Volume I, song 072, page 73 - 'The Birks of Invermay' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)

Verse 1: 'The smiling morn, the breathing spring, Invite the tuneful birds to sing, And while they warble from each spray, Love melts the universal lay. Let us, Amanda, timely wife, Like them improve the hour that flys, And in soft raptures waste the day, Among the birks of Invermay.' The word 'lay' has a wide variety of uses in Old Scots, but its best translation in this context is foundation. The 'Scots Musical Museum' is the most important of the numerous eighteenth- and nineteenth-century collections of Scottish song. When the engraver James Johnson started work on the second volume of his collection in 1787, he enlisted Robert Burns as contributor and editor. Burns enthusiastically collected songs from various sources, often expanding or revising them, whilst including much of his own work. The resulting combination of innovation and antiquarianism gives the work a feel of living tradition. This song is also known by the titles, 'The Birks of Endermay' and 'The Birks of Envermay'. It is thought that the name was changed to make the pronunciation easier on southern tongues. It is thought that Mallet may have written the first two stanzas of the lyrics, but there is no firm proof. 'The Birks of Invermay' today is a very popular Strathspey country dance.

Collection

Scots Musical Museum

Inventory Number

4503267

Title

Volume I, song 072, page 73 - 'The Birks of Invermay' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)

Object Type

PhysicalObject

Measurements

- 130 x 211 mm