When I am laid, am laid in earth, may my wrongs create
No trouble, no trouble in thy breast;
Remember me, remember me, but ah! forget my fate.
Remember me, but ah! forget my fate.
The reason? One of the zillion or so O-levels I did at PSS was music. Our teacher was Harold Perkins. I excelled in music theory but my lack of understanding of the plot cost me dearly - I passed but did not have a good grade. I remember two set works, one was Dido and Aeneas and the other Brahms Saint Anthony Variations. I had not a clue as to what was expected of me as far as understanding these works, but I enjoyed the music and this many years later still do. So, if I am at all musical, it is only a very simple sort of musical. But as long as I don't try to be something I am not, I think that is OK.
What this post is meant to be drawing attention to is the beauty, the poignancy, the emotion in Dido's lament, which has haunted me ever since. Well not exactly haunted, but stayed with me at least. Which is all the more remarkable because as a rule I dislike opera - I do not like the highly trained voices, as a result the lyrics are hard to make out and if you do the plots are often imbecile - in short it is music at its worst, rather like putting raisins in rice pudding. This of course is IMHO and if you happen to like opera I salute you for your endurance.
Here is a more recent performance which includes some sheet music and words.
Whilst writing, here's what I did this afternoon. I attacked Silsean from its backside as an alternative access - so I cycled up the road behind Knockalt and parked the cycle in the forestry area. That oblique line on the map represents a fence. The fence posts are there (concrete too!) but no wire. One wonders what the purpose is or was!
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| Silsean from Garryknock forestry |
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| Me atop the cairn |
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| The cairn atop the mountain |
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