Flow gently, sweet Afton, among thy...

Flow gently, sweet Afton, among thy green braes,
Flow gently, I'll sing thee a song in thy praise;
My Mary's asleep by thy murmuring stream,
Flow gently, sweet Afton, disturb not her dream.

Thou stock dove whose echo resounds thro' the glen,
Ye wild whistling blackbirds in yon thorny den,
Thou green-crested lapwing, thy screaming forbear,
I charge you disturb not my slumbering Fair.

[ How lofty, sweet Afton, thy neighbouring hills, 
Far marked with the courses of clear, winding rills; 
There daily I wander as noon rises high, 
My flocks and my Mary's sweet cot in my eye. 

How pleasant thy banks and green valleys below, 
Where, wild in the woodlands, the primroses blow; 
There oft, as mild ev'ning weeps over the lea, 
The sweet-scented birk shades my Mary and me. ]1

Thy crystal stream, Afton, how lovely it glides,
And winds by the cot where my Mary resides;
How wanton thy waters her snowy feet lave,
As, gathering sweet flowerets, she stems thy clear wave.

Flow gently, sweet Afton, among thy green braes,
Flow gently, sweet River, the theme of my lays;
My Mary's asleep by thy murmuring stream,
Flow gently, sweet Afton, disturb not her dream.

by Robert Burns (1759-1796)

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)

by David Arditti (1964-) , "Sweet Afton", op. 1 no. 6, first performed 1994, from Burns Songs, no. 6.
by Agathe Ursula Backer-Grøndahl (1847-1907) , "Afton Water", op. 51 no. 12 (1902), published 1902 [voice and piano], from Tolv Folkeviser og Melodier fra fremmede Lande, no. 12.
by (Edward) Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) , "Afton Water", op. 92 no. 5 (1975), from A Birthday Hansel, no. 5.
by Percy Aldridge Grainger (1882-1961) , "Afton Water", 1898. [tenor, piano]

by Wilhelm Baumgartner (1820-1867) , "Mary schlummert", op. 22 (Drei Lieder) no. 1 (1847). [voice and piano]

Text added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.

Notes about green, red, and white dots

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