by Walt Whitman (1819 - 1892)
When I heard the learn'd astronomer
Language: English
When I heard the learn'd astronomer;
When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me;
When I was shown the charts and the diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them;
When I, sitting, heard the astronomer,
where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,
How soon, unaccountable, I became tired and sick;
Till rising and gliding out, I wander'd off by myself,
In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,
Look'd up in perfect silence at the stars.
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Text Authorship:
- by Walt Whitman (1819 - 1892), no title, appears in Leaves of Grass [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 Ronald A. Beckett , "When I heard the learn'd astronomer", 2008 [ voice and piano ], from Four Romantic Songs, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Jean Eichelberger Ivey (b. 1923), "The astronomer", published 1977 [ soprano, alto flute, clarinet, viola, cello, piano, and electronic tape ], from Three Songs of Night, no. 1, New York, Carl Fischer [sung text not yet checked]
- by Oliver Knussen, CBE (1952 - 2018), "When I heard the learn'd astronomer", op. 25 no. 1 (1991) [ soprano and piano ], from Whitman Settings, no. 1, confirmed with a score [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2012-03-01
Line count: 9
Word count: 83