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Ralph Vaughan Williams - Rest
The King's Singers
^ Text by Christina Rosetti: (1/2)
O Earth, lie heavily upon her eyes;
Seal her sweet eyes weary of watching, Earth;
Lie close around her; leave no room for mirth
With its harsh laughter, nor for sound of sighs.
She hath no questions, she hath no replies,
Hushed in and curtained with a blessed dearth
Of all that irked her from the hour of birth;
With stillness that is almost Paradise.
...
@voltronic
C.R. Had a deft touch when writing about death. Thanks for sharing this.
RIP Ms Bader-Ginsburg. o7
@stueytheround
Indeed, but I hope you also listen to the gorgeous setting by RVW.
As a high school student, this was the first piece of music I sung that deeply affected me.
@voltronic
I did. It's beautiful.
I was stopped in my tracks on the way to school one morning listening to Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis. Utterly consumed by it.
I'm not familiar with much classical music, but the classical station was the lowest on the dial at the time and as such the most convenient to tune into on my one-button radio. That's the only time I was completely caught up in a song they played.
I can imagine this one is lovely to sing. First time I've heard it.
@voltronic She’s one of my favorite poets.
@Siren_six
Same here, and she's one of nearly every choral music composer's favorite poets.
@voltronic The Holst setting of “In The Bleak Midwinter” is one of my favorite carols to sing. :)
@Siren_six
Oh, that's always been in my top 5 favorite carols. Other composers have set that text, but none as well as Holst.
^ text (2/2)
Darkness more clear than noon-day holdeth her,
Silence more musical than any song;
Even her very heart has ceased to stir:
Until the morning of Eternity Her rest shall not begin nor end, but be; And when she wakes she will not think it long.