The Song: Sumer Is Icumen In
"Sumer Is Icumen In": first the melody on its own, then as a four-part round that repeats twice with the two-part pas joining on the repeat.
“Sumer Is Icumen In” is a four-part round, notable for being the oldest (known) English polyphonic song¹ and one of the first vernacular Middle English songs.² A round involves a tune, like “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” sung by several voices who all start the melody at different times; that is, when the first voice is starting the second bar or section of music, the section voice is starting from the beginning, and so forth.
The instructions for singing “Sumer” are included in a rubric in the manuscript, and dictate that the song be sung by four voices along with a two-part “pes” (Latin for “foot”; a grounding line that is sung repeatedly underneath the main round).³ As a six-part song from the 1260s, this was a milestone for polyphonic music of the era.⁴
A secular tune about life returning to the countryside after winter, the words describe the growth of plants and the birth of new animals to the backdrop of a cuckoo’s song. The lyrics and translation are as follows:
Middle English
Sumer is icumen in
Lhude sing cuccu
Groweþ sed
and bloweþ med
and springþ þe wde nu
Sing cuccu
Awe bleteþ after lomb
lhouþ after calue cu
Bulluc sterteþ
bucke uerteþ
murie sing cuccu
Cuccu cuccu
Wel singes þu cuccu
ne swik þu nauer nu
(Pes) Sing cuccu nu, sing cuccu
Sing cuccu, sing cuccu nu
Modern English version from Alexander Street edition of the music
Summer is a-coming in.
Loudly sing cuckoo.
Groweth seed
and bloweth mead[ow]
and spring the woods anew,
sing cuckoo.
Ewe now bleateth after lamb,
loweth after calf the cow,
bullock starteth,
buck now verteth
Merry sing cuckoo.
Cuckoo, cuckoo,
well sing'st thou, cuckoo.
Nor cease thou never now.
(Pes) Sing cuckoo now, sing cuckoo
Sing cuckoo, sing cuckoo now.
Note on Texts and Translations
The texts and translations of both the lyrics and rubric texts were sourced from various resources:
The rubric text which explains how the song is to be sung from: Duffin, Ross W. “The Summer Canon: A New Revision.” Speculum, 63 (1988), 1-22, with English translation from Google Translate and “Sumer is icumen in.” Wikipedia, November 3, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumer_is_icumen_in.
The manuscript’s Middle English lyrics were double-checked against: “Sumer is icumen in.” Wikipedia, November 3, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumer_is_icumen_in.
Singable translation of the lyrics into Modern English from this edition of the score: “Summer is A-Coming.” Alexander Street. London, England: Novello & Company, https://search-alexanderstreet-com.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/view/work/bibliographic_entity%7Cscore%7C3352165.
Latin sacred text and translation: “Sumer is icumen in.” Wikipedia, November 3, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumer_is_icumen_in.