[New Rendition] Henry VIII: Pastyme with good companye (c.1510), Original Pronunciation

Details

Description

Henry VIII: Pastyme with good companye (Pastime with good company)

0:06 Verse 1: ATB a cappella
0:38 Verse 2: ATB + lute, tambourine
1:11 Verse 3: ATB + recorder, lute, psaltery, bass viol, tambourine
1:44 Instrumental interlude: shawm, 2 sackbuts, tambourine, drum
2:15 Refrain: ATB + recorder, shawm, 2 sackbuts, tambourine, drum
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PROGRAM NOTES:

The song "Pastyme with good companye" was a signature anthem composed by the still young and vivacious Henry VIII. He wrote this song during his earliest years as monarch during a period of relative peace and frivolity at the English royal court - a decade or more before darker days would descend upon his first Queen (Catherine of Aragon), his inner circle and the Catholic Church in England.

"Pastyme" has a very simple and catchy melody (unlike some other more intricate pieces by King Henry like "Taundernaken"), an unwavering 6/8 rhythm and 3 part homophony. In the so-called "Henry VIII Songbook" (a.k.a Brit. Libr. Add. 31922), the lyrics of "Pastyme" were written out fully on one page for all three vocal parts (cantus, tenore and bassus). It is thus likely that this manuscript copy was intended as a performance edition for the royal performers. I interjected 4 variations of the theme using both soft and loud Renaissance instruments based on a listing of the king's private collection.

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Original text & modern transcription

Pastyme wt good (com)panye (Pastime with good company)
I loue & schall vntyll I dye (I love and shall until I die)
gruche who lust but none denye (grudge who lust but none deny)
so god be plesyd thus leve wyll I (so god be pleased thus live will I)
for my pastance (for my pastance [i.e. recreation])
hunt syng & daunce (hunt, sing and dance)
my hart is sett (my heart is set)
all goodly sport (all goodly sport)
for my comfort (for my comfort)
who schall me let (who shall me let)

youthe must haue som daliance (Youth must have some dalliance)
off good or yll som pastance. (of good or ill some pastance)
Company me thynkes then best (Company me thinks then best)
all thoughts & fansys to deiest. (all thoughts and fancies to digest)
ffor Idillnes (for idleness)
is cheff mastres (is chief mistress)
of vices all (of vices all)
then who can say. (then who can say)
but myrth and play (but mirth and play)
is best of all. (is best of all)

Company wt honeste (Company with honesty)
is vertu vices to ffle. (is virtue vices to flee)
Company is good & ill (Company is good and ill)
but ev’ry man hath hys fre wyll. (But every man has his free will)
the best ensew (The best ensue)
the worst eschew (the worst eschew)
my mynde schalbe. (my mind shall be)
vertu to vse (virtue to use)
vice to refuce (vice to refuse)
thus schall I vse me. (that shall I use me.)

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Description of the photos:

1-4. "Pastyme with good companye" cantus part, Henry VIII, Brit. Libr. Add. 31922 (a.k.a. Henry VIII Songbook), c1513
5. Detail of an early 16th century lute from the double portrait "Ambassadors" (most likely painted at the court of Henry VIII) by Hans Holbein, c1533
6. Amour and the Lover, British Library Harley MS 4425, c1490
7. Lion statue at the front entrance of Hampton Court Palace, created during Henry's reign -- representing the English crown.
8. The coat of arms of Henry VIII
9. Gallery musicians possibly at Henry's court (with detail of sackbut, shawm and cornetto or recorder), Hans Holbein the Younger, c1526.
10. Portrait of a young Henry VIII around the time of his coronation.

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NOTES ON THE RECORDING:

This soundtrack was created using VOCALOID 4 (Yamaha) and Cyber Songman English language module. In this latest version, I paid closer attention to the pronunciation of Late Middle English (which was in the midst of the Great Vowel Shift during Henry's life). I mostly used the Original Pronunciation (OP) scheme that was used by the Youtuber ABAlphaBeta in his video which can be accessed via this link: https://www.youtube.com/D6wOVDG4v_g . In this latest rendition, I swapped the female alto for a male alto, created a more legato effect, added a bit of "natural" dynamic variation, rebalanced the three voice parts, tweaked the reverb and refined the instrumental sounds to blend better with the voices.