Sumer Is Icumen In
Sumer is icumen in
anonymous Middle English poem, circa 1260 AD
loose translation by Michael R. Burch
Summer is a-comin'!
Sing loud, cuckoo!
The seed grows,
The meadow blows,
The woods spring up anew.
Sing, cuckoo!
The ewe bleats for her lamb;
The cows contentedly moo;
The bullock roots;
The billy-goat poots ...
Sing merrily, cuckoo!
Cuckoo, cuckoo,
You sing so well, cuckoo!
Never stop, until you're through!
Sing now cuckoo! Sing, cuckoo!
Sing, cuckoo! Sing now cuckoo!
ALTERNATE OPENING LINES:
Summer is a-comin'!
Summer has come in again!
Summer has arrived again!
Summer has arrived!
NOTES: These notes were taken from the poem's Wikipedia page ...
Although the composer's identity is unknown today, it may have been W. de Wycombe. The manuscript in which it is preserved was copied between 1261 and 1264. This rota is the oldest known musical composition featuring six-part polyphony.
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