This edition was prepared by Barry Johnston — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
Charlestown
Staff Notation • Sacred, Hymns
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2 editions of this piece
Different typesettings and voicings of the same work. This page shows the main edition; the others are below.
SATB · Barry Johnston
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Charlestown by Daniel Read — Lyrics
Canticum graduum. In convertendo Dominus captivitatem Sion, facti sumus sicut consolati.
Tunc repletum est gaudio os nostrum, et lingua nostra exsultatione.
Tunc dicent inter gentes: Magnificavit Dominus facere cum eis.
Magnificavit Dominus facere nobiscum; facti sumus laetantes.
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About Charlestown
This setting of Psalm 126 opens with words of profound joy and gratitude. "When the Lord turned again the captivity of Zion, then were we like them that dream." The text rejoices in divine deliverance, a transformation from sorrow to exultation, where mouths are filled with gladness and tongues with singing. The composer Daniel Read explores this theme through a SATB voicing. The music moves between Latin and English texts, reflecting the universal nature of this biblical expression of hope and redemption. The journey from sowing in tears to reaping in joy is vividly portrayed, culminating in a triumphant return with "sheaves of joy."
