Down ampney (Ralph Vaughan Williams)

From ChoralWiki

Music files

• CPDL #15479:      NWC Sibelius 4

Editor: John Henry Fowler (added 2007-11-20).   Score information: A4, 1 page, 25 kbytes       Copyright: Public Domain

Edition notes: Edition from CyberHymnal - File Sizes: PDF: 25 KB, 2nd PDF: 23 KB, MIDI: 2 KB, NWC: 2 KB, Sib4: 30 KB.

General Information

Title: Down ampney
Composer: Ralph Vaughan Williams

Number of voices: 4vv  Voicing: SATB
Genre: Sacred, Hymns     Meter:   (66.11 D)
Language: English
Instruments: piano/organ
Published: Tune: Down Amp­ney, Ralph Vaughan Will­iams, 1906; Lyrics: Bi­an­co of Si­e­na (?-1434) (Di­scen­di, Amor san­to); ap­peared in Laudi spir­it­u­ali del Bi­an­co da Si­e­na, ed­it­ed by T. Bi­ni, 1851; trans­lat­ed from Ital­ian to Eng­lish by Ri­chard F. Lit­tle­dale in The Peo­ple’s Hymn­al, 1867.

Description:

External websites:

Cyber Hymnal entry for hymn tune "Down Ampney":

http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/c/o/comelove.htm

Original text and translations

English text

1.

Come down, O love divine, seek Thou this soul of mine,

And visit it with Thine own ardor glowing.

O Comforter, draw near, within my heart appear,

And kindle it, Thy holy flame bestowing.

2.

O let it freely burn, til earthly passions turn

To dust and ashes in its heat consuming;

And let Thy glorious light shine ever on my sight,

And clothe me round, the while my path illuming.

3.

Let holy charity mine outward vesture be,

And lowliness become mine inner clothing;

True lowliness of heart, which takes the humbler part,

And o’er its own shortcomings weeps with loathing.

4.

And so the yearning strong, with which the soul will long,

Shall far outpass the power of human telling;

For none can guess its grace, till he become the place

Wherein the Holy Spirit makes His dwelling.

Lyrics: Bi­an­co of Si­e­na (?-1434) (Di­scen­di, Amor san­to); ap­peared in Laudi spir­it­u­ali del Bi­an­co da Si­e­na, ed­it­ed by T. Bi­ni, 1851; trans­lat­ed from Ital­ian to Eng­lish by Ri­chard F. Lit­tle­dale in The Peo­ple’s Hymn­al, 1867.