Morfydd Owen (1891–1918)
Composer; Pianist; Singer; Musicologist
Works published by MoV
He prayeth best who loveth best
(S & piano or organ)
He prayeth best who loveth best
(S & piano or organ version)
The compact stanza used in this setting by Morfydd Owen is taken from the final section of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s complex extended poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (written and adapted by the poet between 1797–1816) and develops out of a seemingly simple statement in the previous stanza: He prayeth well, who loveth well Both man and bird and beast.
He prayeth best who loveth best
(S & piano or organ)
This work is published in our anthology Volume 2, as a printed octavo, and as a licenced digital pdf
To order the sheet music click on the buttons below.
He prayeth best who loveth best
(arranged for SATB by Sarah MacDonald)
The compact stanza used in this setting by Morfydd Owen is taken from the final section of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s complex extended poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (written and adapted by the poet between 1797–1816) and develops out of a seemingly simple statement in the previous stanza: He prayeth well, who loveth well Both man and bird and beast.
He prayeth best who loveth best
(arranged for SATB by Sarah MacDonald)
This work is published as a printed octavo and as a licenced digital score
To order the sheet music click on the buttons below.
Biography of Morfydd Owen (7 minutes)
IIf you would like a pdf of this biography to include within your concert programme please email admin@multitudeofvoyces.org
Links to newspaper quotations within the biography can be found below:
https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0002672/19130320/107/0005
https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000104/19150811/326/0008
https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0002889/19150731/055/0003
https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000104/19170111/091/0003
Cardiff University Special Collections and Archives holds many handwritten scores produced by Morfydd Owen during her short but prolific career, representing 135 individual orchestral works, choral works, chamber works, piano-vocals, songs, and operas. The collection is in the process of being digitised and made freely available to view online for future research and enjoyment. (May 2025)
You can find out more about the life and works of Samuel Taylor Coleridge at: https://friendsofcoleridge.com/
Rhian Davies: Follow these links to find out more about Morfydd Owen’s life and works, and about festivals and other events which raise up music by Welsh composers
https://gwylgregynogfestival.org/
https://www.facebook.com/MorfyddOwen100