by Langston Hughes (1901 - 1967)
Genius child
Language: English
This is a song for the genius child. Sing it softly, for the song is wild. Sing it softly as ever you can -- Lest the song get out of hand. Nobody loves a genius child. Can you love an eagle, Tame or wild? Wild or tame, Can you love a monster Of frightening name? Nobody loves a genius child. Kill him -- and let his soul run wild!
Text Authorship:
- by Langston Hughes (1901 - 1967), "Genius child", appears in Fields of Wonder, first published 1947 [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 Ricky Ian Gordon (b. 1956), "Genius child", 1995 [ high voice and piano ], from Genius Child: A Cycle of 10 Songs, no. 2 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Robert Owens (1925 - 2017), "Genius child", op. 29 no. 5 (medium voice) [ baritone and piano ], from Mortal Storm, no. 5, with a German translation by E. Berghöfer-Engen [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-11-02
Line count: 12
Word count: 67