Ella Wheeler Wilcox - The Musicians

Lyrics

The strings of my heart were strung by Pleasure And I laughed when the music fell on my ear For he and Mirth played a joyful measure And they played so loud that I could not hear The wailing and mourning of souls a-weary - The strains of sorrow that floated around For my heart's notes rang out loud and cheery And I heard no other sound Mirth and Pleasure, the music brothers Played louder and louder in joyful glee; But sometimes a discord was heard by others - Though only the rhythm was heard by me Louder and louder, faster and faster The hands of the brothers played strain on strain When all of a sudden a Mighty Master Swept them aside; and Pain Pain, the musician, the soul-refiner Restrung the strings of my quivering heart And the air that he played was a plaintive minor So sad that the tear-drops were forced to start; Each note was an echo of awful anguish As shrill as solemn, as sharp as slow And my soul for a reason seemed to languish And faint with its weight of woe With skilful hands that were never weary This Master of Music played strain on strain And between the bars of the miserere He drew up the strings of my heart again And I was filled with a vague, strange wonder To see that they did not snap in two 'They are drawn so tight, they will break assunder, ' I thought, but instead, they grew In the hands of the Master, firmer and stronger; And I could hear on the stilly air - Now my ears were deafened by Mirth no longer - The sound of sorrow, and grief, and despair; And my soul grew kinder and tender to others My nature grew sweeter, my mind grew broad And I held all men to be my brothers Linked by the chastening rod My soul was lifted to God and heaven And when on my heart-strings fell again The hands of Mirth, and Pleasure, even There was never a discord to mar the strain For Pain, the musician, and soul-refiner Attuned the strings with a master hand And whether the music be major or minor It is always sweet and grand