My Spirit Sang All Day

With the sad dissolution of our homeschooling chorus, my daughter and I sought new opportunities to continue singing on a regular basis. For my daughter, this means private vocal lessons with a fabulously fun and talented woman who also runs a small theatre company nearby. For me, it means striving to sing with a local chorus, but with the added benefit of getting to do that with my husband! As someone who is unable to sing by sight reading, I am quite challenged by the music in the chorus; however, I have no doubt that the end product will be wonderful.
Our program this semester is The British Are Coming!, music from the 14th to the 20th century. Here is a brief sample of one of my favorite pieces we’ve practiced thus far, based on an unnamed poem by Robert Bridges and composed by Gerald Finzi.
BOOK IV.

II.

My spirit sang all day

O my joy.
Nothing my tongue could say,

Only My joy!

My heart an echo caught —

O my joy—
And spake, Tell me thy thought,

Hide not thy joy.

My eyes gan peer around, —

O my joy—
What beauty hast thou found?

Shew us thy joy.

My jealous ears grew whist ; —

O my joy-
Music from heaven is 't,

Sent for our joy?
She also came and heard;

my joy,
What, said she, is this word?

What is thy joy?

And I replied, O see,

my joy,
'Tis thee, I cried, 'tis thee:

Thou art my joy.

While the sound seems a little wonky, I found this video to be the best for hearing the words. 
And it gives me shivers.

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