Song site 9 – Round the Cape
Access this song’s Sheet Music
Listen to the recording and see the lyrics
Where are we?
Elwood Pier
What are we looking at?
Look around you! Elwood Pier has a beautiful outlook all along the bay. You can watch people swimming, sailing, riding their bikes and playing in the sand.
However, if you look down you will see a set of ten mosaics, positioned along the centre of the pier. They record episodes and stories from the history of Elwood and nearby suburbs: the First Nations people, the flora and fauna, the migrants, the travellers, the life-savers, the swimmers – it’s all here on Elwood Pier, surrounded by the waters of the Bay. The Elster Creek Pavements Ceramic Mosaics were created by Tony Hutchison and Hedley Potts in 1999. They were part of the Bayside Street and Public Art Initiative, a project of Bayside City Council. This area sits on the boundary between Bayside City Council and City of Port Phillip.
What song are we singing here?
Elwood Pier is a great spot to come and watch wild weather roll across the Bay, with small craft scurrying for home before the storm hits. So what could be better than a rollicking sea shanty for this Song-Site? Get ready for some vigorous singing and movement as you take a trip in a sailing ship Round the Cape…
We have created a new sea-shanty, with old words. The traditional “heave and haul away” call-and-response was often sung on sailing ships when sailors worked together to haul in the sails. In Round the Cape we have added a new melody over the top, using the words of one of the English poets remembered in the naming of Elwood streets. These lyrics are drawn from a pair of poems published by Robert Browning around 1845: Meeting at Night and Parting at Morning. In Elwood we are surrounded by streets named after renowned poets and writers. Our colonial forebears hoped that these names would lift the moral tone of the neighbourhood, given its somewhat rowdy reputation. You will need to consult a local to see whether they succeeded!
Now divide into two teams of hearty sailors: Heavers and Haulers (pull those ropes!), and Melody Singers (enjoy belting out a big tune!).
To learn more about the locations, people, and history of Elwood, the songs, and the Elwood Singing Walking Trail project, please go to Further Information.
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