Jazz to Rock

Focusing Essay 2

The old ballad, “The Maid Freed from the Gallows” is a very old ballad. Since it is quite old, finding information about it was pretty difficult. Searching on the internet I was able to find that although some sources date this song to have been composed in the nineteenth century, one source dates it back to 1770. It is a very interesting vogue for places like Europe, Finland, and around the world. In fact, there are around 50 versions of this ballad in the current day. Although there are many versions of this ballad in Finland, the actual origin of this song has not been determined. It is speculated that this ballad originates from continental Europe.

This song is a piece in which a maiden condemned to be executed, pleads for help and pleads for freedom. The song varies in different versions (in some, she is about to be drowned, in others executed). What remains true, is that the girl meets several relations before almost being killed, and in all of them, the stanza of request remains the same, and so does the stanza of refusal.

In the Judy Collins version of the ballad “The Maid Freed from the Gallows,” Anna's brother Lazlo is imprisoned for stealing horses. To free Lazlo. Anna sleeps with Judge Horvat. Unfortunately, Anna is unsuccessful in sparing his life. She then diverts the judge with 13 curses. Of course the style this ballad was interpreted also varies from the original, calmer interpretation. The song was “Anathea.”

Lastly, the other version I found of “The Maid Freed from the Gallows,” was the Led Zeppelin version. This version of the song was called, “Seven Curses” and instead of a ballad style, it shifter more toward and acoustic style. In the Led Zeppelin version of the song, despite the bribes which the hangman accepts, he still carries out the execution. This version is based on a variant in which the convict is male (since he was referred to as “brother” rather than “sister” in one of the lines).