Isaac Nathan
Some twenty-nine of Lord Byron's poems, including such Romantic classics as "She Walks in Beauty," were originally written not as poetry to be read or recited but as lyrics to be sung to music composed by Isaac Nathan, the first Jewish musician to attain public recognition in England. These Hebrew Melodies, published in 1815, 1816, and 1824-1829, were conceived by their creators and received by the British public as music in the then-popular genre of national or ethnic airs. Over the years, however, Nathan's melodies have slipped below the horizon of scholarly attention while Byron's lyrics have entered the literature as poetry. The texts are widely available in many editions; however, their original musical settings had not been re-published since the mid-nineteenth century until a facsimile edition of Hebrew Melodies edited by Paul Douglass and Frederick Burwick opened new perspectives on Byron's accomplishment, as well as the entire Romantic project.
Warren Hayes, Tenor
Maurita Thornberg, Soprano
Dale Moreck, Baritone
Mary Gerlitz, Piano
Textual Introduction : Download PDF
Album Art: Download PDF
Songs :
She Walks in Beauty Like the Night 4:43 Play/Download Song (6.7 mb)
If that High World 3:28 Play/Download Song (4.9 mb)
The Wild Gazelle 4:56 Play/Download Song (6.9 mb)
Oh Weep for Those 3:01 Play/Download Song (4.3 mb)
On Jordan's Banks 3:15 Play/Download Song (4.6 mb)
Jephtha's Daughter 2:53 Play/Download Song (4.3 mb)
O Snatch'd Away in Beauty's Bloom 4:25 Play/Download Song (6.1 mb)
We Sate Down and Wept 3:54 Play/Download Song (5.6 mb)
The Vision of Belshazzar 4:35 Play/Download Song (6.5 mb)
The Destruction of Sennacharib 4:05 Play/Download Song (5.8 mb)
Saul 5:43 Play/Download Song (8.0 mb)
Francesca 2:56 Play/Download Song (4.0 mb)
Sun of the Sleepless 5:25 Play/Download Song (7.4 mb)
This not-for-profit site is intended to make vocal music and lyrics of the of the early 19th century in the British Isles, Europe, Canada, the United States, and Australia more accessible. It includes contemporary music of the period and later settings (e.g., Brian Holmes's complete score for Death's Jest Book and Lori Lange's settings of Byron lyrics). For further information, contact Paul.Douglass@sjsu.edu