But when through all the infernal bounds

But when [thro' all th'infernal]1 bounds 
  Which flaming Phlegethon surrounds,
      Love, strong as Death, the Poet led
      To the pale nations of the dead,
  What sounds were heard,
  What scenes appear'd,
    O'er all the dreary coasts!
        Dreadful gleams,
        Dismal screams,
        Fires that glow,
        Shrieks of woe,
        Sullen moans,
        Hollow groans,
      And cries of tortur'd ghosts!
  But, hark! he strikes the golden lyre;
  And see! the tortur'd ghosts respire,
          See, shady forms advance!
    Thy stone, O Sisyphus, stands still,
    Ixion rests upon his wheel.
          And the pale spectres dance!
  The Furies sink upon their iron beds,
  And snakes uncurl'd hang list'ning round their heads.

by Alexander Pope (1688-1744) , from Ode on St. Cecilia's Day, no. 4, published 1708

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

by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry (1848-1918) , "But when through all the infernal bounds", 1889 [soprano and orchestra], from Ode to St. Cecelia's Day, no. 5.

Date added to the website: 2009-09-04.

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