Nurse's song | When the voices of children are heard on the green

When the voices of children are heard on...

Language: English

Our translations: CAT

When the voices of children are heard on the green 
And whisp'rings are in the dale, 
The days of my youth rise fresh in my mind, 
My face turns green and pale. 

Then come home, my children, the sun is gone down, 
And the dews of night arise; 
Your spring & your day are wasted in play, 
And your winter and night in disguise.

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Text Authorship:

by William Blake (1757 - 1827), "Nurse's song", appears in Songs of Innocence and Experience, in Songs of Experience, no. 8, first published 1794 [author's text not yet checked 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 William Bolcom (b. 1938), "Nurse's song", 1956-81 [ solo voices, chorus, orchestra ], from Songs of Experience, Volume One, no. 5 [sung text checked 1 time]
by (Edward) Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976), "The nurse's song", 1930 [ duet for soprano and contralto with piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
by Norman Curtis (b. 1933), "Nurse's song", c1959 [ voice and piano ], from William Blake's Songs of Innocence and of Experience, no. 33 [sung text not yet checked]
by (Henry) Walford Davies, Sir (1869 - 1941), "Nurse's song", op. 33 no. 9, published 1910 [ vocal trio with piano ], from A Merry Heart and Other Songs, no. 9, partsong; London : Novello [sung text not yet checked]
by Ole Carsten Green (b. 1922), "Nurse's song", op. 27a no. 8 (1973) [ voice and piano ], from Songs of Experience, no. 8 [sung text not yet checked]
by David Haines (b. 1956), "Nurse's song", 1972-9, rev. 1984, first performed 1979 [ high voice and piano ], from Songs of Experience, no. 6 [sung text not yet checked]
by Mary Margaret Kelly (b. 1957), "Nurse's song II", c1985 [ SATB chorus a cappella ], from Five Poems from William Blake's Songs of Innocence and Experience, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
by David Krane (b. 1953), "Nurse's song", c1972 [ soprano and piano ], from Songs of Innocence and of Experience, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
by Wilfrid Howard Mellers (b. 1914), "Nurse's Song II", 1976 [ unaccompanied soprano ], from The Echoing Green : Songs of Innocence and Experience, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
by Mark Raphael (b. 1900), "The nurse's song", 1966 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
by Margaret Lucy Wilkins (b. 1939), "Nurse's song: Experience", op. 15 no. 6 (1970) [ mezzo-soprano, viola, and piano ], from Songs of Innocence and Experience, no. 6 [sung text not yet checked]

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

Researcher for this page: Ahmed E. Ismail

This text was added to the website: 2005-01-17
Line count: 8
Word count: 64