Far out off the North West coast of Scotland in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean there is a tiny group of islands called St. Kilda. I read a fascinating book by Charles MacLean entitled "Island on the Edge of the World: The Story of St. Kilda" which provided the starting point for this song. It is thought that the main island, Hirta, was inhabited for around two thousand years and there was a group of families living there until 1930 when the entire population was evacuated. St. Kilda has some of the highest sea cliffs and the most varied sea bird community in the whole of Scotland and the St. Kildans survived by catching birds, particularly fulmars and puffins, scaling or descending the cliffs with home-made ropes. The whole community was involved and every part of the birds were used and valued - even the feathers served to pay the rent. There was a ritual involving the young men who wanted to marry wherein they first had to prove their agility on the rocks and therefore their ability to provide for a wife and family. There are two rocks associated with the story, the Mistress Stone and the Lover's stone, both extremely high and dangerous precipices. They had to balance on the heel of their left foot at the very edge of the stone with the right foot in the air, then bend down and grasp the right foot with both hands, holding the position until they had proved their worth to their friends and bride-to-be.
The Gaelic chorus of the song is an old St. Kilda proverb meaning "Seven fold blessings to our friends and the strong rawhide rope in time of need".
(©Joanne McIver 2011)
Au delà de la côte Nord Ouest de l'Ecosse, au milieu de l'océan Atlantique, se trouve un groupe d'îles minuscules appelé St. Kilda. L'idée de cette chanson m'est venue d'un livre fascinant de Charles MacLean: "Island on the Edge of the World: The Story of St. Kilda". Cela raconte que l'île principale, Hirta, était habitée pendant deux mille ans jusqu'à ce que les dernières familles aient été évacuées dans les années 1930. St Kilda possède les plus hautes falaises et la plus importante communauté d'oiseaux marins de toute l'Ecosse et les habitants vivaient principalement de la chasse aux fulmars et macareux, allant dénicher les oiseaux sur les parois escarpés à l'aide de cordes qu'ils fabriquaient eux-mêmes. Toute la communauté était impliquée et les oiseaux étaient utilisés
Il y avait un rituel pour les jeunes hommes en âge de se marier qui consistait à montrer son agilité et sa bravoure pour prouver sa capacité à fonder un foyer. Il ya deux rochers associés à cette histoire, the Mistress stone et the Lover's stone, les deux surplombant de très hautes falaises. Les prétendants devaient se tenir en équilibre sur leur pied gauche tout au bout de la pierre, au-dessus du vide, puis saisir leur pied droit des deux mains et rester ainsi jusqu'à ce qu'ils aient prouvé à leurs amis qu'ils étaient suffisamment capables et courageux.
Le refrain en gaélique est un vieux proverbe de St.Kilda qui signifie "que soient sept fois bénis nos amis et la corde en cuir quand on a besoin d'eux".
(©Joanne McIver 2011)
Loading...
3:03
Joanne McIver & Christophe Sauniereby pegrou3,679 views
çok güzel nefis bir müzik tebrik ederim son derece zevk aldım teşekkürler..
06dara59 1 month ago
I love this composition !!!
jacobfournel 1 month ago
bass solo so good
davidonspecialk 2 months ago
Just look in the dictionary for the word epic and you'll find the link to this video! I'm just speechless!
richardhalo 2 months ago
So beautiful !
1grid78 3 months ago