The Falcon Sings and Coos lyrics and meaning
Čiulba, ulba sakalas,
Čiulba ulba sakalas,
Ant jievaro tupėdamas.
Ant jievaro tupėdamas,
Ant jievaro tupėdamas,
Ant uogelių žiųredamas.
Kad aš tynai nulektau,
Kad aš tynai nulektau,
Tai daug uogelių gertau.
Tai daug uogelių gertau,
Tai daug uogelių gertau,
Tai gelulį pasdabotau.
Tai gelulį pasdabotau,
Tai gelulį pasdabotau,
Savo šalin parviliotau.
Kalba bernelis kalba,
Kalba bernelis kalba,
Ant žirgelio sedėdamas.
Ant žirgelio sedėdamas,
Ant žirgelio sedėdamas,
Ant vynelio žiūrėdamas.
Kad aš tynai nujotau,
Kad aš tynai nujotau,
Tai mergelį pasdabotau.
Tai mergelį pasdabotau,
Tai mergelį pasdabotau,
Savo šalin parviliotau.
The Falcon Sings and Coos: song interpretation
This song can be understood as a courtship song based on the parallel between the falcon and the young man. At the beginning the falcon sings while perched on a jievaras tree and looking at berries. It dreams of flying off, tasting the berries, seeing the beloved being, and luring that beloved to its own land.
The young man repeats the same words while sitting on his horse and looking at wine. He dreams of riding away, seeing the young woman, and luring her to his own land. This parallelism can be interpreted as an old song technique that sets a bird beside a young man when both seek the same thing.
The axis of the whole piece is the desire to see and bring the beloved into one's own country. It can be understood as an expression of courtship and marriage aspiration. This is one possible meaning, but the courtship character of the song is clear.
The Falcon Sings and Coos: symbols and phrases
- Falcon on the jievaras
- The falcon perched on the jievaras tree is paired with the young man. It is his natural counterpart and the image of his desire.
- Berries and wine
- The berries desired by the falcon and the wine watched by the young man mark objects of attraction and pleasure.
- Luring into one's own land
- The wish to draw the beloved into one's own country expresses the goal of courtship and marriage.
The Falcon Sings and Coos: song history
"The Falcon Sings and Coos" belongs to love and courtship songs based on the parallelism of bird and young man, one of the oldest representational techniques in Lithuanian song. The song is made of two symmetrical parts: in the first, the falcon, perched on a jievaras tree and looking at berries, dreams of flying off, drinking or tasting the berries, and luring a beloved being to its own land; in the second, the young man repeats the same words while sitting on his horse and looking at wine, dreaming of seeing the young woman and luring her home.
The exact place and time of recording are not given on this page, so the song is presented through genre features. The stanzas unfold through chain repetition, where the last line of one stanza begins the next, and the pairing of falcon and young man allows the wish for the beloved to be shown indirectly through nature imagery, a typical courtship-song allegory centered on the desire to bring the beloved into one's own land.
sources
- Lithuanian Folk Songbook, vols. 1-23, Vilnius 1980-2011 (LLTI)
- Catalogue of Lithuanian Folk Songs, 6 vols., Vilnius 1972-1986
The Falcon Sings and Coos: sources
The Falcon Sings and Coos: frequently asked questions
What kind of song is this?
It is a love and courtship song based on the parallel between a falcon and a young man, both wishing to bring a beloved being home.
Why do the falcon and young man use the same words?
This is old song parallelism: the bird and young man are set side by side, and both dream of going to the beloved and luring her home.
What does "lure home" mean here?
It means to attract or draw the beloved into one's own land. In the song it expresses the courtship wish to bring the young woman home as a bride.
What do the berries and wine signify?
They are images of attraction and pleasure, linking the falcon's part and the young man's part through parallel desire.