Ai Tal Domna (Vocal)
Javolenus
My attempt at singing a 13th-Century Troubadour song in the original—and to me, totally unfamiliar—language (Catalan? Occitan? Or some Medieval French-Spanish dialect?). At any rate, I simply sang the words while reading off a crib sheet. I’ll paste the lyrics below. And so no idea if my pronunciation is remotely accurate. I heard the song some years ago on a CD of Troubadour music (sung by the amazing Marie Lafitte) and the tune stayed with me. I can add stems on request, if anyone’s interested. I added live guitars and VSTi kick plus pad.
The song was written by Berenguier de Palou (1160—1209), a Catalan troubadour and impoverished knight. The beat is 3/4 time and the key is D Minor.
“Ai Tal Domna” [Berenguier de Palou]
Ai tal domna com ieu sai
richa e de bélas faiçons,
amb cors convenent e gai,
amb dichs plasentiérs e bons,
si volgués précs, ni demandas sofrir,
degra om onrar, car tener e servir,
que no’i falh ren, qu’en bona domna sia,
mas car Amors, y perd sa senhoria.
***
Such a lady
Such a lady as I know,
noble and fair in demeanour,
with gentle, well-favoured body,
pleasing words and good,
allowing any requests and demands,
her you would have to honour, cherish and serve,
for she lacks nothing of what befits a good lady,
so that Love loses his dominion over her.
The song was written by Berenguier de Palou (1160—1209), a Catalan troubadour and impoverished knight. The beat is 3/4 time and the key is D Minor.
“Ai Tal Domna” [Berenguier de Palou]
Ai tal domna com ieu sai
richa e de bélas faiçons,
amb cors convenent e gai,
amb dichs plasentiérs e bons,
si volgués précs, ni demandas sofrir,
degra om onrar, car tener e servir,
que no’i falh ren, qu’en bona domna sia,
mas car Amors, y perd sa senhoria.
***
Such a lady
Such a lady as I know,
noble and fair in demeanour,
with gentle, well-favoured body,
pleasing words and good,
allowing any requests and demands,
her you would have to honour, cherish and serve,
for she lacks nothing of what befits a good lady,
so that Love loses his dominion over her.