This edition was prepared by David Anderson — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
Down by the brooklet’s side
Staff Notation • Secular, Partsongs
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Down by the brooklet’s side by John Harrison Tenney — Lyrics
Down by the brooklet’s side,
Where the soft waters glide
Gently and sweetly away to the sea,
Lifting my tiny bell
Up from the leafy dell,
There is my birthplace—the dwelling for me.
There, where the wild bird’s song
Chants, through the summer long,
Strains of affection, unchanging, and true,
Formed by a fairy’s wand,
Claiming no care, I stand
Wooing the sunbeams, and quaffing the dew.
Not where the diamond gleams,—
Not where the wine cup streams,
Jars not the revel the bowers that I wreathe,
Sought for no festal hall,
Prized by no pride at all,
Care heaps no sighs on the pure air I breathe.
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About Down by the brooklet’s side
This is a delightful SATB setting of an English secular text. The music opens with a gentle evocation of the brooklet's side, with the voices weaving a delicate texture that mirrors the flowing water. The composer captures the pastoral imagery and the sense of peaceful belonging to nature described in the lyrics. As the piece progresses, the music reflects the bird song and the simple joys of the natural world, eschewing worldly riches for the purity of dew and sunshine. The partsongs characteristic charm is maintained throughout, creating a serene and uplifting atmosphere.
