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by (Joseph) Hilaire Belloc (1870 - 1953)

The birds
 (Sung text for setting by B. Britten)
 Matches base text
Language: English 
When Jesus Christ was four years old,
The angels brought Him toys of gold,
Which no man ever had bought or sold.

And yet with these He would not play.
He made Him small fowl out of clay,
And blessed them till they flew away.

Tu creasti, Domine.
Jesus Christ, Thou child so wise, 
Bless mine hands and fill mine eyes,
And bring my soul to Paradise.

Composition:

    Set to music by (Edward) Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976), "The birds", 1929, published 1935 [ medium voice and piano ]

Text Authorship:

  • by (Joseph) Hilaire Belloc (1870 - 1953), "The birds", appears in Verses, first published 1910

See other settings of this text.


Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 10
Word count: 67

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