This edition was prepared by John Henry Fowler — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
Dirge in Woods
Staff Notation • Secular, Art songs
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Dirge in Woods by Charles Hubert Hastings Parry — Lyrics
A wind sways the pines,
And below
Not a breath of wild air;
Still as the mosses that glow
On the flooring and over the lines
Of the roots here and there.
The pinetree drops its dead;
They are quiet, as under the sea.
Overhead, overhead
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About Dirge in Woods
Charles Hubert Hastings Parry's Dirge in Woods is a secular art song for solo tenor, setting words by George Meredith. The text evokes a sense of stillness and decay in a pine forest, contrasting with the ceaseless movement of life above. Parry captures the contemplative and melancholic mood of the poem, with the music reflecting the imagery of falling pine needles and the quiet finality of nature's cycle. The intimate setting for solo voice allows for a direct and personal expression of the text's philosophical reflections on mortality and the passage of time, portraying a poignant meditation on life's transience amidst the enduring natural world.
