THE WORDS AND THE MUSIC

I used to teach Dryden, but somehow always missed this grand and glorious composition. It should remind us that the Restoration could do lyric very well when it tried; and never better than this, which I am happy to share on the Feast of St Cecilia, martyr and patron of music.

A Song for St. Cecilia's Day, 1687

From harmony, from Heav'nly harmony 

               This universal frame began. 

       When Nature underneath a heap 

               Of jarring atoms lay, 

       And could not heave her head, 

The tuneful voice was heard from high, 

               Arise ye more than dead. 

Then cold, and hot, and moist, and dry, 

       In order to their stations leap, 

               And music's pow'r obey. 

From harmony, from Heav'nly harmony 

               This universal frame began: 

               From harmony to harmony 

Through all the compass of the notes it ran, 

       The diapason closing full in man. 

What passion cannot music raise and quell! 

                When Jubal struck the corded shell, 

         His list'ning brethren stood around 

         And wond'ring, on their faces fell 

         To worship that celestial sound: 

Less than a god they thought there could not dwell 

                Within the hollow of that shell 

                That spoke so sweetly and so well. 

What passion cannot music raise and quell! 

         The trumpet's loud clangor 

                Excites us to arms 

         With shrill notes of anger 

                        And mortal alarms. 

         The double double double beat 

                Of the thund'ring drum 

         Cries, hark the foes come; 

Charge, charge, 'tis too late to retreat. 

         The soft complaining flute 

         In dying notes discovers 

         The woes of hopeless lovers, 

Whose dirge is whisper'd by the warbling lute. 

         Sharp violins proclaim 

Their jealous pangs, and desperation, 

Fury, frantic indignation, 

Depth of pains and height of passion, 

         For the fair, disdainful dame. 

But oh! what art can teach 

         What human voice can reach 

The sacred organ's praise? 

Notes inspiring holy love, 

Notes that wing their Heav'nly ways 

         To mend the choirs above. 

Orpheus could lead the savage race; 

And trees unrooted left their place; 

                Sequacious of the lyre: 

But bright Cecilia rais'd the wonder high'r; 

         When to her organ, vocal breath was giv'n, 

An angel heard, and straight appear'd 

                Mistaking earth for Heav'n. 

As from the pow'r of sacred lays 

         The spheres began to move, 

And sung the great Creator's praise 

         To all the bless'd above; 

So when the last and dreadful hour 

   This crumbling pageant shall devour, 

The trumpet shall be heard on high, 

         The dead shall live, the living die, 

         And music shall untune the sky. 

Dryden, by Sir Godfrey Kneller

THEY SHALL LAUGH AND SING

Samuel Palmer, "Harvesters by firelight"

I couldn't resist putting up the Psalm for tonight's BCP reading, for sheer beauty and glory. Enjoy.

65 ¶ Te decet hymnus Thou, O God, art praised in Sion; and unto thee shall the vow be performed in Jerusalem.  Thou that hearest the prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.  My misdeeds prevail against me; O be thou merciful unto our sins.  Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and receivest unto thee; he shall dwell in thy court, and shall be satisfied with the pleasures of thy house, even of thy holy temple. Thou shalt show us wonderful things in thy righteousness, O God of our salvation, thou that art the hope of all the ends of the earth, and of them that remain in the broad sea—who in his strength setteth fast the mountains, and is girded about with power, who stilleth the raging of the sea, and the noise of his waves, and the madness of the people.  They also that dwell in the uttermost parts of the earth shall be afraid at thy tokens, thou that makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to praise thee. Thou visitest the earth, and blessest it; thou makest it very plenteous.  The river of God is full of water; thou preparest their corn, for so thou providest for the earth.  Thou waterest her furrows; thou sendest rain into the little valleys thereof.  Thou makest it soft with the drops of rain, and blessest the increase of it.  Thou crownest the year with thy goodness, and thy clouds drop fatness.  They shall drop upon the dwellings of the wilderness; and the little hills shall rejoice on every side. The folds shall be full of sheep; the valleys also shall stand so thick with corn, that they shall laugh and sing.

FOUR PRAYERS FOR CHURCH CHOIRS

Going over some old papers, I found these prayers which I composed about fifty years ago. To my knowledge they have never been used, so I'm pleased to make them available now to any choir that might be interested. At the time I was working on the prose rhythms of the Book of Common Prayer, so these prayers are composed rather in the manner of the BCP's Collects, which are themselves based on much older Latin prayers from the medieval Sacramentaries. 

I.

Bless, Lord, we beseech thee, our voices to thy faithful service; that singing thy praise in the concord of harmony they may join our hearts in the consonance of love; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

II.

Almighty and most merciful Father, who hast made us to know the song of thy holy Angels; grant us so to praise thee in this life, that in the next we may sing in the choir of their company; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

III.

Bless, we beseech thee, merciful Lord, the music of thy faithful children; that they that sing to thy praise may be instruments of thy Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

IV.

Almighty and everlasting God, who gavest us skill to sing of thy glory; give us grace, we beseech thee, to know whereof we sing, and faithfully to embrace the same; that saved at the last by thy redeeming love, we may raise our songs in the day of thy Kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

Image: Magdalen College Choir, Oxford