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Musical Selections

Variations on a Theme by Rilke

 Music: Joan Szymko (1999)
Poem: Denise Levertov (1987)

A certain day became a presence to me;
there it was, confronting me—a sky, air, light:
a being. And before it started to descend
from the height of noon, it leaned over
and struck my shoulder as if with the flat of a sword, granting me
honor and a task. The day’s blow
rang out, metallic—or it was I, a bell awakened,
and what I heard is my whole self
saying and singing what it knew: I can.

Alma Mater

Music: Gladys F. Pratt ’14
Text: Gertrude Brady Murphy ’14

Oh Mount Holyoke we pay thee devotion,
In the fervor of youth that is strong,
The courage of right is thy garland,
Our lives, Alma Mater, thy song.
So from east and from west now we gather,
And united in firm love to thee,
All years are as one, and their loyal pledge,
Mount Holyoke forever shall be,
Mount Holyoke forever shall be.

Thro’ the heart of a new day’s endeavor,
Breathes the life of the old days that live,
For what thou hast given we honor,
But we love thee for what we can give.
So when soft in a whisper thou callest,
For the treasures unlocked by thy key,
Our achievements, our hopes, and our glorious faith
Shall answer, Mount Holyoke, to thee,
Shall answer, Mount Holyoke, to thee.