Annotation:Savourna Delight

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X:1 T:Savourna Delight M:C L:1/8 R:Air Q:"Slow" N:”A Favorite Irish Air” B:Gow – Fourth Collection of Niel Gow’s Reels (1800) Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion K:D A|d2 d>e (dc) c>d|TB>A(B=c) ~B>AF>d|AGFE D2 FA|B>c Tc2 [F3d3] A| (df)ad (c/d/)e dc|TB>AB=c TB>AF>d|A>B (A/G/).F/.E/ D2 FA|B>c Tc2 [F3d3]:| |:A|d2 ~de f2 ef|Tg2 fe fdB>c|(df)ed (ce)dc|TBAB{d}c TBAF>a| a2 a/g/f/e/ d2 dc|TB>Afd Td>e {d/e/}f2 {e/d/c/B/}|A>B (A/G/)F/E/ D2 FA|B>c Tc2 [F3d3:]||

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SAVOURNA DELIGHT ("Savourneen Dheelish" or "Sa Muirnin Dilis"). AKA – “Exile of Erin (2) (The).” Scottish, Irish (originally); Slow Air (4/4 time). D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB (Gow): AB (Roche). A note in Gow states "A favorite Irish air," and, while the air may be an old Irish one, the song "Savaourna Deelish Elleen ogue" was written by English comic dramatist George Colman the Younger (1762- ) as part of his musical drama The Surrender of Calais (although it is sometimes --erroneously-- attributed to Thomas Campbell). The story goes that Colman, who was manager of the Haymarket Theatre, wrote fairly prolifically albeit unsuccessfully, and none of his works survive. After his play The Iron Chest was panned he added "the Younger" to his name, saying by way of explanation: "Lest my father's memory may be injured by mistakes, and in the confusion of after-time, the translator of Terence, and the author of The Jealous Wife, should be supposed guilty of The Iron Chest, I shall, were I to reach the patriarchal longevity of Methuselah, continue in all my dramatic publications to subscribe myself George Colman the Younger" .

Samuel Bayard (Dance to the Fiddle, March to the Fife, 1981) observes it is essentially the same tune as "Tatter Jack Walsh," "Garden of Daisies (2) (The)," "Palatine's Daughter (The)," "So now my dear Johnny," and "Rough Heathy Little Hill (The)" (An {Garbh } Chnoicin Fraoigh). See also Petrie’s “Derry Brien.”