I was looking at Sydney’s Enmore Theatre’s upcoming events for the next few months. One of the events was an Adult Glee Club. After thinking about it, I found myself struggling to untangle the meaning of glee.
Glee is defined as great delight, especially from one’s own good fortune. So it seems natural that singing would bring great delight. But when I dug deeper I realised that glee has two meanings often confused even in some dictionaries.
So what is a glee?
A glee is a type of English unaccompanied song that were composed between 1750 and 1830. The artistic character of glees contrasted with “catches”. Glees were quite respectable whereas catches had had a history of being quite bawdy. A catch is equivalent to what we call a “round” (when singers start the same song at different times)—it comes from the idea of a singer needing to catch up with the others.
Glees were written originally for a group of male voices and performed a cappella (without instrumental accompaniment). What makes them distinctive is that the highest part is written for male altos (singing falsetto which was a strong English tradition).
The glee was an updated version of a madrigal (where we got our name, they were popular songs composed between 1550 and 1630) with glees popular 100 years later. Glees were in their turn made redundant by the English part song of the 19th and early 20th centuries. A part song differs from madrigals and glees in that the different “parts” of the piece are sung by groups of singers not by solo singers (part-songs were also written for female voices).
The etymology of “glee”
The word “glee” has an interesting history. It traces back to Old English, where the word “gléo” or “gléow” referred to mirth and entertainment especially music. Anglo-Saxon minstrels were known as gleemen. Glee meaning joyful mirth was a poetry word in Old English and Middle English, but became obsolete from 1500 to 1700 but found its way back into currency in the late 18th century, perhaps from the popularity of the musical glees.
The history of glee clubs
Glee clubs have their origins in 18th-century England. One of the earliest, formed in 1761, was the Noblemen and Gentlemen’s Catch Club. George IV was a member.
The earliest glee clubs were informal groups who enjoyed singing together. They met in homes, taverns, and eventually formal settings like music halls. By the late 18th century, glee clubs had become organised, with regular meetings and performances. The glee club tradition spread from Britain to North America.
Glee clubs in America
In the US, glee clubs began to take root in the early 19th century, primarily in educational institutions. Harvard University established a glee club in 1858. The concept gained popularity with other schools, colleges and universities (see image of Grubbs Vocational College Boys Glee Club). They performed a wide repertoire, not restricting themselves to glees.