Percy Aldridge Grainger

Lincolnshire Posy
based on English Folksong gathered in Lincolnshire
For Military Band

Publisher/Availability: Ludwig Masters: 1987; 2010 new

edition
Arranger: Frederick Fennell
Date of Composition: 1937
Duration: ~15:00
Dedication: This bunch of wildflowersis
dedicated to the folksingers who
sang so sweetly to me.
Composers Nationality: Australian
Composers Dates: (1882-1961)
Instrumentation:

Interesting to note that the quality of this piece remains largely unchanged
in either the wind ensemble setting or the standard concert band setting.

2 Flute 1 1 Bb Soprano Saxophone 2 Bass Trombone

2 Flute 2 1 Eb Alto Saxophone 1 1 Baritone B.C.
1 Piccolo 1 Eb Alto Saxophone 2 1 Baritone T.C.
1 Oboe 1 1 Bb Tenor Saxophone 1 Euphonium B.C.
1 Oboe 2 1 Eb Baritone Saxophone 1 Euphonium T.C.
1 English Horn 1 Bass Saxophone 3 Tuba
1 Bassoon 1 2 Bb Trumpet 1 1 String Bass
1 Bassoon 2 2 Bb Trumpet 2 1 Kettle Drums
1 Double Bassoon 2 Bb Trumpet 3 1 Side Drum
1 Eb Clarinet 1 F Horn 1 1 Susp. Cym, Crash
3 Bb Clarinet 1 1 F Horn 2 Cymbal, Bass Drum
3 Bb Clarinet 2 1 F Horn 3 1 Tuneful Perc.
3 Bb Clarinet 3 1 F Horn 4 (Xylohphone,
1 Eb Alto Clarinet 2 Trombone 1 Glockenspiel,
1 Bb Bass Clarinet 2 Trombone 2 Chimes, Handbells)

Composers Information: See biography document.

Background of piece:

This bunch of musical wildflowers (hence the title Lincolnshire Posy) is

based on folksongs collected in Lincolnshire, England (one noted by Miss
Lucy E. Broadwood; the other five noted by me, mainly in the years 1905-
1906, and with the help of the phonograph)
At least part of Graingers motivation for writing the piece is to write a
substantial work originally for the wind band, as so much of the ensembles
repertoire up to that point consisted of marches and transcriptions. He
expresses this in his program note, where he mentions a certain
disappointment in the exploration other wind band medium by other
composers.

The American Bandmasters Association commissioned Grainger to write

"Lincolnshire Posy" in 1937. At this time, there was not much literature for the
modern wind band. Most wind band music was written in the form of marches
(i.e. Sousa, King, Goldman), but both Gustav Holst and Ralph Vaughan Williams
have written pieces for this type of ensemble and incorporated folk songs into
their band music (Holtz, 2009). Grainger began collecting the folk songs for
"Lincolnshire Posy" in 1905 on wax cylinder's, collecting the bulk of these in
Lincolnshire, England (Wollum, 2011). After receiving the commission, he
arranged these folk songs and added his own signature twist on them by adding
suspensions, dissonance, and odd meters to the piece. The settings are true to
the verse structures, but they also depict the singers that Grainger collected the
songs from ((Blocher et. al, 1997).
The piece was first performed by the Milwaukee Concert Band and only three
movements were done, movements one, two, and four. Six had not been finished
and three and five were omitted completely (Grauer, 1992). This was because
Grainger believed that the performers cared "more about their beer then the
music" (Grainger, 2010). Grainger in his score says that any high school band
should be able to perform the piece, while most high schools that take on the
piece only perform movements one, two, and six (sometimes four). Grainger did
have to test the parts out with a group besides the performance group, so he
used the Ernest Williams Band School in Brooklyn, NY (Grauer, 1992). The
performance group was only given three times the length of the piece to perform,
with a gentleman using a stopwatch to time the events down to the second.
These issues and the views of Percy Grainger are why I suspect that Richard
Davis of "The Milwaukee Journal" said that "Lincolnshire Posy was a step back for
the concert band" (Grauer, 1992).
Three months after the official premier of Lincolnshire Posy, Edwin Franco
Goldman conducted the entire piece, premiering the final three movements
(Grauer, 1992). This piece of "musical wildflowers," as Grainger referred to the
piece as, has now blossomed into not only a standard part of the wind band
repertoire, but a quintessential piece to push an ensemble's limits, and to provide
a solid foundation of band literature.
Score Commentary:

Foreword detailing the creation of this full-score from the compressed full
score, by Frederick Fennell.

Details regarding the source of the folksongs used, and who was
responsible for recording/noting down the tune.

To Bandleaders (1939) section mentions the different versions of R.P.P.

available for performance. A features cornet/flugel, B features soprano sax,
which Grainger greatly preferred. He felt that the lack of a soprano voice in
an instrumental group was a fatal handicap.

Highlights of Graingers Program note:

As a vehicle of deeply emotional expression [the wind band] seems
to me unrivalled.
L.P., as a whole work, was conceived and score by me direct for wind
band in early 1937.
"Each number is intended to be a kind of musical portrait of the singer
who sang its underlying melody... a musical portrait of the singer's
personality no less than of his habits of song, his regular or irregular
wonts of rhythm, his preference for gaunt or ornately arabesque
delivery, his contrasts of legato and staccato, his tendency towards
breadth or delicacy of tone. For these folksingers were kings and
queens of song!
English art during the last 900 years[handed] down to us a large
body of proudness, socialness, unmatched sweetness (what folktunes
are so meltingly sweet as English?), wistfulness, island-mindedness
This yeomanship (this ability to stubbornly reamin immune to all sorts
of upstart un-English influences) that I wish to celebrate in my Posy.
Grainger spoke to the power of the folksong traidition with his
anecdote about his Lisbon folksinger: even while bedridden, the
man couldnt resist singing, and can be heard saying Its pleasin
muh.
Movements: Formal regularity: forms are strophic and folk-like
throughout.

Follows the foundational concept of classical four-bar phrases being

organized as 1 + 1 + 2.
o Can be seen in mvmt I, printed measures 10-13.
o Also seen in smaller & larger structures: .5 + .5 + 1, 2 + 2 + 4,
etc.
Harmonic rhythm and interest tend to increase towards the cadence
of a phrase or the end of a larger section.
Overall Jounrey from Ab mixolyidan to D dorian.
Ethical journey is noticeable in the text itself.
Movement 1, 2, and 6 were written in the span of three days!

I. Lisbon (Sailors Song) 1:28

a. Originally titled Dublin Bay
b. Folksong implies the betrayal of a young women gotten in a
family way by a footloose, fancy-free sailor; sets stage for
ethical thrust of 1st half of L.P.
c. No trombones this movement; only Timpani is percussion.
d. Fourth phrase is expanded into a brief coda via elision @ m.64.
e. Verse 1 uses the most primitive three-voice harmony
imaginable, with the voices moving in parallel major triads.
f. Verse 2 presses a sophisticated five-voice (tune + 4 distinct
lines) counterpoint into service; this reflects the fact that
Graingers original setting of Lisbon was tone-wrought for
Wind 5-some.
g. Verse 3 reduces the counterpoint to four voices initially, with a
fifth voice adding as a countermelody the Duke of
Marlborough Fanfare. This verse features a great deal of
decorative chromaticism, much of it in the form of passing
tones.
h. Verse 4 further reduces the counterpoint to three voices, one of
which is a true countermelody. The rich chromaticism of the
 previous verse is retained, and the final phrase is expanded into
a brief coda.
i. If done more or less attaca into movement 2, then the
entirety of the first movement may be seen as a dominant
anacrusis resolving at the outset of Horkstow Grange.

II. Horkstow Grange (The Miser and his Man: A Local Tragedy
2:58
a. Db major, mixed meter, Slowly Flowing, Singingly
b. A one-ocatve folk tune from dominant to dominant
c. Form: a-a1-b-c
d. Two verse/refrain pairings
e. Ends with remote sounding half-cadence
f. Folksong suggests injustice on a broader scale: an innocent man
is beaten in a public square, perhaps for the crime of being
stupid. By implication, the onlookers do nothing to stop the
beating.
g. Begian notes that this tempo marking was closer to dotted
quarter = 76, rather than quarter = 76.

III. Rufford Park Poachers (Poaching Song)

4:43

a. F dorian or C dorian (depending on the version chosen)

progressing to Db major, mixed irregular meter, Flowingly
b. Folk Tune spans a major 9th from low subtonic to high tonic
c. Form: a-b-b1-a; Verse 3 truncated by omission of 4 bars (b1)
d. 5 verses plus interludes of various lengths
e. Ends with sounding of the Db pentatonic scale as a single chord,
heard as a kind of authentic cadence; the Bb flat of the melody
in the oboe and the Eb Clarinet provide common tone link to the
next movement.
f. In the folk song, the theme of injustice reaches fever pitch and
most central of ethical concerns is given voice: A buck or doe,
believe it so, rabbit or a hare, were put on earth for everyone
quite equal to share.
g. The climax of this movement represents a massacre.
h. Begian and Fennell note that tempo marking of this movement
as an error by Grainger; performances suggest an appropriate
marking to be eighth note = ~126.
i. Also, though Grainger speaks of his affinity for soprano
saxophone and speaks of encouraging performances of version
B, Begian notes that both times he was with Grainger
performing the piece, he chose version A.
IV. The brisk young Sailor (returned to wed his true love)
1:41

a. Bb major, 3/4 time, Sprightly

b. Folk tune spans a perfect 11th from low tonic to high
subdominant, making it the widest-spanning tune of L.P.
c. Form: a-b; longer phrases than in other folk songs.
d. 6 verses plus a coda spun out of the final verse, as movement 1;
Verses 4 and 5 are played simultaneously between oboe and
soprano saxophone.
e. Ends with two complex sonorities that constitute a half-cadence
even more remote-sounding than the one at the end of mvmt 2.
f. Texts suggests a corrective to the text of Lisbon and the first
stage of a redemptive project intended to address the injustices
of the first half of L.P.

V. Lord Melbourne (War Song) 3:26

a. D dorian (with a heavy lean to C major), mixed irregular meter,

plus 4 free time passages; Heavy, fierce
b. Spans a minor 10th from low tonic to high median
c. Form: a-a-b-a
d. 3 verses plus an additional half-verse serving as a coda.
e. Ends on a G major chord, which may be read as the
subdominant chord of the key, and therefore a plagal cadence
setup into the final movement.
f. Folksong text suggests the innocent if insufferable braggadocio
of an old soldier.
g. Fennell attempted to recreate what he heard Grainger sing one
day:
VI. The
Lost
Lady
Found

(Dance Song) 2:26

a. D dorian; 3/4 time; Fast, but sturdily
b. Spans a major 9th from low subtonic to high tonic
c. Form: a-a1-b-a
d. 9 verses, as in the original folk song.
e. Ends on enriched, final-sounding tonic chord.
f. Folksong text is a saga: an innocent man is nearly hanged, but
rescued at the last minute by a cliff-hanger climax; the ending
represents a final triumph over injustice.

Original Texts: Brackets indicate unused verses of the complete song.

I. Lisbon

1. Twas on a Monday morning,

all in the month of May,
Our ship she weighed her anchor,
All for to sail away,
The wind did from the southwest blow,
for Lisbon we were bound,
The hills and dales were covered
with pretty young girls around.
2. I wrote a letter to Nancy,
for she to understand
that I was going to leave her
unto some foreign land.
She said: My dearest William,
those words will break my heart;
Oh, let us married be tonight,
before you do that start.

[[[3. For ten long weeks or better

I've been with child by thee,
So stay at home dear William
be kind and marry me,
Our captain has commanded us,
and I shall have to go,
The Queens in want of men my love,
I never dare answer no.]]]

[[[4. I'll cut my long yellow hair,

mens clothing I'll put on,
And I will go with you my love,
and be your waiting man,
And when it is your watch on deck
your duty I will do,
I'll face the field of battle love,
in order to be with you.]]]

[[[5. Your pretty little fingers,

they are but long and small,
Your waist it is too slender
to face the cannon ball,
For loud the cannon rattle love,
and blazing bullets fly,
And silver trumpets sound my love,
to cover the dismal cry.]]]

[[[6. If I should meet with a lady,

that's proper tall and gay,
If I should fancy her my love,
what would you have to say,
Would you not be offended then,
oh no my lover true,
I'd stand aside sweet William,
whenever she pleasures you.]]]

[[[7. Twas on a Monday morning,

 all in the month of May,
Our ship she weighed up anchor,
all for to sail away,
The wind it from the southwest blew,
for Lisbon we were bound,
The hills and dales were covered
with pretty young girls around.]]]

II. Horkstow Grange

In Horkstow Grange there lives an old miser;

you all do know him as Ive heard tell
It was him and his man that was called John Bowlin,
they fell out one market day.
Pity them what see him suffer,
Pity poor old Steeleye Span,
John Bowlins deeds they will be remembered,
Bowlins deeds at Horkstow Grange.

With a blackthorn stick old Steeleye struck him,

oftens had threatened him before,
John Bowlin turned round all in a passion,
knocked old Steeleye to the floor.
Pity them that see him suffer,
Pity poor old Steeleye span,
John Bowlins deeds they will be remembered,
Bowlins deeds at Horkstow Grange.

III. Rufford Park Poachers

1. They say that 40 gallant poachers,

they were in distress,
Theyd often been attacked
when there number it was less.

Chorus:

So poacher bold, as I unfold,

keep up your gallant heart,
And think about those poachers bold,
that night in Rufford Park.
 2. A buck or doe, believe it so,
a pheasant or a hare,
were sent on Earth for everyone
quite equal for to share.

Chorus:

[[[So poacher bold, as I unfold,

keep up your gallant heart,
And think about those poachers bold,
that night in Rufford Park.]]]

[[[3. The keepers they begun the fight,

With stones and with the flails,
But when the poachers started, why,
They quickly turned their tails]]]

IV. The Brisk Young Sailor

A fair maid walking all in her garden,

a brisk young sailor she chanced to spy.
He stepped up to her thinking to woo her,
cried thus: Fair maid, can you fancy I?
You seem to be some man of honor,
some man of honor you seem to be,
I am a poor and lowly maiden,
not fitting, sir, your servant to be.

V. Lord Melbourne

I am an Englishman to my birth,
Lord Melbourne is my name;
In Devonshire I first drew breath,
that place of noble fame.
I was beloved by all my men,
by kings and princes likewise.
I never failed in anything,
but won great victories.

Then good Queen Anne sent us on board,

to Flanders we did go,
 We left the banks of Newfoundland
to face our daring foe.
We climbed those lofty hills straightaway,
with broken guns, shields likewise,
And all those famous towns we took,
to all the worlds surprise.

King Charles the Second we did reserve,

to face our foeman French,
And to the Battle of Ramillies
we boldly did advance.
The sun was down, the earth did shake,
and I so loud did cry,
Fight on, my lads, for old Englands sake,
well gain the field, or die.

[[[And now the glorious victory's won,

so boldly keep the field.
When pris'ners in great numbers took,
which forced our foe to yield.
That very day my horse was shot,
all by a cannon ball;
As soon as I got up again,
my head in camp* did fall. [*ie. aide-de-camp]]]]

[[[Now on a bed of sick-e-ness lie,

I am resigned to die.
You gen'rals all and champions bold,
stand true as well as I;
Stand to your men, take them on board
and fight with courage bold.
I've led my men through smoke and fire
but now to death must yield.]]]]
VI. The Lost Lady Found Brackets indicate unused verses of the song.

Twas down on yon valley

a fair maiden did dwell,
She lived with her uncle,
they all knew fair well;
Twas down on yon valley
where violets grew gay,
Three Gypsies betrayed her
and stole her away.

Long time shed been missing,

and could not be found;
Her uncle, he searched
the country around,
Till he came to the trustee,
between hope and fear,
The trustee made answer,
She has not been here.

[[[The trustee spoke over

with courage so bold,
I fear she's been lost
for the sake of her gold,
So we'll have life for life, sir,
the trustee did say,
We'll send you to prison,
and there you shall stay.]]]

[[[There was a young squire that loved her so,

Oft times to the schoolhouse together they did go.
I'm afraid she's been murdered, so great is my fear.
If I'd wings like a dove I would fly to my dear.]]]

[[[He travelled through England, through France and through Spain,

Till he ventured his life on the watery main.
And he came to a house where he lodged for a night,
And in that same house was his own heart's delight.]]]

[[[When she saw him, she knew him, and fled to his arms;
She told him her grief while he gazed on her charms.
How came you to Dublin, my dearest, I pray?
Three gypsies betrayed me and stole me away.]]]

Your uncles in England,

in prison does lie,
And for your dear life
is condemned for to die.
Carry me to old England,
my dearie, she cried.
On thousand I give thee,
and will be your bride.

When they came to old England

her uncle to see,
The cart it was under
the high gallows tree,
oh, pardon, oh, pardon,
oh, pardon I crave.
 Im alive, Im alive,
your dear life to save.

Then from the high gallows

they led him away,
The bells they did ring
and the music did play,
Every house in the valley
with mirth did abound,
as soon as they heard
the lost lady was found.

Unique Performance Considerations/Special Instructions

(Performers):
Notes/Questions (Conductor):

Program Note:
Lincolnshire Posy Percy Aldridge Grainger
(18821961)

Grainger was born in Melbourne, Australia and was schooled mostly under
the auspices of his mother. By the age of 13, he had made his debut as a solo
pianist and was soon moving to Frankfurt to study at the Hoch Conservatory.
Following his education in Germany, he moved to London with his mother and
slowly established himself as an international concert pianist. However talented
he was at the piano, he always had a yearning to compose. It was during this
period that Grainger toured the English countryside collecting folk songs straight
from the source: often working-class, common folk. Graingers interest in this
collecting was not of merely arranging these songs into neat compositions, but
rather to emphasize the way the singer presented the songs, with the resulting
rhythms, inflections, and ornaments.
The wind ensemble masterwork Lincolnshire Posy is Graingers settings of
five folk songs he collected from the area of Lincolnshire from 190506. (The sixth
and last movement, The Lost Lady Found, was collected by his friend, Lucy E.
Broadwood.) Written upon the request of the fledgling American Bandmasters
Association in 1937, this monumental work was composed straight to the
instrumental parts, without a score! Perhaps this is why the first edition is fraught
with mistakes, leading legendary wind band conductor Frederick Fennell
to publish a full-score, corrected edition in 1987. The premiere was on March 7,
1937 by a professional band hired by Grainger. Due to the difficulty of the music,
the performance only included 3 of the 6 movements. Six months later, the
Goldman Band performed all 6 movements for the first time.
 I. Lisbon
Originally entitled Dublin Bay, the first movement of Lincolnshire Posy is
the shortesta brisk, simple, lilted melody in 6/8 time. The main theme
of the movement is presented first in the muted trumpets and bassoon,
and is set against a war-like motif in the horns. Like the fourth
movement, this movement ends in a serene, suspended pianissimo that
contrasts the general tone of the movement as a whole.

II. Horkstow Grange

The second movement presents a slow, legato, repeating, re-
harmonizing motif. Shifting mostly between 4/4 and 5/4 time, the song
features a trumpet solo.

III. Rufford Park Poachers

Rufford Park Poachers opens by presenting an asymmetrical melody
between B- flat clarinet and piccolo followed two eighth notes later by E-
flat clarinet and bass clarinet. This movement is noted as having difficult
counterpoint, unusual rhythms and odd time signatures that shift rapidly.
Grainger wrote two versions: one with
a flugelhorn as soloist and one with a soprano saxophone as soloist. For
this afternoons performance, the flugelhorn will be used.

IV. The Brisk Young Sailor

The movement starts with a simple, jaunty tune meant to evoke the
image of a strapping young lad striding up the road to meet his
sweetheart. It is in the key of B-flat major. It begins with a clarinet choir
playing the simple melody. The melody is then expanded upon by the
entire band in several ways. One notable occurrence of this is when a
solo baritone horn is given the melody while the first clarinets, E-flat
clarinet, flutes and piccolos play a rapid sextuplet pattern and arpeggios
before it resolves into a fugue-like reiteration of the melody through a
solo soprano saxophone and oboe.

V. Lord Melbourne
A fierce and heavy war song opens in free time, where each note is
conducted out of time, which is followed by a lyrical trumpet solo. As the
movement progresses, it slides rapidly into different time signatures
including unusual times such as "2.5/4" and "1.5/4" as well as in and out
of "free time" as the war song is restated.

VI. The Lost Lady Found

This movements opens with a quick, jumpy, straight 3/4 melody that is
typically conducted in 1. This setting features a constantly repeating
motif interrupted by one short "bridge" section, which leads to the final
presentation of the motif returning under a counter melody enhanced by
a large complement of melodic percussion.

Note by Gregory Depp

Bibliography:

Link to source recordings:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbwtc1Frhng

Goza artlicle, 2009

2010 Fennell Score

Link to Grainger Performing songs from Lincolnshire Posy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hR2zVA2sZk4

http://lincolnshireposy.weebly.com/history-of-lincolnshire-posy.html

Extra resources:
https://koopsconducting.wikispaces.com/Lincolnshire+Posy

Fennell rehearses the US Navy Band: Youtube

Fennell performs L.P. with the US Navy Band: Youtube

((Rhythm: meters and tempi

Harmonic Content:
Melodic Content:
Texture/Orchestration:
Dynamics:
Articulations:))

Mood & Motion (To/From/At)

Feeling & Form