Where is beauty?
       Gone, gone:
The cold winds have taken it
  With their faint moan;
The white stars have shaken it,
  Trembling down,
Into the pathless deeps of the sea.
       Gone, gone
  Is beauty from me.

The clear naked flower
  Is faded and dead;
The green-leafed willow,
  Drooping her head,
Whispers low to the shade
  Of her boughs in the stream,
       Sighing a beauty,
       Secret as dream.

Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada and the U.S., but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.

Confirmed with Peacock Pie. A Book of Rhymes by Walter de la Mare, London: Constable & Co. Ltd., [1920], page 168.

Composition:

Set to music by Gary Bachlund (b. 1947), "Song of the secret", 2006 [ medium-high voice, piano ], from Pieces of Peacock Pie, no. 12

Text Authorship:

• by Walter De la Mare (1873 - 1956), "The song of the secret", appears in Peacock Pie: A Book of Rhymes, in 8. Songs, no. 1, first published 1913

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Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2007-04-25
Line count: 17
Word count: 67