Ich sūche ðich [STTZ - Ancient Tongue]

# Preface

Sir Orfeo is a masterpiece of Middle English romance that reimagines the tragic Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice through the lens of Celtic folklore. In this version, Queen Heurodis is not killed, but abducted by the King of Faerie to a magical Otherworld, prompting Orfeo to abandon his throne and live as a harpist in the wild for ten years. Unlike the original tragedy, this tale ends happily: Orfeo's music is so beautiful that it wins his wife's freedom, allowing them to return triumphantly to their kingdom together.

As you can see, in the Old English and Middle English belief, faeries were mostly evil entities and not seen as the nice characters as we imagine them today.

Source:
https://metseditions.org/read/kx0QpvAhal5RCWAMT63kWFj90aee895

This song is a "Crossover" song. It blends Middle English vocabulary with Middle High German grammar and phonetics (both 14th century), using words that are cognates (share the same root) in both languages (e.g., King/Künic, Hand/Hant, Land/Lant, Life/Līp, Wife/Wīp).

# Lyrics

[Intro - solo lute and harp duet, slow and rhythmic]
(Ōōōō...)
(Mīn Wīf... Mīn Līf...)

[Verse 1 - deep male vocals, clear Germanic pronunciation]
Ich was a King, trū und gōd
{I was a king, true and good}
{Ich war ein König, treu und gut}

Nū is mīn Her-ze swēr zu mōd
{Now is my heart's mood heavy}
{Nun ist's meinem Herzen schwer zu Mut}

Mīn crōn of gold is nū fer-lorn
{My crown of gold is now forlorn}
{Meine goldene Krone ist nun verloren}

In wil-der wōd bin ich ge-born
{In wild wood I am born}
{Im wilden Wald bin ich geboren}

Far-wel mīn halle, far-wel mīn tūr
{Farewell my hall, farewell my door}
{Leb wohl, meine Halle, leb wohl mein Tor.}

Nū slā-fe ich ūf kal-ter flūr
{Now I sleep on the cold floor}
{Nun schlafe ich auf kalter Flur.}

[Pre-Chorus - gentle strumming, building emotion]
Ō Heu-ro-dis, mīn suē-te brūt
{O Herodes, my sweet bride}
{Oh Herodes, meine süße Braut}

Hær mī-ne stim-me, hær mīn lūt
{Hear my voice/stem, hear my lute}
{Hör meine Stimme, höre meine Laute}

[Chorus - layered harmonies, haunting and melodic]
Un-der ðem Im-pe-Trē sō grūene
{Under the imp-tree so green}
{Unter dem Impf-Baum so grün}

Þār cōm ðer El-fen-Künic kūene
{There came the keen elven king}
{Da kam der kühne Elfenkönig}

He nam mīn Wīf bī wī-ze Hant
{He took my wife by wise hand}
{Er nahm mein Weib durch weise Hand}

Und fūr-te sie in Fai-rīe Lant
{And lead her into fairy land}
{Und führte sie ins Feenland.}

(In Fai-rīe Lant...)
{Into fairy land...}
{Ins Feenland...}

(In frem-de Lant...)
{Into foreign land...}
{Ins fremde Land...}

[Instrumental Solo - complex harp arpeggios, Dorian mode]

[Verse 2 - soft vocals with rhythmic picking]
Mīn Har-pe is mīn ān-zic frēond
{My harp is my only friend}
{Meine Harfe ist mein einziger Freund}

Wen ich bī Nacht im wal-de stēond
{When I stand/stay at night in the wood}
{Wenn ich bei Nacht im Walde stand}

Die Vō-gel sin-gen suē-te sanc
{The birds sing a sweet song}
{Die Vögel singen einen süßen Gesang}

Daz ma-chet mī-ne wī-le lanc
{That makes my while long}
{Das macht meine Weile lang}

Die wil-de dēor, Bär und Lēo
{The wild animals, bear and lion}
{Die wilden Tiere, Bär und Löwe}

Sie cō-men stil-le zu Or-fēo
{They come still/silently to Orfeo}
{Sie kommen still zu Orfeo}

[Bridge - tempo slight increase, passionate delivery, distinct rhythm]
Mīn Wīf is wēc, mīn Līf is wē
{My wife is away, my life is woe}
{Mein Weib ist weg, mein Leben ist/tut weh}

Doch Lie-be bren-net wie der snē
{But love burns like the snow}
{Doch Liebe brennt wie der Schnee}

Ich sū-che ðich bī Sōn und Mōn
{I search you by the sun and moon}
{Ich suche dich bei Sonne und Mond}

Bis ich ðich fin-de, mīn schœ-ne crōn!
{Until I find you, my beautiful crown!}
{Bis ich dich finde, meine schöne Krone!}

[Instrumental Solo - lute solo, energetic then slowing down]

[Spoken Word - deep resonant voice, whispering close to mic]
Kein slot, kein mūr, kein El-fen-Bann
{No castle, no wall, no elven ban}
{Kein Schloss, keine Mauer, kein Elfenbann}

Hält mī-ne Lie-be, trū-we man.
{Holds my love, true man.}
{Hält meine Liebe, treuer Mann.}

Ich cō-me, Heu-ro-dis.
{I come, Herodes.}
{Ich komme, Herodes.}

[Outro - fading harp and distant vocal echoes]
Mīn suē-te Wīf...
{My sweet wife...}
{Mein süßes Weib....}

(Mīn Līf...)
{My life...}
{Mein Leben...}

(Mīn Wīf...)
{My wife...}
{Mein Weib...}

[Fade-Out to End]
[End]

[Disclaimer]
AI-generated: This song was created using Suno, an AI music generation tool, in accordance with Art. 50 EU AI Act.

4541/7500

# Preface Sir Orfeo is a masterpiece of Middle English romance that reimagines the tragic Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice through the lens of Celtic folklore. In this version, Queen Heurodis is not killed, but abducted by the King of Faerie to a magical Otherworld, prompting Orfeo to abandon his throne and live as a harpist in the wild for ten years. Unlike the original tragedy, this tale ends happily: Orfeo's music is so beautiful that it wins his wife's freedom, allowing them to return triumphantly to their kingdom together. As you can see, in the Old English and Middle English belief, faeries were mostly evil entities and not seen as the nice characters as we imagine them today. Source: https://metseditions.org/read/kx0QpvAhal5RCWAMT63kWFj90aee895 This song is a "Crossover" song. It blends Middle English vocabulary with Middle High German grammar and phonetics (both 14th century), using words that are cognates (share the same root) in both languages (e.g., King/Künic, Hand/Hant, Land/Lant, Life/Līp, Wife/Wīp). # Lyrics [Intro - solo lute and harp duet, slow and rhythmic] (Ōōōō...) (Mīn Wīf... Mīn Līf...) [Verse 1 - deep male vocals, clear Germanic pronunciation] Ich was a King, trū und gōd {I was a king, true and good} {Ich war ein König, treu und gut} Nū is mīn Her-ze swēr zu mōd {Now is my heart's mood heavy} {Nun ist's meinem Herzen schwer zu Mut} Mīn crōn of gold is nū fer-lorn {My crown of gold is now forlorn} {Meine goldene Krone ist nun verloren} In wil-der wōd bin ich ge-born {In wild wood I am born} {Im wilden Wald bin ich geboren} Far-wel mīn halle, far-wel mīn tūr {Farewell my hall, farewell my door} {Leb wohl, meine Halle, leb wohl mein Tor.} Nū slā-fe ich ūf kal-ter flūr {Now I sleep on the cold floor} {Nun schlafe ich auf kalter Flur.} [Pre-Chorus - gentle strumming, building emotion] Ō Heu-ro-dis, mīn suē-te brūt {O Herodes, my sweet bride} {Oh Herodes, meine süße Braut} Hær mī-ne stim-me, hær mīn lūt {Hear my voice/stem, hear my lute} {Hör meine Stimme, höre meine Laute} [Chorus - layered harmonies, haunting and melodic] Un-der ðem Im-pe-Trē sō grūene {Under the imp-tree so green} {Unter dem Impf-Baum so grün} Þār cōm ðer El-fen-Künic kūene {There came the keen elven king} {Da kam der kühne Elfenkönig} He nam mīn Wīf bī wī-ze Hant {He took my wife by wise hand} {Er nahm mein Weib durch weise Hand} Und fūr-te sie in Fai-rīe Lant {And lead her into fairy land} {Und führte sie ins Feenland.} (In Fai-rīe Lant...) {Into fairy land...} {Ins Feenland...} (In frem-de Lant...) {Into foreign land...} {Ins fremde Land...} [Instrumental Solo - complex harp arpeggios, Dorian mode] [Verse 2 - soft vocals with rhythmic picking] Mīn Har-pe is mīn ān-zic frēond {My harp is my only friend} {Meine Harfe ist mein einziger Freund} Wen ich bī Nacht im wal-de stēond {When I stand/stay at night in the wood} {Wenn ich bei Nacht im Walde stand} Die Vō-gel sin-gen suē-te sanc {The birds sing a sweet song} {Die Vögel singen einen süßen Gesang} Daz ma-chet mī-ne wī-le lanc {That makes my while long} {Das macht meine Weile lang} Die wil-de dēor, Bär und Lēo {The wild animals, bear and lion} {Die wilden Tiere, Bär und Löwe} Sie cō-men stil-le zu Or-fēo {They come still/silently to Orfeo} {Sie kommen still zu Orfeo} [Bridge - tempo slight increase, passionate delivery, distinct rhythm] Mīn Wīf is wēc, mīn Līf is wē {My wife is away, my life is woe} {Mein Weib ist weg, mein Leben ist/tut weh} Doch Lie-be bren-net wie der snē {But love burns like the snow} {Doch Liebe brennt wie der Schnee} Ich sū-che ðich bī Sōn und Mōn {I search you by the sun and moon} {Ich suche dich bei Sonne und Mond} Bis ich ðich fin-de, mīn schœ-ne crōn! {Until I find you, my beautiful crown!} {Bis ich dich finde, meine schöne Krone!} [Instrumental Solo - lute solo, energetic then slowing down] [Spoken Word - deep resonant voice, whispering close to mic] Kein slot, kein mūr, kein El-fen-Bann {No castle, no wall, no elven ban} {Kein Schloss, keine Mauer, kein Elfenbann} Hält mī-ne Lie-be, trū-we man. {Holds my love, true man.} {Hält meine Liebe, treuer Mann.} Ich cō-me, Heu-ro-dis. {I come, Herodes.} {Ich komme, Herodes.} [Outro - fading harp and distant vocal echoes] Mīn suē-te Wīf... {My sweet wife...} {Mein süßes Weib....} (Mīn Līf...) {My life...} {Mein Leben...} (Mīn Wīf...) {My wife...} {Mein Weib...} [Fade-Out to End] [End] [Disclaimer] AI-generated: This song was created using Suno, an AI music generation tool, in accordance with Art. 50 EU AI Act.

0/500