No Sad Thought His Soul Affright (From "Hodie")

Vaughan Williams, Ralph (1872–1958)

Voicing:
Mixed Choir → SATB

Accompaniment:
Unaccompanied

Occasion:

Proper of Time → Christmas Season → The Nativity of the Lord → General

Publication Information:
Oxford University Press — 43.929 (1954)

Text Information:
Reference: Verse 1: Anonymous; Verse 2: Ursula Wood

Duration: 2:30
Lyrics:

No sad thought his soul affright,
Sleep it is that maketh night;
Let no murmur nor rude wind
To his slumbers prove unkind:
But a quire of angels make
His dreams of heaven, and let him wake
To as many joys as can
In this world befall a man.

Promise fills the sky with light,
Stars and angels dance in flight;
Joy of heaven shall now unbind
Chains of evil from mankind,
Love and joy their power shall break,
And for a newborn prince’s sake;
Never since the world began
Such a light such dark did span.

Submitted by: Brian Luckner Added: Nov 5, 2021 Last updated: Jan 26, 2022