I listened to a rendition of Waltzing Matilda which you can find here. The artist is Rolf Harris. This is a top rated rendition of this song. He plays the accordion to accompany himself on the song. In addition, audience members laugh and sing along with him.
Waltzing Matilda is a widely-known country folk song in Australia. I learned a few things about this song in the introduction. I had always thought that Waltzing Matilda was about a man's waltzing partner named Matilda. Come to find out, this song is about a man who wanders through the Australian Outback with his belongings tied in a blanket on his back (who he affectionately calls his Matilda, his only companion) slung over his shoulder. The song contains many context dependent words that are unique to the region.
billabong: large body of water
billy: tin of water to be boiled
tuckerbag: food bag
squatter: big landowner
I might use this song in a general music class to teach listening for context clues that might illuminate what these unfamiliar words mean. Also, this is a fun song that is child-friendly.
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