"Pastime with Good Company", also known as "The King's Ballad" ("The Kynges Balade"), is an
English folk song written by King
Henry VIII in the beginning of the 16th century, shortly after his
coronation
A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the presentation of ot ...
. It is regarded as the most famous of his compositions, and it became a popular song in England and other European countries during the
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...
. It is thought to have been written for
Catherine of Aragon.
Historical context
The early years of Henry VIII's reign marked a distinctive character of exuberance and extravagances in the English court, made possible by the political stability of the kingdom and wealth of the state's finances. Royal banquets and feasts were held on a continual basis, as were outdoor sports and pastimes, such as hunting,
hawking
Hawking may refer to:
People
* Stephen Hawking (1942–2018), English theoretical physicist and cosmologist
* Hawking (surname), a family name (including a list of other persons with the name)
Film
* ''Hawking'' (2004 film), about Stephen Ha ...
, and
jousting
Jousting is a martial game or hastilude between two horse riders wielding lances with blunted tips, often as part of a tournament. The primary aim was to replicate a clash of heavy cavalry, with each participant trying to strike the opponen ...
and archery tournaments. The young King himself was a skilled sportsman, excelling in horse riding, archery, wrestling and
real tennis. The song was penned during this period, and presents a general praise to all these entertainments and diversions, depicting the general state of mind of leisure and unconcern that prevailed in the royal court at the time. At the same time, the text provides a moral justification for all this merriment: company is preferable to idleness; for the latter breeds vice.
The song
As with every man of noble birth in the Renaissance era, Henry VIII was expected to master many skills, including fencing, hunting, dancing, writing poetry, singing, and playing and composing music, and was educated accordingly as a prince. Henry was considered a talented composer and poet by his contemporaries.
The song is supposed to have been played in court, along with all the other of the King's compositions. However, due to its simple and catchy melody, it became a popular tune and was soon afterwards interpreted frequently at English fairs, taverns and events. It is also believed to have been one of the favourite musical pieces of Queen
Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...
. The song is referred to in a number of contemporary documents and publications, attesting to its popularity, and was subject of a wide number of variants and instrumental rearrangements by different musicians in the following years. In the 1548 work ''
The Complaynt of Scotland
''The Complaynt of Scotland'' is a Scottish book printed in 1549 as propaganda during the war of the Rough Wooing against the Kingdom of England, and is an important work of the Scots language.
Context and authorship
The book was part of the wa ...
'', the anonymous author mentions ''"Passetyme with gude companye,"'' as being among the popular songs within the
kingdom of Scotland
The Kingdom of Scotland (; , ) was a sovereign state in northwest Europe traditionally said to have been founded in 843. Its territories expanded and shrank, but it came to occupy the northern third of the island of Great Britain, sharing a l ...
in the early part of the 16th century.
The oldest known version is part of the ''Henry VIII Manuscript'' (c. 1513), a collection of 14 works of his authorship currently preserved at the British Library (BM Addl. MSS. 31,922; Addl. MSS. 5,665; MSS. Reg. Appendix 58), which are signed: ''"By the King's Hand"''. The manuscript also includes two
mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...
es, a
motet, an
anthem, and other songs and ballads, both vocal and instrumental.
"Pastime with Good Company" remains a favourite piece in choral repertoires, and has been recorded in many variants that include
lute,
recorder,
trombone
The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...
, percussion and
flute, among other instruments. Because of its distinctive early Renaissance melody, it has also been included in different movies and documentaries based on the figure of Henry VIII and the
Tudor era
The Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603 in England and Wales and includes the Elizabethan period during the reign of Elizabeth I until 1603. The Tudor period coincides with the dynasty of the House of Tudor in England that began with t ...
.
Contemporary renditions
The song was also subject of numerous contemporary versions in recent times. Renamed as "Past Time with Good Company", it was included as the third track on ''
Under a Violet Moon'', the second album by Renaissance-inspired
folk rock
Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers s ...
group
Blackmore's Night.
The song was also played by rock band
Jethro Tull, and appears on the remastered CD ''
Stormwatch'' and ''
The Best of Acoustic Jethro Tull'' bearing the name "King Henry's Madrigal".
The song was arranged and played by English
progressive/folk rock band
Gryphon
The griffin, griffon, or gryphon ( Ancient Greek: , ''gryps''; Classical Latin: ''grȳps'' or ''grȳpus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a legendary creature with the body, tail, and ...
, appearing on their 1973,
self-titled album.
Under the title ''Mainstream'', an electronic version was arranged by Peter Howell of the
BBC Radiophonic Workshop
The BBC Radiophonic Workshop was one of the sound effects units of the BBC, created in 1958 to produce incidental sounds and new music for radio and, later, television. The unit is known for its experimental and pioneering work in electroni ...
for the 1983 album ''
The Soundhouse''. The first verse of the song was used as the opening to the song "Legacy of Tudors" by
symphonic metal band
Serenity on their 2013 album ''
War of Ages
War of Ages (sometimes abbreviated WoA; formerly known as Point Zero) is an American Christian metal band formed in Erie, Pennsylvania, in 2002.
The band's self-titled debut album '' War of Ages'' was released in 2005, and in February 2006, th ...
''.
Spanish folk band
An Danzza have created their own rendering of this traditional English piece in their album "Whispers of the Forest".
Melody score
Based on
British Library MS 31922, with additional bars, slurs, and time signature (click to download MIDI file, or see base of score to listen).
\version "2.10.33"
\new ChoirStaff <<
\new Staff %% /new Staff
\addlyrics %% /addlyrics
\new Staff %% /new Staff
\new Staff %% /new Staff
>> %% /new ChoirStaff
Lyrics
The '9'-like symbol in the first line in the original is a
scribal abbreviation
Scribal abbreviations or sigla (singular: siglum) are abbreviations used by ancient and medieval scribes writing in various languages, including Latin, Greek, Old English and Old Norse. In modern manuscript editing (substantive and mechanica ...
for the ''com'' of "company"; another is 'cō', as used in the ninth line.
References
External links
The Works of Henry VIII Includes MIDI files and other multimedia. Accessed on 27 April 2007.
Choral Wiki ''Pastime with good company (Henry VIII)''. Includes scores for different versions and MIDI files. Accessed on 27 April 2007.
*
{{Authority control
English folk songs
Works by Henry VIII
16th-century songs