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Mobley

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Afternoon ponies! Today I thought I would illuminate one small fragment of music which led to the creation of my original pony, Chirpy Tunes (currently pictured as my avatar, character entry

here).

 

Chirpy, though not necessarily reflected in terms of his gentle personality, has a dark genesis in music. Scubert's Der Leiermann (The Hurdy-Gurdy Man) provided much inspiration when I began to conceptualise the pony that would become Chirpy.

 

The song itself is set at the end of Schubert's song cycle Winterreise (Winter Journey). It is a lonely finale to a cycle, in which the sorrowful character of the lead singer sees an old, decrepit

Hurdy-Gurdy player at the edge of the village, and asks if he can leave with him.

 

Mythology-wise, the hurdy-gurdy player is often associated with personifications of death, as is the violinist and more importantly the organ-grinder which Chirpy's street organs allude to, and his isolation is reflected in Schubert's chilling writing.

 

As I said, Chirpy is no Grim Reaper, but I thought it would be interesting to include this as a footnote in his origins.

 

 

Over there beyond the village


Stands an organ-grinder,


And with numb fingers


He plays as best he can.

 

Barefoot on the ice,


He totters here and there,


And his little plate


Is always empty.

 

No one listens to him,


No one notices him,


And the dogs growl


Around the old man.

 

And he just lets it happen,


As it will,


Plays, and his hurdy-gurdy


Is never still.

 

Strange old man,


Shall I go with you?


Will you play your organ


To my songs

  • Brohoof 1

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