Hark! the Curfew's solemn sound

Thomas Attwood’s Hark! the Curfew's solemn sound is a secular glee for treble soloists (SSB). The music begins with a sense of hushed mystery, evoking the encroaching darkness and silence described in the text. As the piece unfolds, the three voices engage in close imitation and flowing lines, capturing the poem’s imagery of lovers parting, monks at their studies, and misers guarding their gold. The texture shifts to depict the more whimsical elements of the lyrics, with the appearance of night-time sprites. Attwood’s setting perfectly captures the shifting moods of the poem, from solemnity and gentle melancholy to playful magic, all within a rich, homophonic texture that highlights the expressiveness of the English words.