by Walter De la Mare (1873 - 1956)
The moth
Language: English
Isled in the midnight air, Musked with the dark's faint bloom, Out into glooming and secret haunts The flame cries, 'Come!' Lovely in dye and fan, A-tremble in shimmering grace, A moth from her winter swoon Uplifts her face: Stares from her glamorous eyes; Wafts her on plumes like mist; In ecstasy swirls and sways To her strange tryst.
Text Authorship:
- by Walter De la Mare (1873 - 1956), "The moth", appears in Flora: A Book of Drawings, first published 1919 [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 Lennox Randal Francis Berkeley, Sir (1903 - 1989), "The moth", op. 65 no. 4 (1964), published 1966 [ high voice and guitar ], from Songs of the Half-Light, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Alan Dudley Bush (1900 - 1995), "The moth", op. 7 no. 1 (1925) [ soprano and orchestra ], from Two Songs [lost], no. 1 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Paul McIntyre , "The moth", 1950 [ soprano and piano ], from Four Poems of Walter de la Mare [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-01-13
Line count: 12
Word count: 59