Calm night (John Liptrot Hatton)

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• (Posted 2023-10-25)  CPDL #76631:     

Editor: David Anderson (submitted 2023-10-25).   Score information: Letter, 8 pages, 403 kB   Copyright: Personal

Edition notes:

• (Posted 2020-01-23)  CPDL #56735:         

Editor: James Gibb (submitted 2020-01-23).   Score information: A4, 6 pages, 101 kB   Copyright: CPDL

Edition notes:

General Information

Title: Calm night
Composer: John Liptrot Hatton
Lyricist: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Number of voices: 4vv   Voicing: SATB
Genre: Secular, Partsong

Language: English
Instruments: Piano

Instruments: A cappella

First published: 1879 in Novello's Part-Song Book (2nd series), Vol. 12, no. 359
Description: Lyrics are from The Golden Legend.

Original text and translations

English text

The night is calm and cloudless,
And still as still can be,
And the stars come out to listen
To the music of the sea;
They gather, and gather, and gather,
Until they crowd the sky,
And listen, in breathless silence,
To the solemn Litany.
It begins in rocky caverns,
As a voice that chants alone
To the pedals of the organ
In monotonous undertone;
And anon from shelving beaches,
And shallow sands beyond,
In snow-white robes uprising,
The ghostly choirs respond:
Christe eleison.
And sadly, and unceasing,
The mournful voice runs on,
And the snow-white choirs still answer:
Christe eleison.