Baby's Lullaby Book - Mother Songs is a lovely booklet written by Charles Stuart Pratt (1854-1921) and illustrated by William Ladd Taylor (1854-1926).
It's a book about months in the year. Each month is presented with a song written by Mr. Pratt and watercolors by Mr. Taylor.
All songs are equipped with notes written by George Whitefield Chadwick (1854-1931). An interesting observation: all authors on the projects were born in the same year. The book was published by L. Prang & Co., Boston in 1888.
There's a dedication to Mothers at the beginning, followed by a short song (rondeau).
Then the months of the year follow in consecutive order.
January
The lullaby of January sings about snowflakes.
February
In February the birds traditionally return. So the February song is about birds.
March
The main actor in March is the wind, the messenger of change.
The song about April sings about rain. But there is no vignette which, otherwise, is featured right at the title of each song. Don't ask me why. Maybe I'll find it somewhere else.
May
The song of May is a song about apple tree blooms.
June
The month of June is dedicated to roses.
July
Flowers continue to dominate the sunny months. Water-lilly is the central element of the July.
August
August features a song about a swinging hammock.
September
The lullaby of September is about the moon.
October
October brings a song about Heavenly Father who guards the children.
November
The song in November is about farewell. The birds are gone. The winter is coming.
December
Lullaby of December is about stars.
Another short song (rondeau), this time titled Baby-Sleep, follows.
This is the end of the book which was undoubtedly created as a way more lasting product as the modern books are. We can definitely imagine a family gathering around the book in the evenings and singing lullabies for a whole year.
Such calendar books, almanacs, and similarly inspired artistic creations were not so rare around the turn of the 19th to the 20th century. They lost popularity when a book became a mass product.
They are almost forgotten today, yet we try to preserve them at least a bit. For future generations and as a document of pastimes.
If you liked what you saw, there are a few more to explore:
Don't hesitate to leave a comment, and have a wonderful year!
