by William Blake (1757 - 1827)
O for a voice like thunder, and a tongue
Language: English
O for a voice like thunder, and a tongue To drown the throat of war! When the senses Are shaken, and the soul is driven to madness, Who can stand? When the souls of the oppressèd Fight in the troubled air that rages, who can stand? When the whirlwind of fury comes from the Throne of God, when the frowns of his countenance Drive the nations together, who can stand? When Sin claps his broad wings over the battle, And sails rejoicing in the flood of Death; When souls are torn to everlasting fire, And fiends of Hell rejoice upon the slain, O who can stand? O who hath causèd this? O who can answer at the throne of God? The Kings and Nobles of the Land have done it! Hear it not, Heaven, thy Ministers have done it!
S. Wheeler sets lines 1-14
About the headline (FAQ)
View text with all available footnotesText Authorship:
- by William Blake (1757 - 1827), "Prologue, intended for a dramatic piece of King Edward the Fourth" [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 Donald Lybbert (1923 - 1981), "O, to drown the throat of war!", published 1969 [ soprano and 2 pianos ], from Lines for the Fallen, no. 1, NY : C. F. Peters [sung text not yet checked]
- by Laurence Powell (1899 - 1990), "O for a voice like thunder", op. 22, published c1926 [ TTBB chorus a cappella ], London: J. Curwen [sung text not yet checked]
- by Ronald Stevenson (b. 1928), "War", 1947 [ baritone and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Scott Wheeler (b. 1952), "O for a voice like thunder", 2007, first performed 2008, lines 1-14 [ tenor and piano ], from Heaven and Earth, no. 4, Scott Wheeler Music [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-04-15
Line count: 16
Word count: 139