Perfect Light

Words: Sarah Williams (1837–1868).

Music: Franz Joseph Haydn (1732–1809).

Parts: 5

Range: 15 half-steps

Difficulty: Harder to learn.

Our recordings

Lyrics

Though my soul may set in darkness,

it will rise in perfect light;

( ) I have loved the stars too

fondly to be fearful of the

night, fearful of the night.

Notes

The words are a slight variation of a couplet from Sarah Williams’s 1868 poem “The Old Astronomer,” sometimes known as “The Old Astronomer to His Pupil.”

We don’t know who set these words to this music.

Recordings elsewhere

Recorded by The Rounds Galore and More Singers: “Perfect Light,” on Rounds Galore … and More, Volume 3.