Page from Mounsey score in the Freedman Collection
Contained in the Freedman Collection is “O the Merry Merry Spring!,” a strophic art song for piano and voice which sets the poetry of C. Mackay Esq. The Freedman Collection only contains this single song by Mounsey, although it was originally published in 1837 as number five in a set of six songs called “Songs of Remembrance.” Each song sets poetry written by a different poet.
"O the Merry Merry Spring!" is in D major with a simple, mostly stepwise and consonant melody. The rhythm is not complex and is very repetitive, much like the melody. This song was made for anyone to sing and play as it is very accessible to musicians at many levels. The text is about all the joyous things that happen during the spring with a coupled rhyme scheme. The melody in the accompaniment imitates the bird song that is mentioned in the text with grace notes and a fast climbing line. In the left hand of the accompaniment, there are repeated staccato chords, which create a sense of lightness and buoyancy right away. When the poetry moves away from a bright description to more sweeping movement and beauty, the accompaniment changes to an arpeggiated section with more held notes. It quickly changes back to staccato chords at the end to reflect the change of the text. These little but intentional aspects to this seemingly simple piece make Mounsey the talented composer she was.
This piece is contained in a hand-bound book in the RBI’s Freedman collection. In addition to the Mounsey work, the book contains songs by numerous other nineteenth-century composers, all bound together.