Pebbles and Shells (Hawkes collection)/To Paderewski Playing
TO PADEREWSKI PLAYING
'Tis vain for me to praise thy matchless power
Strange dweller in a land of mysteries,
When thou dost lean across the snowy keys
And fill my soul with feeling's richest dower,
Long years of baser life in that sweet hour
Are awakened by the magic of thy strain,
When tender love and joy and bitter pain
Sweep o'er my soul, like breezes o'er a flower.
O smite the keys and to my fevered soul
From out thy life let such an anthem roll
That I shall hear and see and understand
The mysteries of life, teach me thy fire
And I will string my poor impassioned lyre
And sing the world an anthem new and grand.
Strange dweller in a land of mysteries,
When thou dost lean across the snowy keys
And fill my soul with feeling's richest dower,
Long years of baser life in that sweet hour
Are awakened by the magic of thy strain,
When tender love and joy and bitter pain
Sweep o'er my soul, like breezes o'er a flower.
O smite the keys and to my fevered soul
From out thy life let such an anthem roll
That I shall hear and see and understand
The mysteries of life, teach me thy fire
And I will string my poor impassioned lyre
And sing the world an anthem new and grand.