Global InformationWaltzing Matilda information
| "Waltzing Matilda" | |
|---|---|
 Original manuscript, transcribed by Christina Macpherson, c. 1895 | |
| Song | |
| Written | 1895 |
| Published | 1903 |
| Genre | Bush ballad |
| Lyricist(s) | Banjo Paterson |
| Audio sample | |
| |
"Waltzing Matilda" is a song developed in the Australian style of poetry and folk music called a bush ballad. It has been described as the country's "unofficial national anthem".[1]
The title was Australian slang for travelling on foot (waltzing) with one's belongings in a "matilda" (swag) slung over one's back.[2] The song narrates the story of an itinerant worker, or "swagman", making a drink of billy tea at a bush camp and capturing a stray jumbuck (sheep) to eat. When the jumbuck's owner, a squatter (grazier), and three troopers (mounted policemen) pursue the swagman for theft, he declares "You'll never catch me alive!" and commits suicide by drowning himself in a nearby billabong (watering hole), after which his ghost haunts the site.
The original lyrics were composed in 1895 by Australian poet Banjo Paterson, to a tune played by Christina MacPherson. The first published setting of "Waltzing Matilda" was Harry Nathan's on 20 December 1902. Nathan wrote a new variation of Christina MacPherson's melody and changed some of the words.[3] Sydney tea merchant, James Inglis, wanted to use "Waltzing Matilda" as an advertising jingle for Billy Tea. In early 1903, Inglis purchased the rights to 'Waltzing Matilda' and asked Marie Cowan, the wife of one of his managers, to try her hand at turning it into an advertising jingle.[4] Cowan made some more changes to the words and some very minor changes to Nathan's melody and gave the song a simple, brisk, harmonious accompaniment which made it very catchy.[5] Her song, published in 1903, grew in popularity, and Cowan's arrangement remains the best-known version of "Waltzing Matilda".[6][7]
Extensive folklore surrounds the song and the process of its creation, to the extent that it has its own museum, the Waltzing Matilda Centre in Winton, in the Queensland outback, where Paterson wrote the lyrics.[8] In 2012, to remind Australians of the song's significance, Winton organised the inaugural Waltzing Matilda Day to be held on 6 April,[9][10] wrongly thought at the time to be the anniversary of its first performance.[11]
The song was first recorded in 1926 as performed by John Collinson and Russell Callow.[12] In 2008, this recording of "Waltzing Matilda" was added to the Sounds of Australia registry in the National Film and Sound Archive, which says that there are more recordings of "Waltzing Matilda" than any other Australian song.[9]
- ^ "Who'll Come A Waltzing Matilda With Me?". National Library of Australia. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
- ^ Oxford English Dictionary, draft revision March 2001. "Matilda, n."[full citation needed]
- ^ "07 Jun 2011 - Who'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me? - Archived Website". Trove. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
- ^ May, Sydney, 'The Story of 'Waltzing Matilda', 1955, W. R. 'Smith & Paterson PTY. LTD. Brisbane, page 41
- ^ "07 Jun 2011 - Who'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me? - Archived Website". Trove. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
- ^ "New Songs from the Bush: Harry Nathan's Waltzing Matilda - Quadrant Online". quadrant.org.au. 30 September 2023. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
- ^ Pemberton, Greg (14 August 2015). "Waltzing Matilda's origins and chain of ownership murky". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
- ^ "Waltzing Matilda Centre". Matildacentre.com.au. Archived from the original on 13 June 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
- ^ a b Arthur, Chrissy (6 April 2012). "Outback town holds first Waltzing Matilda Day". ABC News.
- ^ "Waltzing Matilda Day". Waltzing Matilda Centre, Winton. Archived from the original on 27 March 2012.
- ^ Lindner, W Benjamin. Waltzing Matilda ─ Australia's Accidental Anthem. Boolarong Press. Tingalpa, Queensland, Australia. 2019. ISBN 9781925877076 p 181
- ^ "National Film and Sound Archive: Waltzing Matilda on australianscreen online". Aso.gov.au. Retrieved 7 January 2013.