Afton water (The Sprig of Thyme) - John Rutter, Cambridge Singers, City of London Sinfonia

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‘Afton water' - Scottish Traditional Song
From the album 'The Sprig of Thyme'

Arranger John Rutter
Conductor John Rutter
Choir The Cambridge Singers
Orchestra Members of the City of London Sinfonia

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LYRICS:
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.

How lofty, sweet Afton, thy neighbouring hills,
Far marked with the courses of clear winding rills.
There daily I wander as dawn 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 evening creeps over the lea,
The sweet-scented birk shades my Mary and me.

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.
Robert Burns, 1759–96

The Sprig of Thyme
The Sprig of Thyme offers a selection of traditional songs of the British Isles, drawing together long-standing favourites as Willow Song and The Miller of Dee with lesser known gems as O Can Ye Sew Cushions and The Sprig of Thyme. Many new settings for choir and small instrumental group have been created by John Rutter especially for this album. Rutter’s suite of eleven traditional songs, The Sprig of Thyme (all of which can be heard on this album) is published by Oxford University Press.

‘This is a lovely disc; one to head my list of Christmas presents for musical friends…’ Gramophone

“This superb collection of traditional English songs, arranged by R. Vaughan Williams and John Rutter, is drawn from nursery rhymes, scout camps, and hymns from High Church assemblies. Sung in the peerless tones of The Cambridge Singers, these humble songs echo the gentility and cultural nationalism of postwar England. Included are bold drinking songs, tender lullabies, and love songs of fragile beauty. They bring delight and pleasure from a vanished age.” AllMusic

John Rutter, English composer and conductor, is associated with choral music throughout the world. His recordings with the Cambridge Singers (the professional chamber choir he set up in 1983) have reached a wide global audience, many of them featuring his own music in definitive versions. Among John’s best-known choral works are Gloria, Requiem, Magnificat, Mass of the Children, and Visions, together with many church anthems, choral songs and Christmas carols.


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