"Touch the Soft Harp Gently" (1852)
by George Frederick Root, 1820-1895

[Source: pages 126-129 from "The Academy Vocalist"]

1.
Touch the soft harp gently,
Sweet let its numbers be;
The dewey eve is fading,
'Tis moonlight on the sea.
Now, the zephyrs floating by,
(Touch the soft harp gently,)
To the sleeping flow'rets sigh;
(Sweet let its numbers be.)
Midnight's silent hour is nigh,
(Touch the soft harp gently,)
Touch the soft harp gently.

Touch the soft harp gently,
While all is hushed and still;
The stars are beaming brightly
Upon the mountain rill--
The stars are beaming brightly
Upon the mountain rill.

CHORUS
Touch the soft harp gently,
While all is hushed and still;
The stars are beaming brightly
Upon the mountain rill.

Philomela in the vale
Tells her melancholy tale
To the rose and lily pale.
Touch the soft harp gently.

2.
Touch the soft harp gently,
Sweet let its numbers be;
The dewey eve is fading,
'Tis moonlight on the sea.
Now, the zephyrs floating by,
(Touch the soft harp gently,)
To the sleeping flow'rets sigh;
(Sweet let its numbers be.)
Midnight's silent hour is nigh,
(Touch the soft harp gently,)
Touch the soft harp gently.