English Song Lyrics
Beauty's But an Idle Boast
English song lyrics from a gentler era... "Beauty's But an Idle Boast" is a little-known singing round that is very beautiful.
A nice easy range
In the key of Am (shown), this round has a comfortable range... from Middle C to high C, fine for children and also women who haven't done much singing for years!
But a very complex melody
However, the melody is more complex than beginner rounds such as Ah Poor Bird and Heigh Ho:
Please scroll down the page for the download links.
A casual gathering sings this round
Myself, I'd take this melody quite a bit higher! I would also insist that the singers carry the long notes in the second measure of each line through to the next measure, taking breaths only at the end of each line, so that the beautiful harmony of the Am chord can be heard.
Because this is a complicated melody, I've also made this song available with Alphanotes.
These are made-easy notes that make it possible for singers who are just learning musical notes to gain accuracy with this melody.
Many singers do not read well
I have a singer with a lot of ability, but not the skill to EASILY read a tune with multiple skips and a few accidentals and ledger line notes, and this easy-reader note version helped her to learn this song quickly.
Please scroll down the page for the download links.
I neglected to put "1", "2", and "3" where the new voices are to begin, but I'm sure you'll figure that out! Each line of the music is one section, then at the next line, a new voice enters back at the beginning of the song...
Harmony backup keeps notes true
Try the chords on piano or guitar as the group sings.
With this particular singing round, I have found that it is easier to keep the singers on their notes by using the chords than by banging out the melody.
Extend the breath & energy
Don't let your voice students drop the breath in the middle of the lines - look at the phrase markings in the first arrangement above (not the lettered notes version).
If they stop to take a breath after "but", and "to-day" in lines 1, 2, and 3, all the energy drops out of the line, and the harmony as well! Demonstrate this for your beginners - they will get it. (The failure to do this by the singers in the video above made their performance less exciting.)
Make them carry the sound through to the end of each line.
They can do all the breathing exercises for singing you want at the beginning of their lessons, but if they don't learn to apply it to real music, you are failing in your job. Make them HEAR themselves.
Old-fashioned lyrics - the source
The round lyrics of this very beautiful piece are quite old-fashioned - I would have guessed they are from Elizabethan England.
However, they are of more recent vintage; a 240+ page book called Moral Emblems: With Aphorisms, Adages, And Proverbs, Of All Ages And Nations (1860) is the source of the song lyrics.
This book is available as facsimile versions on Amazon for around $28.
I found the illustrations and moral sayings irresistible in an old-fashioned, charming way. Here is a taste of the warnings from these gentlemen of a bygone era:
"Time! it is, whose stealthy wing
Throws on all alike its shade,--
Fades the bloom of ev'ry thing,
Howsoever fair 'twas made!
Time! though it so softly treads,
Silent ruin round us spreads;
And as Age has done by me,
If you live, you'll surely see --
Beauty's but an idle boast,
Your's to-day; to-morrow lost!
"But, there is a Beauty yet,
Far more lasting in the wear;
That which Virtue doth beget,
Fadeless - bright - beyond compare:
Make that Beauty your's, fair maid;
Time o'er that can cast no shade;
And when wrinkled that fair brow,
'T will be fairer far than now, -
With a Beauty that shall gain
Lasting Love in God's domain."
The links for the round:
Download English Song Lyrics - singing round Beauty's But an Idle Boast
Download free vocal music from England with letters in the notes
More Rounds at Music-for-Music-Teachers.com
A pretty round with a reach of an octave, slow-moving notes, and easy intervals. The scale-wise movement makes this song easy for a beginner.
With lyrics from an older time, this is more difficult than many rounds, but compensatingly more beautiful, with more complex harmonies as well!
From Canada, a minor harmony round with energy and a catchy melody.
New lyrics for an old round by Haydn - well-suited to a mix of voices, a satisfying round
Christmas is Coming, the Goose is Getting Fat
Lots of big interval jumps, even octaves, make this round fun and tricky.
Originally from Germany (Kaffee), this is great fun to sing, and a lasting favorite with my students! With English lyrics - by me - that mention mochas, lattes, and "coffee black!"
A fancy melody from the 1600's with rhythmic intricacies, that is also pretty!
Difficult! Quite difficult for beginners, this beautiful round works best with a bigger group of singers, or even instrumentalists, unless your singers are experienced with harmony, and good note readers.
For Health & Strength & Daily Bread
Pretty, and fairly easy, as it moves primarily in descending steps, this is a wonderful Thanksgiving song!
The famous French melody.
Meditative, slow, and minor... a lovely round. This is a lullaby.
Not a lullaby! This is a brisk bidding farewell to friends, in a major key.
Haida is vigorous and fun - there are two spots that invite a clap, adding to the rhythmic feeling of this song. Along with "Coffee," this is a favorite, frequently requested!
The Hart, He Loves the High Hill
This brisk but pretty round from England contrasts a deer with a rabbit, and a man with a woman! "The lady loves her WILL!" (getting her own way).
Have You Seen the Ghost of John
An unbelievably pretty round, with lyrics that DO NOT do it justice! One of my students' perennial favorites. I have added alternate lyrics in Latin, to make it sing-able for Christmas.
The first round I use with beginning singers. Very singable!
Another brisk Hebrew round, lovely and minor.
A fun 2-part round from Australia, good for classroom singing
Merry, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
A happy song, easy to learn!
A very pretty little tune with nice major harmonies. A quick study!
Short, and very easy. This is a sweet melody with simple harmonies.
A pretty song with lovely lyrics
A song about peace, from Israel. Very lovely.
Viva la musica
A little different - there is a bit of dissonance to learn to sing through. A joyful melody!
A pretty little round with two parts and two verses, about white coral bells flowers along a garden path.
A street-seller's cry from England.
Dianna:
Your website is a light in the darkness. THANK YOU for all you do in helping to spread the love of music. It matters!
Recent Articles
-
The Wild Mountain Thyme Song: Sheet Music for Guitar, Voice, & Piano
The Wild Mountain Thyme song has appealing Irish lyrics, and a beautiful melody. Download free tabs & sheet music for yourself or your students! -
Printable Sheet Music for Piano "Harp Ballad:" Free Downloads!
Printable sheet music for piano "Harp Ballad" is beautiful & full of energy! This free 2-page early intermediate piece will be a favorite for a long time. -
Yankee Doodle: Free Music for Beginning & Intermediate Piano Students
Yankee Doodle is a well-known melody with a strong beat -- that's the kind of song most fun for beginning piano students! See 7 free versions for piano. -
Aragorn and Arwen's Theme: Rivendell Sheet Music for Piano
Aragorn and Arwen, in The Fellowship of the Ring, commit themselves to each other while the beautiful music "Aniron" - "I Desire" - is sung. -
Largo from The New World Symphony: Three Free Piano Arrangements
Largo printable sheet music for piano from Dvorak's "New World Symphony," three easy and beautiful arrangements.
Interested in songs from the Bible for your students or church? Check out my other website, SingTheBibleStory.com!
All the first-year material I give my beginner students.
Piano keyboard sheets, scales, chords, note-reading exercises, and over 256 pages of music!
This beautiful song book for piano & voice "Esther, For Such a Time as This", available as a digital download, tells the riveting story of the time when Jews in ancient Persia faced a foe named Haman, and how a brave young queen risked her life to save her people.
A good choice for a singing story-teller, an operatic group, a short theater production, or a class of children!
This book is also available from Amazon as a paperback.
This book is available as a digital download from this site. Visit this page to see some free examples from the book.
It is also available from Amazon as a paperback!
This is the perfect easy start for little pianists.
And when they start reading white-key notes on the staff, this is a fun easy resource to say each week, "Choose a new black-key song at home this week and figure it out to show me next lesson!" They will be spending more time at the piano.
A perfect read aloud storybook
for little boys or girls.
The Adventures of Tonsta highlight the travels of a very young boy with a good heart, who goes about helping folk in trouble.
With a red cap on his head and a sack of tools slung over his shoulder, Tonsta seems to meet people in distress wherever he goes.
Lots of trolls in this book - including one who gives him a Christmas gift!
About the Author
Hi, I'm Dana! (Say that like "Anna".) I'm the owner of Music-for-Music-Teachers.com, and a newer site, SingTheBibleStory.com.
Like some of you, I've been playing the piano since early childhood, and have added a few other instruments along the way, plus an interest in arranging and composing music.
You can find out more about me and the reason for this website at my About Me page.
Recent Articles
-
The Wild Mountain Thyme Song: Sheet Music for Guitar, Voice, & Piano
The Wild Mountain Thyme song has appealing Irish lyrics, and a beautiful melody. Download free tabs & sheet music for yourself or your students! -
Printable Sheet Music for Piano "Harp Ballad:" Free Downloads!
Printable sheet music for piano "Harp Ballad" is beautiful & full of energy! This free 2-page early intermediate piece will be a favorite for a long time.