B1
Dashboard
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Complete for 2 points

Nuair bha mi òg

When I was young

Let’s have a look at this discussion. By the end of this section, you will have learned some valuable phrases that you can use in lots of different conversations.

A bheil thu a’ tighinn gu cuirm–chiùil Màiri Mhòr nan Òran aig Celtic Connections an ath sheachdain? Are you coming to the Màiri Mhòr nan Òran concert at Celtic Connections next week?
Tha gu dearbh. ‘S i seo a’ Bhliadhn’ Ùr a thug sòlas dhuinn, ceart gu leòr. I am indeed. This is the New Year that brought us joy, right enough.
Cha robh fios ’am gun robh cuirm–chiùil gu bhith ann. I didn’t know there was going to be a concert.
Chaidh a’ chuirm–chiùil a chur dheth ri linn a’ ghalair. Bidh iad a’ comharrachadh dà cheud bliadhna bho rugadh Màiri Mhòr ann an 1821. The concert was postponed because of COVID [the disease]. They will be marking two hundred years since Màiri Mhòr was born in 1821.
Tha mi cho measail air ‘Nuair Bha Mi Òg’. Tha a’ chiad rann a’ peantadh dealbh brèagha dhomh nam inntinn. I’m so fond of ‘Nuair Bha Mi Òg’ [‘When I was Young’]. The first verse paints a beautiful picture for me in my mind.
Ach tha loidhne àraid chumhachdach san òran sin—dhomh–sa co–dhiù. But there’s one particular powerful line in that song—for me, anyway.
Dè an loidhne a tha sin? What line is that?
‘Bha ‘n tobht’ aig Anndra ‘s e làn de dh’fheanntaig.’ ‘S e briseadh–cridhe a th’ ann! Andrew’s ruin was full of nettles. That’s heartbreaking!
Cumhachdach dha–rìreabh! ‘S toil leamsa ‘Òran Beinn Lì’ far a bheil i a’ toirt iomradh air buaidh nan croitearan—agus air Blàr a’ Chumhaing beagan roimhe. Powerful indeed. I like ‘The Song of Beinn Lì’ where she gives an account of the victory of the crofters—and of the Battle of the Braes just before it.
Tha am fonn cho aighearach ach tha na briathran cho cudromach. Tha loidhne àraid chumhachdach eile san òran sin. The melody is so cheerful but the words are so important. There’s another particular line in that song.
Nach innis thu dhuinn? Won’t you tell us?
‘Ach thig buaidh leis an fhìrinn’ But the truth will win out.