WALTZING MATILDA - AUSTRALIAN MUSIC - YouTube WALTZING MATILDA - AUSTRALIAN MUSIC Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Published on Aug 16, 2013 Song for the day. "Waltzing Matilda" is Australia's most widely known bush ballad. A folk song, the song has been referred to as "the unofficial national anthem of Australia". The title is Australian slang for travelling by foot with one's goods (waltzing, derived from the German auf der Walz) in a "Matilda" (bag) slung over one's back. The song narrates the story of an itinerant worker, or "swagman", making a drink of tea at a bush camp and capturing a sheep to eat. When the sheep's owner arrives with three police officers to arrest the worker for the theft, the worker commits suicide by drowning himself in the nearby watering hole, after which his ghost haunts the site.

The original lyrics were written in 1895 by poet and nationalist Banjo Paterson. It was first published as sheet music in 1903. Extensive folklore surrounds the song and the process of its creation, to the extent that the song has its own museum, the Waltzing Matilda Centre in Winton, Queensland. In 2012, to remind Australians of the song's significance, Winton organized the inaugural Waltzing Matilda Day to be held on 6 April, the anniversary of its first performance. The song was first recorded in 1926 as performed by John Collinson and Russell Callow.] In 2008, this recording of "Waltzing Matilda" was added to the Sounds of Australia registry in the National Film and Sound Archive which says that there are more recordings of "Waltzing Matilda" than any other Australian song. The Australian poet Banjo Paterson wrote the words to "Waltzing Matilda" in January 1895 while staying at a bush station in western Queensland, the Dagworth Homestead near Winton owned by the Macpherson family.

The words were written to a tune recited by 21 year-old Christina Macpherson, one of the family members at the station. Macpherson had been taken with "The Craigielee March" which she heard played by a military band while attending the Warrnambool steeplechase horse racing in Victoria during 1894, and played it back by ear at Dagworth. Paterson decided that the music would be a good piece to set lyrics to, and produced the original version during the rest of his stay at the station and in Winton Glossary The lyrics contain many distinctively Australian English words, some now rarely used outside of the song. These include: waltzing - derived from the German term auf der Walz, which means to travel while working as a craftsman and learn new techniques from other masters before returning home after three years and one day, a custom which is still in use today among carpenters. Matilda - a romantic term for a swagman's bundle. See below, "Waltzing Matilda".

Waltzing Matilda - from the above terms, "to waltz Matilda" is to travel with a swag, that is, with all one's belongings on one's back wrapped in a blanket or cloth swagman - a man who travelled the country looking for work. The swagman's "swag" was a bed roll that bundled his belongings. billabong - an oxbow lake (a cut-off river bend) found alongside a meandering river. coolibah tree- a kind of eucalyptus tree which grows near billabongs. jumbuck - a sheep. billy - a can for boiling water in, usually 2--3 pints. tucker bag - a bag for carrying food ("tucker"). troopers - policemen Squatter - Australian squatters started as early farmers who raised livestock on land which they did not legally have the right to use; in many cases they later gained legal use of the land even though they did not have full possession, and became wealthy thanks to these large land holdings. The squatter's claim to the land may be as uncertain as the swagman's claim to the jumbuck.

Category World Folk Songs | Waltzing Matilda | Australian Folk Song - YouTube World Folk Songs | Waltzing Matilda | Australian Folk Song Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Published on Jul 7, 2013 Hey folks, this is my version of a very popular Australian folk song Waltzing Matilda! Do like, share and Subscribe to my channel..the links given below!! :) This song is Australia's most widely known bush ballad and is in fact referred to as the unofficial National Anthem of Australia. The original lyrics were written in 1895 by poet and nationalist Banjo Paterson.The song was first recorded in 1926 as performed by John Collinson and Russell Callow. Hope you guys enjoy it!!

:D Lyrics: Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong Under the shade of a coolibah tree, And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled: "Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me?" Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled: "You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me." Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong. Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee. And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag: "You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me." Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda "You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me", And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag: "You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me." Up rode the squatter, mounted on his thoroughbred. Down came the troopers, one, two, and three.

"Where's that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tucker bag? You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me." Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda "You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me", "Where's that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tucker bag? You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me." Up jumped the swagman and sprang into the billabong.

"You'll never take me alive!" said he And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong: "Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me?" Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda "You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me", And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong: "Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me?" Category Controversial new play contends Waltzing Matilda lyrics written about love affair, workers' rights - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) Controversial new play contends Waltzing Matilda lyrics written about love affair, workers' rights By Landline's Tim Lee Updated August 17, 2013 09:44:19 Map: Melbourne 3000 A controversial new play challenging the origins of Australia's favourite song, Waltzing Matilda, contends that the lyrics were written about a love affair and are a coded manifesto of workers' rights. The play, called The Man They Call the Banjo, was adapted from the book Waltzing Matilda - The Secret History of Australia's Favourite Song by folk singer and amateur historian Dennis O'Keeffe.

In 1895, AB "Banjo" Paterson paid a visit to Dagworth Station, near Winton in western Queensland, in the company of his fiancée of eight years, Sarah Riley. Riley was a close friend of Christina MacPherson, a musical 21-year-old who came from a respectable pioneer family from Western Victoria. MacPherson was visiting her brother Bob, who had sought to increase his pastoral riches by taking up Dagworth several years earlier. But the station turned out to be far from the economic bonanza it promised. Falling wool prices and adverse seasons were compounded by industrial unrest by militant, striking union shearers and soon the MacPhersons were plunged into heavy debt. Paterson visited only months after the escalating tensions between pastoralists and striking shearers had seen shots exchanged at Dagworth Station and the state of Queensland on the brink of civil war. One of the militant shearers, Samuel "Frenchy" Hoffmeister, torched the Dagworth Station woolshed on the eve of shearing, incinerating 140 lambs.

The day following his revengeful act, Hoffmeister's body with a fatal gunshot wound was found at a shearers' camp near a billabong, his apparent suicide assumed to be an act of remorse. Photo: The original score of Australia's favourite song, Waltzing Matilda. (Landline) The phrase "Waltzing Matilda" stems from the practice of itinerant shearers tramping through the outback with little more than a swag (a matilda) slung over their back. It is accepted that Bob MacPherson related these dramatic events to Banjo Paterson and that the bush poet changed the dead shearer into a swagman, but Mr O'Keefe's book and subsequent play wades into muddied, sometimes murky waters. Mr O'Keeffe contends that while Christina MacPherson played a half-remembered marching tune she had heard months earlier at the Warrnambool races in western Victoria, Paterson was flirting outrageously with her. Song 'written about a love affair' The parlour at Dagworth Station became a hotbed of passion, jealousy and ultimately, shame for Paterson exposed as a cad and told to pack his bags back for Brisbane.

This version was given credence by descendants of both Christina MacPherson and Sarah Riley. Riley broke off her engagement to Paterson soon after. Folklore says both women were greatly upset by the episode and neither of them ever married. "No-one ever really looked at the fact that it was also written about a love affair," Mr O'Keefe said. "Saying that Waltzing Matilda was made up of a love affair and the shearers' strikes makes it a very interesting story." But MacPherson descendants are upset by Mr O'Keeffe's accusation that Bob McPherson may have shot and killed Samuel Hoffmeister in revenge for razing the Dagworth woolshed and some are boiling as furiously as the famed swagman's billy. Mr O'Keeffe's theory is backed by a Melbourne barrister who scrutinised Hoffmeister's inquest, but historian Professor Ross Fitzgerald disputes that finding. "I can't see any ambiguous evidence that that's the case," Professor Fitzgerald said, adding that he did agree with Mr O'Keeffe on the song's deeper meaning.

"I think Waltzing Matilda is absolutely crucial to understanding the violence that happened between the striking shearers and the squatters in western Queensland so it's much more than a mere entertainment or a ditty. It's a very powerful political allegory." The truth - 118 years since the writing of the song - will never be fully known, but like the song, the story behind it is set to gain more prominence. US film producer Bill Leimbach is currently shooting a feature-length movie at Winton, with a storyline giving full flight to Paterson's alleged love triangle. In Mr O'Keeffe's play the swagman, who hitherto was only heard by those few who passed by the billabong, is likewise given full voice as the ghostly conscience of Banjo Paterson. The show is playing several dates in southern Australia in coming months, with hopes of a national tour later in the year. Tim Lee's story, Banjo's Back, screens on Landline at 12:00pm (AEST) Sunday on ABC1.

Waltzing Matilda by Traditional Songfacts Waltzing Matilda by Traditional Songfacts Songfacts The most recognized Australian folk song, "Waltzing Matilda" is filled with argot specific to that country. The song is about a swagman (itinerant worker) who sets up camp near a billabong (small lake formed by a river) and starts to boil water in his billy (a tin pot for boiling water and basic cooking, one waits for it to boil). When a stray jumpbuck (sheep) comes down to the billabong for a drink, he grabs it and throws it in his tucker bag (food bag) to eat later. The squatter (land owner) sees him and the troopers (police) come to question him. He evades them by jumping in the billabong, but his plan is flawed: he can't swim. He drowns, and now his ghost inhabits the billabong. The "swag" is the collection of items a swagman carries in his travels, typically in a pack of some kind.

He calls his swag "Matilda," and "waltzing" means walking, so "Waltzing Matilda" means he is walking with his stuff. There are various legends that explain how the swag came to be named "Matilda." One popular story states that this swagman's wife was named Matilda, and when she died, he named it after her in her memory. Like many folk songs originating in the 1800s, the origins of "Waltzing Matilda" are murky. According to the Australian historian Roger Clarke , who culled the Australian National Library for information, the song was written in 1985, with lyrics by a poet named Banjo Paterson and music by a musician named Christina Macpherson. Paterson was not a Swagman, but was traveling with fiancee in Queensland, and came across Macpherson when they stopped in Dagworth Station for a stay. Paterson heard the term "Waltzing Matilda" during his stay, and when he came across a water hole on the grounds, he made up the story.

An explanation of more of the terms: "Humping the Bluey" is to carry a swag traveling, so named after the blue wool blanket that formed the swag. A Coolabah tree is correctly a type of Eucalypt. A "Billy" is a tin pot for boiling water and basic cooking; one waits for it to boil. >> Suggestion credit: Toby - Hobart, Australia The intro explanation of this song mentions Don Quixote, who was the famous character in the book by the same name written by Miguel de Cervantes. Both Quixote and the man in the song travel the countryside looking for adventure. ESPN sportscaster Chris Berman, who was known for obscure nicknames, sang this song for Minnesota Vikings running back Mewelde Moore. Whenever Moore had the ball, Berman sang "Waltzing Mewelde" to the tune of this traditional song. >> Suggestion credit: Bert - Pueblo, NM The song's copyright expired in Australia in 1991. However its copyright in the USA remained until 2011, meaning that at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Australia had to pay to use its own song.

Waltzing Matilda by Banjo Paterson - Australian Song You might also enjoy this beautiful rendition also on YouTube by Andre Rieu. Waltzing Matilda has become one of the world's ten most recorded songs. The origins of the song, and the meaning of the lyrics have been argued over by many researchers and performers since it was written over 100 years ago. Some feel that Waltzing Matilda was an early political protest song - a song of freedom. That the Great Shearers Strike of 1894 influenced Banjo Paterson to write this song. Others disagree. There are four main versions of Waltzing Matilda. The original by Banjo Paterson (shown below) was written in 1895. In 1903 Marie Cowan altered the lyrics to help sell Billy Tea. An advertisement for the tea was on the back cover of the sheet music. Marie Cowan version . Harry Nathan claimed that he wrote the music and edited lyrics in 1900, but he didn't apply for copyright until 1903. And finally there is an international version by Thomas Wood which is the most well-known outside of Australia.

Slim Dusty sang Waltzing Matilda at the closing ceremony of the Sydney 2000 Olympics. On this page is the original version as written by Banjo Paterson.

Listen to the music Oh there once was a swagman camped in the billabong Under the shade of a Coolabah tree And he sang as he looked at the old billy boiling Who'll come a waltzing Matilda with me Who'll come a waltzing Matilda my darling Who'll come a waltzing Matilda with me Waltzing Matilda leading a tucker bag Who'll come a waltzing Matilda with me Down came a jumbuck to drink at the water hole Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him in glee And he said as he put him away in the tucker bag You'll come a waltzing Matilda with me You'll come a waltzing Matilda my darling You'll come a waltzing Matilda with me Waltzing Matilda leading a tucker bag You'll come a waltzing Matilda with me Down came the squatter a riding on his thoroughbred Down came policemen one, two and three Where is the jumbuck you've got in the tucker bag You'll come a waltzing Matilda with me You'll come a waltzing Matilda my darling You'll come a waltzing Matilda with me Waltzing Matilda leading a t

ucker bag You'll come a waltzing Matilda with me But the swagman he ups and he jumps in the water hole Drowning himself by the Coolabah tree And his ghost can be heard as it sings in the billabong Who'll come a waltzing Matilda with me Note: when reading Paterson's hand written manuscript, it is difficult to determine the correct words for two parts of his poem: ï¿½ "leading a tucker bag" could also be "heaving a tucker bag" or "leading a water bag" or "heaving a water bag".

ï¿½ "Where is the jumbuck" could also be "Whose is the jumbuck" waltzing Matilda ~ to go walkabout carrying your swag walkabout ~ walking in the bush for an extended period of time swag ~ a pack or bundle containing the personal belongings of a swagman. swagman ~ a drifter (person without a permanent place to live) who carried his swag as he travelled the country on foot looking for work. He was a common sight during the depression of the 1890's and 1930's. squatter ~ a grazier or station (ranch) owner especially with a large landholding. Today squatter means a person illegally occupying a property. billy ~ a tin can with a wire handle or a pot. To make tea, water was boiled in it and handful of tea thrown in. tucker bag ~ bag to carry your tucker (food) jumbuck ~ sheep coolabah ~ E.coolabah is a species of gum or eucalyptus tree; coolibah is an alternate spelling.

billabong ~ a dead-end channel extending from the main stream of a river filled with water only in the rainy season. More Information Waltzing Matilda | Lyrics | Song | Meaning | Words | Music | Poem Waltzing Matilda Waltzing Matilda Australia's Favourite Song Waltzing Matilda Lyrics Waltzing Matilda Song Words Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong, Under the shade of a coolibah tree, And he sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled, Who'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me? Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda, Who'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me? And he sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled, Who'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me? Along came a jumbuck to drink at the billabong, Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee, And he sang as he stowed that jumbuck in his tucker bag, You'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me.

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda, Who'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me? And he sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled, Who'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me? Up rode the squatter, mounted on his thoroughbred, Down came the troopers, one, two, three, Whose is that jumbuck you've got in your tucker bag? You'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me. Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda, Who'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me? And he sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled, Who'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me? Up jumped the swagman, leapt into the billabong, You'll never catch me alive, said he, And his ghost may be heard as you pass by the billabong, Who'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me. Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda, Who'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me?

And he sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled, Who'll come a-waltzing, Matilda, with me? Art by Trishan Waltzing Matilda About the Song The lyrics to the song Waltzing Matilda were written in 1895 by Banjo Paterson , an Australian bush poet, while holidaying on a huge cattle and sheep station in the Australian Outback . He was inspired by a tune he heard being played by Christina Macpherson the daughter the owner of the property. Banjo and Christina worked together composing the song. He wrote the words while she set the music for Waltzing Matilda. The song was an instant hit and today Waltzing Matilda is an Australian icon. It is likely that more Australians know the words to this song than even their national anthem. Meaning of Words Used "Strine" Words - What They Mean This song used many uniquely Australian words referred to as Strine . They are explained below. Jolly - means happy. Swagman - a hobo, an itinerant worker, who travelled from place to place in search of work. A swagman usually carried all his belongings wrapped up in a blanket called a swag.

Billabong - a waterhole or pond. It is an aboriginal word that originally meant little or no water. Coolibah Tree - a eucalyptus tree which usually grows near water. The name coolibah is derived from the aboriginal word gulabaa. Billy - a tin can with a wire handle used to boil water. If the swagman was fortunate he may have boiled some tea in it. Jumbuck - a sheep. The origin of the word is uncertain. It's most likely derived from two words jumping buck. Tucker Bag - a bag for storing food. It was usually an old sugar or flour sack. Tucker is a slang word for food. Squatter - a wealthy landowner, a rancher. Thoroughbred - An expensive pedigreed horse. The Mercedes Benz equivalent of its day. Trooper - a policeman, a mounted militia-man. Waltzing Matilda Explained Waltzing Matilda - Meaning of the Song The song tells the story of a swagman in outback Queensland, Australia in the mid-1890s. 1st Verse A swagman is resting under a eucalyptus tree on the banks of a watering-hole.

He is singing and passing the time. He has lit a fire and is boiling something in a tin can (most likely tea). 2nd Verse While there, he notices a sheep wandering down to the watering-hole for a drink. The swagman catches the sheep, kills it, probably eats what he can and stows the rest in his backpack. (Swagmen were itinerant workers who were so poor they didn't know where their next meal would come from. So this sheep was an opportunity too good to miss). 3rd Verse Unfortunately for the swagman, the wealthy landowner comes by the water-hole. He is mounted on his fine, expensive horse and is accompanied by three policemen. They catch the hapless swagman red-handed with the remains of the sheep, telling him that he is under arrest for stealing and killing the sheep. 4th Verse Absolutely terrified the swagman leaps up and jumps into the watering-hole hoping to escape. Unfortunately, he drowns in the waterhole. Ever since that day his ghost still haunts the waterhole and can be heard singing his song. Meaning of the Phrase 'Waltzing Matilda' What Does the Phrase Actually Mean?

The title of the song is derived from an Australian phrase "waltzing the matilda" which is no longer in use today. It is believed to have originated from German immigrants who started settling in Australia from 1838. Waltzing is from the German term 'auf der walz' which meant to travel while learning a trade. Young German apprentices in those days travelled from place to place working under a master craftsman earning a living as they went and sleeping wherever they could. The German word 'walz' became 'waltz' in Australia. The waltz was a fashionable dance at the time and Australians were familiar with it. Matilda has German origins too and means Mighty Battle Maiden. It is believed to have been given to females who accompanied soldiers during the Thirty Year Wars in Europe. This came to mean "to be kept warm at night" and later to mean the great army coats or blankets that soldiers wrapped themselves with. These were rolled into a swag and carried behind their shoulders while marching. So 'waltzing the matilda' came to mean to travel from place to place in search of work with all your belongings on your back, wrapped in a blanket. This is what Swagmen did in outback Australia.

When the song was written the word "the" was dropped from the title becoming Waltzing Matilda. Banjo Paterson Who Wrote Waltzing Matilda? Andrew Barton (Banjo) Paterson (1864-1941) was one of Australia's greatest poets authored the lyrics to Waltzing Matilda. He was born on 17 February 1864 at Narrambla near Orange, New South Wales . He was the eldest of seven children. Banjo's early childhood was spent in Australian Outback . He used his early childhood experiences frequently in his poems and writing. In 1874 he was sent to Sydney Grammar School and then went on to became a lawyer in 1886. It was while a law student that he began writing poetry and adopted the nickname "Banjo". His first poem, 'El Mahdi to the Australian Troops', was published in the Bulletin newspaper in February 1885. A string of other poems and Waltzing Matilda soon followed. These were very popular with the public and he was soon a local celebrity. Banjo served as a war correspondent in South Africa during the Boer War .

In 1902 he gave up his legal practice to concentrate on his writing. In 1903 he was appointed editor of the Sydney Evening News. On 8 April 1903 he married Alice Emily. They had two children. In World War I he drove an ambulance and later served in the Middle East. He was wounded in 1916 but served until the end of the war. After the war Banjo resumed journalism. He retired from active journalism in 1930 to devote his leisure to creative writing. He died of a heart attack at the age of 76, on 5 February 1941. Christina Macpherson Who Wrote the Music for Waltzing Matilda? Christina Macpherson inspired Banjo Paterson to write Waltzing Matilda. She also played and arranged the original music for the song. Christina was 31 years old when she visited the family property of Dagworth in 1995. While at Winton a town close to the property she happened a chance meeting with an old school friend Sarah Riley. Sarah was visiting her family with her fiancée Banjo Paterson.

Christina and her family invited Sarah and Banjo to come visit them at Dagworth. As part of an evening's entertainment at Dagworth Homestead (ranch house) Christina played a tune on her zither. Banjo asked her what the tune was and she told him she didn't know. (The tune in question is the Scottish song " Bonnie Wood O' Craigielea ") Banjo liked the tune and immediately started to put down some words to it. Christina and Banjo worked though the score, Christina playing the tune on her zither and Banjo penning the words as they came to mind. Related Article: Christina Macpherson — The Woman Who Inspired Waltzing Matilda Waltzing Matilda Becomes Australia's Favorite Song Evolution into Today's Iconic Song The story of Waltzing Matilda didn't end with Banjo Paterson and Christina Macpherson writing the song and gaining popularity as a bush ballad in the Australian outback. In 1900 Paterson sold the lyrics, to what he considered just a minor little ditty, bundled together with a number of other works to Angus and Robertson publishers for the princely sum of "five quid" (about A$670).

We can only guess that he probably valued the song for about $20. Rights to the Song Bought by the Billy Tea Company According to records held by the State Library of New South Wales, James Inglis & Co bought a bundle of lyrics from Angus & Robertson in 1902. In this bundle were the lyrics for Waltzing Matilda. James Inglis & Co was a major importer of tea and sold over 680,000 kilos (1.5 million lbs) of tea a year under the "Billy Tea" trademark. They were in search of a catchy tune to promote their tea. Waltzing Matilda, they thought, with a little improvement, would be just perfect. Waltzing Matilda Rearranged by Marie Cowan Marie Cowan, the wife of one of the managers working at James Inglis & Co and a gifted musician, was entrusted with the task of writing a tune to the lyrics. Fortunately, Marie had heard the original musical tune composed by Christina. So she set about recomposing the tune and changing some of the lyrics of the song to better fit the melody. The sheet music and lyrics were then printed and wrapped around containers of Billy Tea and as a promotional gimmick.

It wasn't long before the song gained widespread popularity. This version of the song, known as the Marie Cowan version , is the one we hear today. Waltzing Matilda Goes to War Waltzing Matilda travelled with Australian troopers to the Boer War, then the First World War where it was sung boisterous by Australian soldiers and picked up by troops of other nationalities such as the British and Americans. Before long it was known throughout the world even though, in most instances, those singing it had no idea where the song originated. For over a century now, it has been a favourite with Australian troops whenever they travel overseas. Waltzing Matilda is Over a Century Old and Still a Favorite Waltzing Matilda is one of those rare songs that hasn't aged. It has been with us for over a century as is still popular today. It is frequently used in major public events. Some say that more Australian know the words to this song than possibly even their national anthem. Listen to Waltzing Matilda On YouTube Wondered what Waltzing Matilda sounds like? Click on the image on the left to find out. Waltzing Matilda was first sung publicly in 1895.

Since then it has gone on to become Australia's favorite song. There are over 700 different versions of Waltzing Matilda. These have been recorded by such famous singers such as Slim Dusty, Rod Stewart, Johnny Cash, The Seekers,and Bill Haley & Comets. The oldest surviving recording of the song was made in 1926 on a wax disk and lasted only two minutes. Click image to hear the first recording of Waltzing Matilda First Recording of Waltzing Matilda The first known recording of the song was made in 1926 in London, England by a singer named John Collinson. The recording is barely two minutes long. It almost seems like the singer was rushing through the song to make sure it all fitted in the old-fashioned wax recording disc which only had a recording capacity of about two and a half minutes. While it can clearly be recognized as Waltzing Matilda, it is interesting to note that this version is different from the one we are familiar with today. There is a subtle but noticeable difference in the melody.

How Waltzing Matilda was Written Why Waltzing Matilda was Written The lyrics to Waltzing Matilda was written by Banjo Paterson while visiting Dagworth Station in 1895 in far north Queensland, Australia. This huge property, of over a quarter of a million acres, was owned by the family of Christina Macpherson . Christina's brother, Bob, managed this vast property. Click on the image to hear an Autoharp. While riding in a coach to Dagworth they saw a swagman walking along the dusty road. Bob Macpherson turned to Banjo and said "that's what they call waltzing matilda". During his stay at Dagworth, Bob Macpherson and Banjo stopped at a billabong where they found the remains of a sheep slaughtered by a swagman. For an evening's entertainment, Banjo frequently heard Christina play a tune on her zither. Banjo liked the "whimsicality and dreaminess" of the tune and thought it would be nice to set some words to it.

He and Christina collaborated on this song, Using bits and pieces of information he had gathered during his visit, Banjo penning some lyrics and Christina arranging the music and soon the song we know today as Waltzing Matilda was born. Related Article: How Waltzing Matilda was Written Versions of Waltzing Matilda There are a Few There are no definitive version of lyrics to the song Waltzing Matilda. The Queensland / Banjo Patterson version is believe to be the original written by Banjo Paterson and has a definite bush ballad tone to it. Another version, known as the Harry Nathen version, is now lost. The most popular version heard today is the Marie Cowan version, which has a merry sing-a-long tone to it. There are over 700 different recorded versions of this song by local and international artists. Who was Matilda in the Australian Song “Waltzing Matilda” and When was the Folk Song Written? Who was Matilda in the Australian Song “Waltzing Matilda” and When was the Folk Song Written? 2010.05.22 | Filed Under: Language Leave a Comment In the Australian song “Waltzing Matilda,” a billabong is a pool of stagnant water.

A swagman was someone who carried around everything he owned in a knapsack. Waltzing meant hiking, and Matilda wasn’t a woman but rather an Australian word for a knapsack. So Waltzing Matilda means: walking with my knapsack. The original lyrics were written by poet and nationalist Banjo Paterson in 1887, and was first published as sheet music in 1903. “Waltzing Matilda” is also known as “the unofficial national anthem of Australia”. Read More Also, any literature on baseball written in the 1800's does not credit Abner Doubleday with the invention either. But if my... 2016-12-28T23:28:08+00:00 I'm not saying that whoever wrote this did not research this at all but I am saying this explanation of the origins of baseball... 2016-12-28T23:19:30+00:00 IT TOOK ME OVER WINTER BREAK 12 DAYS 3 HOURS 5 MINUTES AND 36 SECONDS.

2016-12-28T02:49:36+00:00 The math here is false. The fundation of how this was worked out is how long it takes to count to 100 in seconds; which is fine... 2016-11-08T22:41:08+00:00 Bush songs and music | australia.gov.au Bush songs and music Australian bush Bush songs and music Eric Wadsworth, Musicians playing bush music at Emu Bottom, 1971. Image courtesy of the National Library of Australia: nla.pic-an24494848. The songs and music that has come from people's experiences of living and surviving in the Australian bush has become known in Australia as 'bush music'. Bush songs have been devised by ordinary everyday people and are a record of the colourful slang of bush life. The convict songs of the early days of the Australian colonies became the foundation of Australia's bush music. Bush ballads recorded the harsh way of the life and contemporary events and experiences; the lives and loves of bushrangers, bolters, swagmen, drovers, and shearers.

Later new themes emerges based on the experiences of war, railways and unions. The most famous of these bush ballads is Waltzing Matilda , Australia's unofficial national song about a swagman shearer. Many songs and lyrics, written down for private use, were later assembled and published by A B (Banjo) Paterson as Old bush songs (1905). They were always handed down as part of an oral tradition, similar to folk music. Bushranger ballads Unknown artist, Ben Hall, the bushranger, c. 1860s. Image courtesy of the State Library of Queensland: 195452. Convicts invented songs about bushrangers, who were often escaped convicts. There is a cluster of ballads about the young Irish convict-turned-bushranger 'Bold' Jack Donohoe, who was shot dead in 1830. These ballads continued to be sung as anthems of defiance for decades. In the shearers' strike of 1891, Bold Jack Donohoe was sung to voice the feelings of the shearers against the squatters and the government.

The most popular ballad about Jack Donohoe may have been 'The wild colonial boy'. The bushranging ballad Streets of Forbes records the slaying of bushranger Ben Hall by police troopers in 1865. It is generally believed to have been devised by John McGuire, Ben's brother-in-law and neighbour, after he saw Ben's body being paraded through Forbes: Ben went to Goobang Creek, and that was his downfall For riddled like a sieve was valiant Ben Hall 'Twas early in the morning upon the fifth of May When seven police surrounded him as fast asleep he lay. The characters are real and the names are important as they provide the details of the event of the death of Ben Hall, confirmed by an oral history account by Bob Bolton. Overlanders - stockmen's and drover's songs Yandilla, sheep shearing, ca 1894, slide: lantern, b&w. Image courtesy of National Library of Australia: nla.pic-an24284753. After the gold rushes, shearers and drovers composed ballads and songs which became part of the oral tradition of Australian bush music.

Click go the shears , perhaps the most widely sung shearer's song, borrows its tune and a little of its text from an American popular song of the Civil War. Out on the board the old shearer stands Grasping his shears in his long bony hands Fixed is his gaze on a bare-bellied 'joe' Glory if he gets her, won't he make the ringer go. Click go the shears boys, click, click, click Wide is his blow and his hands move quick The ringer looks around and is beaten by a blow And curses the old snagger with the blue-bellied 'joe'. Stockmen and drovers, known as 'overlanders', developed pride in the skills which required them to drive sheep and cattle over long distances. This is expressed in many of their ballads and songs such as Ogilvie's Kings of the Earth; 'We are slaves of the saddle and bridle Yet Kings of the Earth when we ride!'. Favourite Australian bush songs (1964) compiled by Lionel Long and Graham Jenkin documented the best known handed down versions of droving songs.

These included The drovers dream, The drovers song, and The Queensland drover , with its stirring chorus: Pass the billy round boys! Don't let the pint-pot stand there! For tonight we'll drink to the health Of every overlander. With federation of the colonies in 1901, Australians began showing pride in their own music and this is reflected in their adoption of Waltzing Matilda as an unofficial national song. Waltzing Matilda, an Australian slang term which means to carry one's swag from camp to camp, tells the story of a swagman who steals 'jumbucks' (sheep) from a farmer. Written by Banjo Paterson in Queensland 1895, Waltzing Matilda was inspired by the death of swagman-shearer during the shearers' strikes of the 1890s. It was put to music by Christina Macpherson of Dagwood Station, near Winton, Queensland. The tune was adapted from the traditional Scottish tune Craigielea which she had heard at the Warrnambool Races in Victoria in 1894.

The bush remained a favourite subject of Australian songs, although it was often portrayed as a place people had left and longed to return to. The most famous song of the inter-war years was Jack O'Hagan's On the road to Gundagai (1922). Bush music collection and revival In the 1880s and 1890s, Australian writers like Banjo Paterson and Henry Lawson popularised a tradition of bush ballads in the publication Old bush songs, which is still a strong influence on Australian folk and country music today. Classic bush ballads included The wild colonial boy and The Eumeralla shore. An Australian bush music revival began in the 1950s when John Meredith recorded old-timer singers born in the late 1800s, singing and playing old bush songs. For four or five years he collected songs from Sydney and in a limited region of central-western New South Wales, around the Lachlan River. Systematic field recordings were also carried out in Victoria by members of the Folk Lore Society of Victoria. The first bush songs recorded were mainly from Jack 'Hoopiron' Lee (b.

1876) and his mate, Joe Cashmere, a fiddle player and bush poet, both from Booligal, on the Lachlan. They included The backblocks shearer , Wild rover no more, The drover's dream , Andy's gone with cattle, Bold Jack Donohoe and Moreton Bay . In November 1954, 'Duke' Tritton (b. 1886) turned up in response to an article in The Bulletin about 'missing' verses, songs and bush ballads - having worked as a shearer out west, then droving, fencing, labouring, boxing and singing. The Bushwhackers The Bushwhackers at Dame Mary Gilmore's ninetieth birthday, 1955, photograph: b&w. Image courtesy of National Library of Australia: nla.pic-an24376912. In 1954, Meredith assembled a small group to sing the songs he had collected and The Bushwhackers were born. The group play button accordion, the lagerphone, bush bass - a one-stringed tea-chest, guitar and mouth organ.

Duke Tritton then has a second career through the Bushwhackers as a singer, on radio and in public. The Bushwhackers first disc - The drover's dream, (1955) is released by the newly formed Wattle Records and Films (founded by Peter Hamilton and Edgar Waters), ultimately selling 20,000 records after the first pressing of 200. The first LP recording of Australian bush music is Australian bush songs (1956) by Englishman A L Lloyd, based on songs Lloyd learned in his youth in central western New South Wales. This gained Australian bush songs wide exposure and influenced the repertoire and singing style of bush music revival singers in the 1970s. Indigenous bush music As part of the 1950s Australian bush revival, an itinerant Aboriginal worker, Dougie Young, recorded his songs with Wattle Recordings in 1963. One of Dougie Young's songs, The land where the crow flies backward, was taken up by white singers of the folk song revival movement. Aboriginal folk singers have also preserved white Australian song texts such as The old bark hut.

The close relationship between Aboriginal and white stockmen is commemorated in The dying stockman: Give Wongi my saddle and blanket, Give Billy my bullets of lead That these two dark friends of my childhood May remember a stockman who's dead. Overlanders - stockmen's and drover's songs In 1971 The overlander song book was published. This reflected the systematic recording of songs collected in far north Queensland by Ron Edwards. Comparatively, very little collecting was done in other parts of Queensland, the Northern Territory or Western Australia. The big book of Australian folk songs is virtually a revised edition of The overlander song book and shows the rich bush and folk song tradition that existed in North Queensland, with much local material. This repertoire of bush music was influential in shaping the development of Australian folk music and the folk revival of the 1970s. Useful links

Question: The original lyrics of the folk song ‘Waltzing Matilda’ were written by which Australian poet in 1895?
Answer: Banjo Paterson