By the Willows

[Intro — low male voices, no instruments, brief] (low male choir) (Ohh... ohh...) (We will not sing... we will not sing) [Verse 1] (aged male bass-baritone, lead) Hang them in the willow trees Let the branches hold our grief We will not play for the ones who came (Not for them, not for them) Let the strings grow cold and still Let them rust against our will There is no song for a stolen name (Hold your peace, hold your peace) [Chorus] (aged male bass-baritone with low male choir) By the willows, by the water We laid our music down By the willows, by the water We will not wear their crown (We will not) Let them ask and let them mock us Let the silence be our vow The songs of Zion are not for sale We will not sing them now (We will not sing them now) [Verse 2] (aged male bass-baritone, lead) How could a harp make a joyful sound With the temple burned to the ground They want our worship for a feast (Never, never) Better mute than to play the fool Better silent than a tool So let the willow keep them, every string (Hold your peace, hold your peace) [Bridge — a single higher voice rises over the low choir] (adult female alto-mezzo-soprano, over low male choir) But silence is a kind of song A grief that says we still belong To a place they could not burn away (We remember, we remember) And when the right day finally comes We'll take them down, we'll find our tongues But not for them — only for that day (Only for that day) [Held silence — one breath, no instruments] [Final Chorus — full cast choir, swelling] (aged male bass-baritone with full mixed choir, female alto-mezzo-soprano above) By the willows, by the water We laid our music down By the willows, by the water We will not wear their crown (We will not) Let them ask and let them mock us Let the silence be our vow The songs of Zion are not for sale We will not sing them now (We will not sing them now) [Outro — brief, a cappella] (low male choir) We will not sing them now