Canasg Choral Music Publishing

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  NW3003 

 
Holy Thursday


words by William Blake (1757-1827)


set to music by Sheena Phillips

for soprano, alto, tenor and bass chorus


SATB  performance time approx  2m 30s 











Composer's note


During Blake's lifetime there were annual parades on Holy Thursday of poor children from London's charity schools.  His poem was a protest at the existence of dire poverty in the 'rich and fruitful land' of Britain and also sounded a satirical note against the annual display of charity.  


Both the title and the words resonated strongly for me in the run-up to Easter 1999, when thousands of families fled the violence in Kosovo in terror and the world looked on in anguish as a beautiful country became war-torn.   


A recording by Rudsambee company of singers is available on their album bottled at source  (RUBEECD003).














 Music

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 Words 





Holy Thursday




Is this a holy thing to see,

In a rich and fruitful land,

Babes reduced to misery,

Fed with cold and usurous hand?


Is that trembling cry a song?

Can it be a song of joy?

And so many children poor?

It is a land of poverty!


And their sun does never shine.

And their fields are bleak and bare.

And their ways are fill'd with thorns.

It is eternal winter there.


For where-e'er the sun does shine,

And where-e'er the rain does fall:

Babes can never hunger there, 	['Babe' in the original]

Nor poverty the mind appall.



William Blake













Price


The price of this piece depends on the number of singers in your group. This is a single payment for a licence to make as many copies as you need for your group to rehearse and perform the song as often as you wish.  Copies of the song must not be given, lent or sold to any other group.  








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£15 (approx US$24)



















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Companion pieces

Browse the 'contemporary music' section of the Canasg catalogue for more songs like this one.  To go there now, click on the 'catalogue' box to the right.
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Canasg Choral Music Publishing 	


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Page updated by  Peter Hill Jan 2006