1941


Song to the Dark Virgin

Composed by Florence Price
"Song to the Dark Virgin" sets the text of Langston Hughes from his 1926 volume The Weary Blues.

Text

Songs to the Dark Virgin
by Langston Hughes

I.

Would
That I were a jewel,
A shattered jewel,
That all my shining brilliants
Might fall at thy feet,
Thou dark one.

II.

Would
That I were a garment,
A shimmering, silken garment,
That all my folds
Might wrap about thy body,
Absorb thy body,
Hold and hide thy body,
Thou dark one.

III.

Would
That I were a flame,
But one sharp, leaping flame
To annihilate thy body,
Thou dark one.

–The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes, pp. 61-62

Sheet Music

Books

The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes

Langston Hughes