by George William Russell (1867 - 1935)
The Joy of Earth
Language: English
Oh, the sudden wings arising from the ploughed fields brown Showered aloft in spray of song the wild-bird twitter floats O'er the unseen fount awhile, and then comes dropping down Nigh the cool brown earth to hush enraptured notes. Far within a dome of trembling opal throbs the fire, Mistily its rain of diamond lances shed below Touches eyes and brows and faces lit with wild desire For the burning silence whither we would go. Heart, be young; once more it is the ancient joy of earth Breathes in thee and flings the wild wings sunward to the dome To the light where all the children of the fire had birth Though our hearts and footsteps wander far from home.
Text Authorship:
- by George William Russell (1867 - 1935) [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 Ina Boyle (1889 - 1967), "The Joy of Earth", 1914 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2025-04-04
Line count: 12
Word count: 120