Lyrics
[Intro and Verse 1: Melancholic and Thoughtful, Narrative and Reflective]
Behold her, single in the field,
Yon solitary Highland Lass!
Reaping and singing by herself;
Stop here, or gently pass!
Alone she cuts and binds the grain,
And sings a melancholy strain;
O listen! for the Vale profound
Is overflowing with the sound.
[Hook: Echoing and Resonant]
O listen, the solitary voice,
In the fields, she makes her choice.
A song that speaks to every ear,
Of truths untold, and sorrows near.
[Instrumental Break: Haunting and Melodic]
[Verse 2 and Bridge: Descriptive and Emotional, Sorrowful and Poignant]
No Nightingale did ever chant
So sweetly to reposing bands
Of travellers in some shady haunt,
Among Arabian sands.
A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard
In spring-time from the Cuckoo-bird,
Breaking the silence of the seas
Among the farthest Hebrides.
[Hook Reprise: Echoing and Resonant]
O listen, the solitary voice,
In the fields, she makes her choice.
A song that speaks to every ear,
Of truths untold, and sorrows near.
[Solo: Reflective and Introspective with a Sitar]
[Verse 3 and Instrumental Break: Contemplative and Brooding, Mournful and Deep]
Will no one tell me what she sings?—
Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow
For old, unhappy, far-off things,
And battles long ago:
Or is it some more humble lay,
Familiar matter of to-day?
Some natural sorrow, loss, or pain,
That has been, and may be again?
[Outro: Reflective and Hopeful]
Whate'er the theme, the Maiden sang
As if her song could have no ending;
I saw her singing at her work,
And o'er the sickle bending.
[End]