This edition was prepared by David Anderson — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
Break, break, break
Staff Notation • Secular, Partsongs
Preview
0
0
Subscribed as
Want Sunday picks sent to another address too?
Free weekly email
Your choir should not be left out in what's trending
Sunday mass selections, psalms, and trending songs in your area — straight to your inbox.
Break, break, break by Howard Kingsbury — Lyrics
Break, break, break,
On thy cold gray stones, O Sea!
And I would that my tongue could utter
The thoughts that arise in me.
O, well for the fisherman’s boy,
That he shouts with his sister at play!
O, well for the sailor lad,
That he sings in his boat on the bay!
Read full lyrics
About Break, break, break
Howard Kingsbury sets Tennyson's famous poem "Break, break, break" for SATB choir. This is a secular setting in English, drawing on the rich tradition of nineteenth-century English part-songs. The text expresses a profound sense of loss and longing, contrasting the relentless movement of the sea and ships with the singer's deep personal grief for a vanished presence. Kingsbury's music reflects the poem's emotional arc, moving from the stark imagery of the sea to the poignant ache of memory. The SATB voicing allows for rich harmonies that underscore the poem's melancholy and its ultimate, unassuaged sorrow.
