by Thomas Moore (1779 - 1852)
Dear Harp of my Country!
Language: English
Available translation(s): FRE
Dear Harp of my Country! in darkness I found thee, The cold chain of silence had hung o'er thee long; When proudly, my own Island Harp, I unbound thee And gave all thy chords to light, freedom and song! The warm lay of love and the light [note]1 of gladness Have waken'd thy fondest, thy liveliest thrill; But so oft hast thou echo'd the deep sigh of sadness, That e'en in thy mirth it will steal from thee still. Dear Harp of my Country! [farewell]2 to thy numbers This sweet wreath of song is the last we shall twine[!]3 Go, sleep with the sunshine of Fame on thy slumbers, Till touch'd by some hand less unworthy than mine[;]4 If the pulse of the patriot, soldier, or lover, Have throbb'd at our lay 'tis thy glory alone; I was but as the wind, passing heedlessly over, And all the wild sweetness I waked was thy own!
View original text (without footnotes)
Confirmed with Thomas Moore, A New Edition from the last London Edition, Boston: Lee and Shepard; New York: Lee, Shepard, & Dillingham, 1876.
Researcher for this page: Ted Perry
Confirmed with Thomas Moore, A New Edition from the last London Edition, Boston: Lee and Shepard; New York: Lee, Shepard, & Dillingham, 1876.
1 Britten : “tone”
2 Britten : “Farewell”
3 Britten : “,”
4 Britten : “,”
Authorship:
- by Thomas Moore (1779 - 1852), "Dear Harp of my Country", appears in Irish Melodies [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by (Edward) Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976), "Dear Harp of my Country!" [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Chère Harpe de mon Pays", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Ted Perry
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 155