O Sweet and Blessed Country

Another short piece, really just an SATB setting (with some light divisi) of one verse of a hymn, Jerusalem the Golden (not to be confused with Yerushalayim Shel Zahav, which is also beautiful). But it’s a verse which is often changed in modern hymnals, which I think a great shame:

O sweet and blessèd country,
Shall I ever see thy face?
O sweet and blessèd country,
Shall I ever win thy grace?
Exult, O dust and ashes!
The Lord shall be thy part:
His only, his for ever,
Thou shalt be, and thou art!

Why? Why would you mess with that? It’s Bernard of Cluny, translated by J. M. Neale, and while the gendered language for God might give some people pause, I think the overall message is more important than that. (If it bothers you, sing “Hers only, hers forever” — it doesn’t mess up the scansion, and I promise I won’t tell.)

So. Robot flutes, doing their best:
www.cpdl.org/wiki/images/2/25/Rose_–_O_Sweet_and_Blessed_Country_-_2017.mp3

And a pdf to download:
Rose — O Sweet and Blessed Country – 2017.pdf

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