I Vow to Thee My Country - Gustav Holst (1874 - 1934) - arr. Geoff Knorr. Nikon Nikkor 18-200mm.

Sometimes I get into a patriotic mood, and I make no apology for that.

"I Vow to Thee, My Country" is a British patriotic song, created in 1921, when a poem by Sir Cecil Spring Rice was set to music by Gustav Holst. In 1921, Gustav Holst (1874 - 1934) adapted the music from a section of Jupiter from his suite The Planets (Op. 32 IV) to create a setting for the poem. The music was extended slightly to fit the final two lines of the first verse. At the request of the publisher Curwen, Holst made a version as a unison song with orchestra (Curwen also published Sir Hubert Parry's unison song with orchestra, "Jerusalem"). This was probably first performed in 1921 and became a common element at Armistice memorial ceremonies, especially after it was published as a hymn in 1926. Holst in 1926 harmonised the tune to make it usable as a hymn, which was included in the hymnal Songs of Praise. In that version the lyrics were unchanged, but the tune was then called "Thaxted" (named after the village where Holst lived for many years). The editor of the new (1926) edition of Songs of Praise was Holst's close friend Ralph Vaughan Williams, which may have provided the stimulus for Holst's cooperation in producing the hymn (courtesy of Wikipedia).

The origin of the lyric is a poem by British diplomat Cecil Spring Rice, which he wrote in 1908 while posted to the British Embassy in Stockholm. Then called Urbs Dei (The City of God) or The Two Fatherlands, the poem described how a Christian owes his loyalties to both his homeland and the heavenly kingdom.

I Vow to Thee My Country

I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above,
Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love;
The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test,
That lays upon the altar the dearest and the best;
The love that never falters, the love that pays the price,
The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.
I heard my country calling, away across the sea,
Across the waves and waters, she calls and calls to me.
Her sword is girded at her side, her helmet on her head,
And around her feet are lying the dying and the dead;
I hear the noise of battle, the thunder of her guns;
I haste to thee, my mother, a son among thy sons.
And there's another country, I've heard of long ago,
Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know;
We may not count her armies, we may not see her King;
Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering;
And soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase,
And her ways are ways of gentleness, and all her paths are peace.

I took these photos in London (Palace of Westminster; Hyde Park; Eros, Piccadilly; Horse Guards; Whitehall; St. Pancras Station (bronze statue of poet Sir John Betjeman)); Lincoln Cathedral; and in the Peak District National Park, Derbyshire, England.

Here, Holst's music has been arranged by Geoff Knorr and performed by the Prague FILMharmonic under the baton of conductor, Andy Brick.

Видео I Vow to Thee My Country - Gustav Holst (1874 - 1934) - arr. Geoff Knorr. Nikon Nikkor 18-200mm. канала AntPDC