"The Bard's Song" is a single by the German power metal

Power metal

Power metal is a style of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. The term refers to two different but related styles: the first pioneered and largely practiced in North America with a harder sound similar to speed metal, and a...

 band Blind Guardian

Blind Guardian

Blind Guardian is a German power metal band formed in the mid-1980s in Krefeld, West Germany. They are often credited as one of the seminal and most influential bands in the power metal and speed metal subgenres...

, released in 2003. It contains 5 different versions of this, one of their most popular songs, which originally appeared on the album Somewhere Far Beyond

Somewhere Far Beyond

Somewhere Far Beyond is the fourth studio album by German power metal act Blind Guardian.It was released in 1992 and produced by Kalle Trapp...

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Single's cover art was painted by Leo Hao

Leo Hao

Alexey Mikhailovich Shamrovsky better known as Leo Hao is a Russian fantasy artist. He is famous for painting cover art and illustrations for fantasy books and metal albums.Works of Leo Hao include:*numerous cover arts and wallpapers for Aria...

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At concerts, it is not unusual for Hansi Kürsch to only sing the first and third lines of the song, then possibly the final verse or chorus, and leave the audience to sing the rest.

The song has been covered by German a cappella

A cappella

A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...

 metal band van Canto

Van Canto

Van Canto is an a cappella metal band from Germany, founded in 2006 and composed of five singers and a drummer. Although the group is often classified as an a cappella ensemble, they use real drums in their music, instead of vocal percussion or beatboxing....

 on their album Hero

Hero (van Canto album)

Hero is the second studio album by German a cappella metal band van Canto, released on September 26, 2008. It is the follow-up to 2006's A Storm to Come on Sony BMG Germany's GUN records...

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Track listing

1. "The Bard's Song (In the Forest)" (New Studio Version) – 3:30
2. "The Bard's Song (In the Forest)" (Live, Milano, October 10, 2002) – 4:32
3. "The Bard's Song (In the Forest)" (Live, Munich, May 5, 2002) – 4:29
4. "The Bard's Song (In the Forest)" (Live, Madrid, June 4, 2002) – 4:30
5. "The Bard's Song (In the Forest)" (multimedia track: Live, Stuttgart, May 6 2002) – 4:18

Charts

• charts

#40 Germany

#31 Italy

Lineup

• Hansi Kürsch
  Hansi Kürsch
  Hans Jürgen Kürsch, better known as Hansi Kürsch is a German musician, the lead vocalist and lyricist of power metal band Blind Guardian. Together with André Olbrich, he is also the principal songwriter for the band. He was also the bassist in Blind Guardian until the 1998 album Nightfall in...
  
   – vocals
• André Olbrich
  André Olbrich
  André Olbrich is the lead guitarist of the German power metal band Blind Guardian. He is one of the band's founders together with vocalist Hansi Kürsch, and serves as one of its main songwriters....
  
   – lead guitar and backing vocals
• Marcus Siepen
  Marcus Siepen
  Marcus Siepen is one of two guitarists in the power metal band Blind Guardian. For the biggest percentage of Blind Guardian's songs, particularly in more recent years, he has almost strictly played rhythm guitar, with most lead and solo work being performed by André Olbrich.-Personal:Siepen is...
  
   – rhythm guitar and backing vocals
• Thomen Stauch – drums