"Aj lučka, lučka široká" (English: "Oh the wide, wide field"[1]) is a Czech folk song.[2] A Slovakian equivalent, "Horela lipka, horela" (English: "The lime tree burned, it burned") has the same melody.
The song has been used as a marching song,[3] including by the Czechoslovak Army in the Russian Civil War.[4] It notably achieved popularity in Japan under the name "Omakiba wa midori" (English: "Oh, the pasture is green").[5][6][7] In 1961, it was the first national song broadcast by the Japanese music television show Minna no Uta.[8] The song was brought to the United States by Czech immigrants, where Japanese pastor and church musician Nakata Ugo came across it and wrote Japanese lyrics.[9]
"Aj lučka, lučka široká" is the traditional opening song in Yale Whiffenpoofs concerts.[10][11] In 2005, United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld sang the song to Czech journalists on the steps of The Pentagon.[12]
References
edit- ^ "Tancuj, tancuj". The Library of Congress. 2023-09-22. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
With (reverse side): Aj, lucka lucka siroka (Oh the wide, wide field)
- ^ Zavodny, Melanie (2020-12-28). "Czech Folk Song Collection". Věstník. p. 2. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
- ^ Alford, Henry (2013-01-12). "Whiffenpoofs Are Singing for Their Supper". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
- ^ Barton, F.; Novak, J.K.; Leary, J.P. (2021). Czech Songs in Texas. American Popular Music Series. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 51. ISBN 978-0-8061-7849-3. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
- ^ Frank, Michal (2001-11-08). "„Horela lipka, horela je originálna slovenská pieseň," vraví japonská profesorka". korzar.sme.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 2024-08-10.
- ^ "【ピアノソロ JAZZアレンジで弾く 世界のうた 2 】". ピアノソロ JAZZアレンジで弾く 世界のうた 2 - 楽譜 ピアノ (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-08-10.
おお牧場はみどり Ej Lucka Lucka Zelena
- ^ Freedman, Alisa (2014-04-03). "Sesame Street's place in Japan: marketing multicultural New York in cosmopolitan Tokyo". Japan Forum. 26 (2): 144–163. doi:10.1080/09555803.2014.902397. ISSN 0955-5803.
- ^ "みんなのうた おお牧場はみどり｜番組｜NHKアーカイブス". NHK (in Japanese). 2024-04-14. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
- ^ "「Ｎコンの秋」特集｜番組｜NHKアーカイブス". NHK (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-08-10.
- ^ "WHIFFENPOOFS SING OF THEIR CENTENNIAL". Hartford Courant. 2009-01-29. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
- ^ Stern, Scott (2011-12-07). "More Than Just the Music". Yale Daily News. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
- ^ Světnička, Lubomír (2021-07-02). "Vzpomínka na Rumsfelda, když zpíval česky na schodech Pentagonu". iDNES.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 2024-08-10.