A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Schöne Minka

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A Dictionary of Music and Musicians
edited by George Grove

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2707028A Dictionary of Music and Musicians — Schöne MinkaGeorge GroveRussel Martineau

SCHÖNE MINKA. The name by which a certain very popular Ruthenian or Little Russian song is generally known. (The music and original words are given by Pratsch, 'Sobranie russkikh narodnuikh pyesen,' end of vol. i., and the literal German version in Fink, 'Musikalischer Hausschatz,' No. 157.)

$<< \new Staff = "staff" { \override Score.TimeSignature #'stencil = ##f \override Score.BarNumber #'break-visibility = #'#(#f #f #f) \new Voice = "melody" { \relative a' { a4 a a a | a c b a | gis gis gis gis | %eol1 gis b a( gis) | a a a a | a c b a | %eol2 gis e' e, gis | a2 r \bar "||" c4 c c c | %eol3 c e d( c) | b b b b | b d c( b) | %eol4 a a a a | a c b a | gis b e8[ d] c[ b] | a2 r \bar "||" } } \addlyrics { Ein Ko -- sak ritt in den Krieg, _ Sagt dem Mäd -- chen Le -- be -- wohl; Nun, ihr mei -- ne lie -- ben Rap -- pen, Lau -- fot was ihr könnt. Wart doch, wart doch, mein Ko -- sak, Sich dein Mäd -- chen weint um dich. Wenn du mich nun auch ver -- läss -- est, Den -- ke doch _ an _ mich. } } \new Lyrics \with { alignAboveContext = "staff" } { \lyricsto "melody" { Ye -- khav Ko -- zak za Du -- na -- i, Ska -- zal div -- chi -- na pro -- shchai; Vul ko -- ni -- ki vo -- ro -- nen -- ki Na si -- lu -- gu -- lai. Po -- stol, po -- stol ko -- za -- che, Tvo -- ya div -- chi -- na pla -- che, Yak tui me -- ne po -- ki -- da -- esh, Til -- ko po -- _ du _ mai. } } >>$

It is marked by perfect regularity of rhythm and absence of certain eccentricities noted in the article Song, vol. iii. pp. 612, 613, as common in the Cossack and Little Russian songs; and the words are a dialogue in rhymed verse. It is an interesting instance of a Volkslied of one country becoming domesticated in the same capacity in another, and also of the extraordinary transformation which the song may undergo in the process. A very loose imitation of the words of this song, beginning 'Schöne Minka ich muss scheiden,' was published by the German poet Ch. A. Tiedge in 1808, and this, with the melody much altered, is now to be found in most collections of German Volkslieder without notice of the Slavonic source. J. N. Hummel has made this air (rather in its original than in the German form) the subject of 'Adagio, Variazionen und Rondo über ein russisches Thema' for PF., violin, and violoncello, op. 78, and Weber wrote a set of brilliant variations for pianoforte on the same theme.

[ R. M. ]