by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807 - 1882)
The twilight is sad and cloudy
Language: English
The twilight is sad and cloudy, The wind blows wild and free, And like the wings of [sea-birds]1 Flash the white caps of the sea. But in the fisherman's cottage There shines a ruddier light, And a little face at the window Peers out into the night. Close, close it is pressed to the window, As if those childish eyes Were looking into the darkness, To see some form arise. And a woman's waving shadow Is passing to and fro, Now rising to the ceiling, Now bowing and bending low. What tale do the roaring ocean, And the night-wind, bleak and wild, As they beat at the crazy casement, Tell to that little child? And why do the roaring ocean, And the night-wind, wild and bleak, As they beat at the heart of the mother, Drive the color from her cheek?
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View original text (without footnotes)1 Beach: "seagulls"
Text Authorship:
- by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807 - 1882), "Twilight", appears in The Seaside and the Fireside, first published 1849 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Amy Marcy Cheney Beach (1867 - 1944), "In the Twilight", op. 85, published 1922 [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by W. H. Bentley , "Twilight", op. 2 (Six songs) no. 1 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Isaac Berrow , "Twilight" [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Amy Blakeway , "Twilight" [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Chas. J. Clark , "Twilight by the sea" [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Ellen Dickson (1819 - 1878), as Dolores, "Twilight", published 1859 [ voice and piano ], London [sung text not yet checked]
- by R. J. Ella , "Twilight" [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by John Liptrot Hatton (1809 - 1886), "Twilight by the sea" [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Arthur William Marchant (1850 - ?), "Twilight" [ partsong for 2-part women's chorus and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by George Washbourne Morgan (1822 - 1892), "Twilight", published 1878 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Joseph Edward Newell , "Twilight" [ partsong for 2-part chorus and piano ], from Twelve Two Part Songs for the Use of Schools and Classes [sung text not yet checked]
- by ?, Mrs. Joseph Robinson (1823 - 1879), "Twilight" [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by S. A. Smith , "Twilight" [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Willoughby Hunter Weiss (1820 - 1867), "The fisherman's cottage", published 1845-60 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- GER German (Deutsch) (Ernst Eckstein) , "Zwielicht", subtitle: "(Nach dem Englischen von H.W. Longfellow.)", appears in In Moll und Dur, in 3. Dritte Abtheilung
Researcher for this page: Barbara Miller
This text was added to the website: 2005-08-03
Line count: 24
Word count: 141