by Siegfried Lorraine Sassoon (1886 - 1967)

Language: English 
Dark clouds are smouldering into red
  While down the craters morning burns.
The dying soldier shifts his head
  To watch the glory that returns;
He lifts his fingers toward the skies
  Where holy brightness breaks in flame;
Radiance reflected in his eyes,
  And on his lips a whispered name.
  
You’d think, to hear some people talk,
  That lads go West with sobs and curses,
And sullen faces white as chalk,
  Hankering for wreaths and tombs and hearses.
But they’ve been taught the way to do it
  Like Christian soldiers; not with haste
And shuddering groans; but passing through it
  With due regard for decent taste

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Composition:

    Set to music by Michael Ippolito (b. 1985), "How to Die", 2006, first performed 2006 [ baritone, SATB quartet or SATB chorus, flute or piccolo, trumpet, percussion, organ, and piano ], from Songbook of the War, no. 5, confirmed with a score

Text Authorship:

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Researcher for this page: Malcolm Wren [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2018-08-31
Line count: 16
Word count: 105