
© 2007 Ezequiel Viñao. All rights reserved.
© 2009 TLØN EDITIONS Music Publishers.
ezequiel viñao
(audio samples)
(translated by Ezequiel Viñao)
þær æt hy∂e stod hringedstefna,
isig ond utfus, æþelinges fær.
Aledon þa leofne þeoden,
beaga bryttan, on bearm scipes,
mærne be mæste.
The harbor held a hook-prowed vessel,
hoar-frosted yet keen to sail, a king’s craft.
They laid down their beloved prince,
the gold-giver, in his great boat,
midship, by the mast.
þær wæs madma fela
of feorwegum, frætwa, gelæded;
ne hyrde ic cymlicor ceol gegyrwan hildewæpnum ond hea∂owædum,
billum ond byrnum; him on bearme læg
madma mænigo, þa him mid scoldon
on flodes æht feor gewitan.
They had massed a large hoard
of weapons fetched from far-away lands.
I have not heard of a hull so well laden
with battle-axes and bronze armor,
helmets and chain-mail. ‘Cross the hero’s chest
the treasure was drawn: it would travel on,
far into the fair sea’s keeping.
Nalæs hi hine læssan lacum teodan,
þeodgestreonum, þon þa dydon
þe hine æt frumsceafte for∂ onsendon
ænne ofer y∂e umborwesende.
They laid out his body with no less splendor
or honors than his own land did
when as an orphaned boy, he had first embarked
all alone over the ageless ocean waves.
þa gyt hie him asetton segen geldenne
heah ofer heafod, leton holm beran,
geafon on garsecg; him wæs geomor sefa,
murnende mod. Men ne cunnon
secgan to so∂e, selerædende,
hæle∂ under heofenum, hwa þæm hlæste
onfeng.
And at long last they set a gold-woven standard
high above him: let it be held by tides,
given to the grim deep. Grave was their spirit,
mournful their mood. No man can know,
nor hero ‘neath heaven nor the hall’s wise
may in truth tell, with whom now lies that trove
beyond ken.
Mighty Scyld was dead. At his destined hour,
he sought lasting rest in his Lord’s realm.
His cherished clan did as he had charged them
when he, warden of Danes, still wielded words:
they bore him to the far edge of the boundless water,
the long-loved founder of the land.
audio samples:
National Chamber Choir of Ireland
Paul Hillier, conductor
Him ∂a Scyld gewat to gescæphwile
felahror feran on frean wære.
Hi hyne þa ætbæron to brimes faro∂e,
swæse gesi†as, swa he selfa bæd,
þenden wordum weold wine Scyldinga;
leof landfruma lange ahte.
Beowulf: Scyld’s Burial
for SATB and percussion quartet * (2009)
* 2 anvils / 2 claves / 2 triangles / 2 frame drums /
2 nipple gongs / 2 log drums / 2 temple blocks / clapping
Commissioned by the National Chamber Choir of Ireland
and the Cork International Choral Festival
First Performance: May 1, 2009 / St. Fin Barre’s Cathedral, Cork, Ireland
National Chamber Choir of Ireland / Paul Hillier