Leans now the fair willow, dreaming Amid her locks of green. In the driving snow she was parched and cold, And in midnight hath been Swept by blasts of the void night, Lashed by the rains. Now of that wintry dark and bleak No memory remains. In mute desire she sways softly; Thrilling sap up-flows; She praises God in her beauty and grace, Whispers delight. And there flows A delicate wind from the Southern seas, Kissing her leaves. She sighs. While the birds in her tresses make merry; Burns the Sun in the skies.
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Confirmed with Walter De la Mare, The Veil and other Poems, New York, Henry Holt and Company, 1922, page 10.
Authorship:
- by Walter De la Mare (1873 - 1956), "The willow", appears in The Veil and Other Poems, first published 1922 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Edward Toner Cone (b. 1917), "The willow" [ satb chorus and string quartet ], from Around the year [sung text not yet checked]
- by Imogen Clare Holst (1907 - 1984), "Leans now the fair willow, dreaming" [ soprano, 2 violins, cello ], from Three Songs, no. 1, note: voice must be treble voice [sung text not yet checked]
- by Joye Zelda Schmidt (b. 1930), "The willow", 1952 [ low voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2021-02-23
Line count: 16
Word count: 94