MS Mus. 1745/1/12

Threlfall, III/4. Publication: 1987, Boosey & Hawkes, Collected Edition, Vols. 15a and 15b ('Songs with orchestra' Parts 1 and 2); for the earlier publication of particular songs, including pianoforte versions, see Lowe and see Threlfall. Performances of some of the orchestral versions (see Threlfall for details of particular songs) were given 30 May 1899 (London, St James's Hall, Christianne Andray, cond. Alfred Hertz) and 16 March 1901 (Paris, Société Nationale de Musique, Christianne Andray, cond. Vincent d'Indy).

The manuscript volume comprises two copies of the Danish songs, both in Delius's autograph full score but ordered differently. The first sequence contains only five songs.

1.First sequence (ff. 1-135, five songs.

• f. 1. Title-page: 'Danish Songs' (in the hand of Jelka Delius). Underneath the title, Delius has pencilled the song titles in Danish, but the order does not match either sequence in this volume. Page stamped: 'Frederick Delius / Grez-sur-Loing / 8. et M.' The number '19' is written in pencil at the top of the page.
• ff. 2-3r. Headed 'VI' ('Through long, long years'), finishing half-way down f. 3.
• ff. 3r-5r. Headed 'VII' in a combination (number change) of pencil and blue pencil ('Let springtime come then when it will'). The final 8 bars (f. 5) are in the hand of Eric Fenby, with the following note underneath also in his hand: '(the scoring of these final bars was completed by dictation to Eric Fenby at Grez in early 1929)'. The verso of (the new) f. 5 containing the dictated bars has been pasted onto the recto of f. 7. Folio 6 is a typescript label.
• ff. 7-9v. Headed 'III' ('There was a King in days of old').
• ff. 10-12v. Headed 'IV' ('No leaflet stirs upon the silent shore').
• ff. 13-14v. [No heading] 'Lift on high and clink the glasses'.
• f. 15 is blank, save for '23' in blue pencil (a number(?) also in blue pencil struck-through is above it). The following folio is blank.

2. Second sequence (ff. 16-30), seven songs. Signed by Delius and dated (1897) on f. 17r.

• f. 16r. Title-page, in the hand of Jelka Delius: 'Seven / Danish Songs / Frederick Delius / Silken Shoes / Irmelin Rose / Summer Nights / The Seraglio Garden / Wine Roses / Red Roses / Let Springtime come then'. At the top of the folio, number '20)' is written in pencil.
• ff. 17-18r. 'Silken Shoes'.
• ff. 19-21r. 'Irmelin Rose'.
• ff. 21v-22v. 'Summer Nights'.
• ff. 23-24v. 'The Seraglio Garden'.
• ff. 25-26v. 'Wine Roses'.
• ff. 27-28r. 'Red Roses'.
• ff. 28v-30r. 'Let Spring time come then'. The final 8 bars (f. 30r) are in the hand of Fenby as dictated by Delius (see f. 5 above), although without Fenby's note. Once again, a new page has been pasted onto an existing folio: f. 28 has been pasted onto the recto of f. 29 (f. 29v is blank).