Henry Purcell: An Evening Hymn
Andreas Scholl, Countertenor; Accademia Bizantina; Conducted by Stefano Montanari
Now, now that the sun hath veil’d his light
And bid the world goodnight;
To the soft bed my body I dispose,
But where shall my soul repose?
Dear, dear God, even in Thy arms,
And can there be any so sweet security!
Then to thy rest, O my soul!
And singing, praise the mercy
That prolongs thy days.
Hallelujah!
Trust And Oboe
(I’d put the guitarists name here but I can’t find it)
…I would fix my typo (thanks for letting me know, Carolyn!) but I like it too much to change it!
Henry Purcell: A Morning Hymn – Thou wakeful Shepherd
Vox Luminis
Zsuzsi Toth, Soprano; Simon Linne, Theorbo; Ricardo Rodriguez MIranda, Viola da Gamba
A Morning Hymn
Thou wakeful shepherd that does Israel keep,
Raised by thy goodness from the bed of sleep,
To thee I offer up this hymn
As my best morning sacrifice;
May it be gracious in thine eyes
To raise me from the bed of sin.
And do I live to see another day?
I vow, My God, henceforth to walk thy ways,
And sing thy praise all these few days Thou shalt allow.
Could I redeem the time I have mis-spent in sinful merriment,
Could I untread those paths I led
I would so expiate each past offence that ev’n from thence
The innocent should wish themselves like me
When with such crimes they such repentance see.
With joy I’d sing away my breath,
Yet who can die so to receive his death?
