Guitar: The Sweet Nightingale

If you are looking for the Disney song of a similar name, then you have come to the wrong place. Still while you are here, you might like to listen to this song instead. According to Wikipedia, Sweet Nightingale, also known as "Down in those valleys below" is a Cornish folk song which probably dates from the Seventeenth Century, and is said to be a translation from the ancient Cornish tongue. Cornish is a Celtic language as is Manx so it is perhaps not too inappropriate that a Manxman should be singing it, especially as my great-grandfather came to the Isle of Man from St Just in Cornwall in the middle of the nineteenth century and settled in Foxdale, a mining village in the middle of the south of the island.
I am trying to play the flageolet (posh name for a penny whistle!!) at the beginning of the song, but to prevent distortion from the microphone, I have to turn away from the camera. This has been inspired by the whistle playing of my friend Gordon (hostroute) from Scotland.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• The
• Sweet
• Nightingale
• threelegsoman
• Cornish
• Folk
• Song
• Flageolet
• Penny
• Whistle
• Lyrics
• Chords
• Acoustic
• Guitar

[gypwin]

very nice.us older ones still have something to offer.check out some of my videos as well.cheers

[threelegsoman]

@gypwin Will do.

[jimporter1947]

Hi I enjoyed your rendition of Sweet Nightingale, but you sing she instead of he. In English folk music the nightingale is always masculine as it is a euphemism for sexual activity, as is the phrase, "Valley below":that is why Betsy is afraid.

Both phrases appear in amany English song both together and seperately.

Best regard Jim Porter

[threelegsoman]

@jimporter1947 Thanks for the info Jim. In my own defence, I sing this song as I heard it sung by other groups such as the Dubliners and Clancys etc. Also I am too well brought up to know anything about such euphenisms. :-))

[lucythesheep]

This was lovely! I've been looking for the music and lyrics to this song for ages :) And you play it very well! Do you know if there's anywhere on the Internet I could get the guitar music from by any chance? :)

[threelegsoman]

@lucythesheep I play everything by ear, so rarely bother with sheet music, but if you put the title of the song in your search box and add 'sheet music' you should find if there are any available.

[absnl]

yeah, you got me... I was looking for the disney song :P

[jimporter1947]

As an old folky you get to know about these things.:-))

[brookwall]

Nicely done, have not heard this since junior school.

[indiciaobscure]

Thanks! I love this song. I first heard it sung by Alfred Deller, but I love the folk version.