About ten years ago, in 2014, we were members of a Barter Club. It was a micro-economy where you “monetized” your own goods and services into a local currency, the “noabers” (the Dutch Saxon dialect for neighbors). With this currency, you could purchase items or services within the club. It was a closed system outside the control of the tax authorities. Only the value of the various items was a topic of constant discussion and arbitration within the club. After all, the pursuit of getting rich for free is universal.
I earned some “noabers” by volunteering as an accompanist on guitar at a Sing Along Party for seniors. They wanted songs in Dutch for the target audience of people that were young in the thirties to fifties of the last century. No, Beatles songs were not known in those days.
I found a website with lyrics/chord charts for children’s and community songs. I traced the melodies without lyrics and elaborated the chords into written accompaniments. Using Sibelius playback, I then could practice the songs at home without a singer. The formula worked quite well, and the Sing Along Party, featuring sixteen Dutch songs, was a huge success with the elderly audience, as they could sing along indeed.
Now, eleven years later, I considered it a nice good idea to transcribe this material for the website. It would also be a great exercise for my Dorico skills. It turned out to be indeed, because I decided to include the lyrics in the arrangement. Note that the lyrics are in Dutch! Maybe these songs have an English equivalent.
Many of the Dutch children songs now are under scrutiny by Wokist and “race critical” people, they state that the lyrics often are racist and oppressive. A senseless discussion, I guess.
You get a complete part with accompaniment, melody, and lyrics, as well as separate parts for the singer and guitarist. Enjoy this piece of traditional home craft! Perhaps, now that I’m volunteering as a guitarist in a nursing home, I’ll add some more in the future.