Maiden's Prayer
Encyclopedia
"A Maiden's Prayer" is a composition of Polish composer Tekla Bądarzewska-Baranowska
(born 1834 in Warsaw, died September 29, 1861 in Warsaw), which was published in 1856 in Warsaw, and then as a supplement to the Revue et gazette musicale de Paris in 1859.
The piece is a medium difficulty short piano piece for intermediate pianists. Some have liked it for its charming and romantic melody: others have described it as "sentimental salon tosh." The pianist and academic Arthur Loesser
described it as "this dowdy product of ineptitude."
The English language
lyrics
were written by John Stowell Adams. The American musician Bob Wills
arranged the piece in the Western swing
style and wrote lyrics for it. He published it first in 1935 as "Maiden's Prayer"; later, it became a standard
, recorded by many artists. The song is now a standard in the repertoire of western swing bands. Bob Wills wrote words to a fiddle tune he learned while he was a barber in Roy, New Mexico
. His lyrics reflect the title, and the song, as written by Wills, opens with:
Wills first recorded the song in 1935 (Vocalion 03924) and it quickly became one of his signature songs. He recorded it again in 1941 (OKeh 06205) and on the 1963 Liberty Records
album Bob Wills Sings and Plays. It has been recorded by many artists. Among them Buck Owens
on the 1965 Capitol album I've Got a Tiger By The Tail.
When Wills was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame
in 1970, "Maiden's Prayer" was one of the works cited.
by Kurt Weill
and Bertolt Brecht
. The song appears midway through act I; it is played on an out-of-tune piano at a honky-tonk frequented by prostitutes and their clients. Jakob Schmidt, one of the denizens of Mahagonny, refers to the song as "ewige Kunst" ("eternal art").
"Maiden's Prayer" appears as an insert piano song in the anime series Strawberry Panic.
"Maiden's Prayer" is also played by garbage trucks in Taiwan. As residents have to take out their own trash, the garbage truck signals everyone with the melody of this piece (or Beethoven's Fur Elise).
Tekla Badarzewska-Baranowska
Tekla Bądarzewska-Baranowska was a Polish composer.Bądarzewska was born in 1834 in Warsaw. She married Jan Baranowski and they had five children in their nine years of marriage. Bądarzewska-Baranowska died on 29 September 1861 at the age of 27. Her grave in the Powązki Cemetery features a young...
(born 1834 in Warsaw, died September 29, 1861 in Warsaw), which was published in 1856 in Warsaw, and then as a supplement to the Revue et gazette musicale de Paris in 1859.
The piece is a medium difficulty short piano piece for intermediate pianists. Some have liked it for its charming and romantic melody: others have described it as "sentimental salon tosh." The pianist and academic Arthur Loesser
Arthur Loesser
Arthur Loesser was an American classical pianist and writer.Born into a musical family, Loesser received early training from his father until he began lessons with Sigismund Stojowski at the Institute of Musical Art, now called the Juilliard School.Loesser was the author of the books Humor in...
described it as "this dowdy product of ineptitude."
The English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
lyrics
Lyrics
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
were written by John Stowell Adams. The American musician Bob Wills
Bob Wills
James Robert Wills , better known as Bob Wills, was an American Western Swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader, considered by music authorities as the co-founder of Western Swing and universally known as the pioneering King of Western Swing.Bob Wills' name will forever be associated with...
arranged the piece in the Western swing
Western swing
Western swing music is a subgenre of American country music that originated in the late 1920s in the West and South among the region's Western string bands...
style and wrote lyrics for it. He published it first in 1935 as "Maiden's Prayer"; later, it became a standard
Standard (music)
In music, a standard is a tune or song of established popularity.-See also:* Blues standard* Jazz standard* Pop standard* Great American Songbook-Further reading:* Greatest Rock Standards, published by Hal Leonard ISBN 0793588391...
, recorded by many artists. The song is now a standard in the repertoire of western swing bands. Bob Wills wrote words to a fiddle tune he learned while he was a barber in Roy, New Mexico
Roy, New Mexico
Roy is a village in Harding County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 304 at the 2000 census. The village has massively been losing population, but is still a major center for Northeastern New Mexico....
. His lyrics reflect the title, and the song, as written by Wills, opens with:
- Twilight falls, evening shadows find,
- There 'neath the stars, a maiden so fair divine.
- The moon on high seemed to see her there.
- In her eyes is a light, shining ever so bright,
- She whispered a silent prayer.
Wills first recorded the song in 1935 (Vocalion 03924) and it quickly became one of his signature songs. He recorded it again in 1941 (OKeh 06205) and on the 1963 Liberty Records
Liberty Records
Liberty Records was a United States-based record label. It was started by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals.-1950s:...
album Bob Wills Sings and Plays. It has been recorded by many artists. Among them Buck Owens
Buck Owens
Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr. , better known as Buck Owens, was an American singer and guitarist who had 21 No. 1 hits on the Billboard country music charts with his band, the Buckaroos...
on the 1965 Capitol album I've Got a Tiger By The Tail.
When Wills was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame
Songwriters Hall of Fame
The Songwriters Hall of Fame is an arm of the National Academy of Popular Music. It was founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer and music publishers Abe Olman and Howie Richmond. The goal is to create a museum but as of April, 2008, the means do not yet exist and so instead it is an online...
in 1970, "Maiden's Prayer" was one of the works cited.
In popular media
Probably the most memorable use of "Maiden's Prayer" is in the 1930 opera Rise and Fall of the City of MahagonnyRise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny
Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny is a political-satirical opera composed by Kurt Weill to a German libretto by Bertolt Brecht. It was first performed in Leipzig on 9 March 1930.-Composition history:...
by Kurt Weill
Kurt Weill
Kurt Julian Weill was a German-Jewish composer, active from the 1920s, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht...
and Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht was a German poet, playwright, and theatre director.An influential theatre practitioner of the 20th century, Brecht made equally significant contributions to dramaturgy and theatrical production, the latter particularly through the seismic impact of the tours undertaken by the...
. The song appears midway through act I; it is played on an out-of-tune piano at a honky-tonk frequented by prostitutes and their clients. Jakob Schmidt, one of the denizens of Mahagonny, refers to the song as "ewige Kunst" ("eternal art").
"Maiden's Prayer" appears as an insert piano song in the anime series Strawberry Panic.
"Maiden's Prayer" is also played by garbage trucks in Taiwan. As residents have to take out their own trash, the garbage truck signals everyone with the melody of this piece (or Beethoven's Fur Elise).