolated from the outside world to a great extent by endless swamps, peat bogs, etc. Most of the population did not even speak German but rather the Low Saxon language (Plattdeutsch, or rather Plattdueuetsch (damn the lack of umlauts on this keyboard). On entering school, some of my friends had a great deal of difficulty because they could not understand the teacher because the language of instruction was German, a language which they did not understand. Life was the very traditional life of a Saxon farming community. Many of the roofs were thatched and the typical house was the Saxon Longhouse where the barn and the human residence were combined in one long building. At the gables were carved wooden horseheads which looked down at you spookily when a dense fog rolled in off the North Sea and you couldn't even see your feet but if you looked up you could see the horseheads staring down at you.

Wooden shoes were the universal footwear. Grain was taken to a local windmill in horse drawn wagons to be ground into flour. In my mind's eye, I can still see the sails turning and the rhythmic clopping of the wooden gears of the windmill.

It was a life of hard physical labor, relieved by traditional festivals and weddings and funerals. There was no band at the country dances. Rather, people sang the music that they danced to. And there seemed to be a preference for songs that were slightly risque or humorous. In the following, I will provide what I can remember of some of the songs and I will follow with a translation into English.

Nu Danzt Hannemann

Nu Danzt Hannemann, nu danzt Hannemann
Nu danzt Hannemann und siener Leeven Fruh

Oh du mien Moeppelken, mien Moeppelken, mien Moeppelken
Oh du mien Moeppelken, mien Moeppelken bist du.

He hat'n scheev Gesicht, He hat'n scheev Gesicht
He hat'n scheev gesicht, un een paar grote Ohrn.

Oh du mien Moeppelken, mien Moeppelken, mien Moeppelken
Oh du mien Moeppelken, mien Moeppelken bist du.

He hat Stevel an, He hat Stevel an
He hat Stevel an un een paar blanke Schoh

Oh du mien Moeppelken, mien Moeppelken, mien Moeppelken
Oh du mien Moeppelken, mien Moeppelken bist du

There are some more stanzas but this is all I remember. Now follows the English translation:

Now dances Hanneman

Now Dances Hannemann, now dances Hannemann
Now dances Hannemann and his beloved wife

Oh you my dear one, my dear one, my dear one
Oh you my dear one, my dear one are you

He has a crooked face, he has a crooked face
He has a crooked face and a great big pair of ears

Oh you my dear one, my dear one, my dear one
Oh you my dear one, my dear one are you.

He has boots on, he has boots on
He has boots on and a pair of white shoes

Oh you my dear one, my dear one , my dear one
Oh you my dear one, my dear one are you.

With a great deal of amusement, my mother remembered my little girlfriend, Erika, and I, six or seven years old, arm in arm, clattering off to a funeral in our wooden shoes, singing the following song:

Lott is dood! Lott is dood!
Jule liegt in't Starven!
Laat ehr man!Laat ehr man!
Denn gift dat wat to arven.

Eeen, twee, dree, veer!
In'd'n Hoppensack,
In d'n Hoppensack,
In d'n Hoppensack is Fuer!

In English. (I believe the Hopsack was a local pub)

Lott is dead! Lott is dead!
Jule lies in a ditch!
Let her man! Let her man!
Then there's more to inherit.

One, two,three, four!
In the Hopsack,
In the Hopsack,
In the Hopsack there is fire!

I don't know if there is anyone interested in this stuff but I may follow with some more songs.

The following is a very old Saxon love song from the web site of Geoff Grainger. Geoff is an Englishman who fell in love but she rejected him. He was so distraught that he decided to either commit suicide or join the British army. He joined the army and was stationed in Lower Saxony, where he fell in love with the culture, language, music, etc. He has been making a living for years performing Saxon and Frisian folk music. In other words, he went native. He said that he had a much easier time learning Low Saxon than German because the language is so much closer to English. He said that he first heard Dat du mien Leefsten Buest performed by a choir of elementary school children. A strange but beautiful song for such young children to sing.

In regard to pronunciation, the most glaring oddity is pronunciation of the letter G. If the letter G is not followed by a vowel, it is pronounced CH. Segg is thus pronounced sech. For lack of umlauts on this cursed keyboard, I am spelling the umlaut of O as oe. This keyboard also does not have a sharp S, so I am substituting a ss.

Dat du mien Leefsten Buest

1. Dat du mien Leefsten buest, dat du woll weesst.
Kumm bi de nacht, kumm bi de nacht, segg wo du heest (x2)

2. Kumm du um Middernacht, kum du klock een!
Vader sloeppt, Moder sloeppt, ik slaap alleen. (x2)

3. Klopp an de Kamerdoeoer, Faat an de Klink!
Vader meint, Moder meint, dat deit de Wind. (x2)

4. Kummt denn de Morgenstund, kreit de ol Hahn.
Leefster mien, Leefster mien, nu moesst du gahn. (x2)

5. Sachen den Gang henlank, lies mit de Klink!
Vader meent, Moder meint, dat deit de Wind. (x2)

My translation into English

That you're my Dearest One

1. That you're my dearest one, that you well know
Come by at night, come by at night, say who you are. (x2)

2. Come by at midnight, come at clock one!
Father sleeps, mother sleeps, I sleep alone. (x2)

3. Knock on the chamberdoor, grasp on the latch!
Father thinks, mother thinks, that it's the wind. (x2)

4. Comes now the morning hour, cries the old cock.
Dearest mine, dearest mine, now you must go. (x2)

5. Walk down the passageway, leave by the latch!
Father thinks, mother thinks, that it's the wind. (x2)







The following is a very old dance song. The dancers are lined up in a row of men facing a row of women (all wearing wooden shoes, of course)and they dance close to each other and then away from each other, etc.

Gah vun mi! Gah vun mi!
Ik will di nich sehn.
Kumm to mi! Kumm to mi!
Ik buen so alleen!
Fideralalala! Fideralalala!
Kumm to mi! Kumm to mi!
Ik buen so alleen!

Un wullt du nich kamen,
So will ik di haaln
Mit Peer un mit Wagen
Mit iesen beslaan.
Fideralalala! Fideralalala!
Mit Peer un mit Wagen
Mit Iesen beslaan.

My English translation.

Go from me! Go from me!
I don't want to see you.
Come to me! Come to me!
I am so alone!
Fideralalala! Fideralalala!
Come to me! Come to me!
I am so alone!

And if you don't want to
I will haul you!
With horse and with wagon

All studded with iron
Fideralalala! Fideralalala!
With horse and with wagon.

All studded with iron