The Goose and the Common The Cutty Wren The Giver and the Taker Rebel Lieder are three songs of rebellion from critical moments in Britain’s history. The words of the first song, ‘The Goose and the Common’, are a protest against the enclosure of common land in 18th-century England, which turned the enclosed land into private property. ‘The Cutty Wren’ is linked to the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381.The cutty wren (’cutty’ means very small) represents the feudal landlord who not only owned the land but the peasants who worked it, and may also be linked to Richard II. ‘The Giver and the Taker’ is a rallying cry for the Chartist protest movement, which aimed to gain political rights and influence for the working classes throughout the United Kingdom in the mid-19th-century. The words were written by Ernest Jones in 1846. Rebel Lieder was written for the Cambiata Choir of Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Choir, and was first performed by them at Tung Auditorium, Liverpool, on 14 July 2024, directed by the composer. It takes about eight minutes to perform.