Lyrics Three Songs, Op. 10 - I Hear an Army - Graham Johnson, Ann Murray, Samuel Barber

Three Songs, Op. 10 - I Hear an Army

I hear an army charging upon the land
And the thunder of horses plunging, foam about their knees:
Arrogant, in black armour, behind them stand
Disdaining the reins, with flutt’ring whips, the charioteers
They cry unto the night their battlename:
I moan in sleep when I hear afar their whirling laughter
They cleave the gloom of dreams, a blinding flame
Clanging, clanging upon the heart as upon an anvil
They come shaking in triumph their long, green hair:
They come out of the sea and run shouting by the shore
My heart, have you no wisdom thus to despair?
My love, my love, why have you left me alone?