Songs

Sleep Song

by Ina Boyle

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Text

Sleep Song
English source: Patrick Pearse

Deirín dé, deirín dé!
The brown bittern speaks in the bog;
Deirín dé, deirín dé!
The nightjar is abroad on the heath.

Deirín dé, deirín dé!
Kine will go west at dawn of day;
Deirín dé, deirín dé!
And my child will go to the pasture to mind them.

Deirín dé, deirín dé!
Moon will rise and sun will set;
Deirín dé, deirín dé!
Kine will come east at end of day.

Deirín dé, deirín dé!
I will let my child go gathering blackberries,
Deirín dé, deirín dé!
If he sleep softly till the ring of day!

Composer

Ina Boyle

Born in 1889, Ina Boyle spent almost all her life in her family’s large home in Enniskerry, a countryside village just south of Dublin. Though her prolific compositional output included works for voice, choir, chamber ensembles and orchestra, most…

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