OLD AZURIANS
ASSOCIATION
THE AZURIAN JULY 1924
THE SCHOOL SONG
Issue number 2 of The Azurian, dated July 1924, features the school song, sung at assembly by generations of pupils. Written by J T Turner, nicknamed 'Eggie' because of his bald head, the four stanzas were intended to be sung in parts; the first and last by all; the second by the boys and the third by Old Boys. Mostly, it was sung by all. The music was composed by a new staff member, J H Barkell.
Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Vikings
Greet thee now with pride;
Loyal sons by thee united,
True to thee abide.
Thou dost teach us, who endeavour
Honour to attain,
There is glory in the striving,
Though there be no gain.
Far and wide we bear thy watchword,
Over land and sea;
"Sussex sons keep faith, 'Be honest',
If my sons ye be."
Thine O Mother, thine the glory
that achievements bring
Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Vikings,
"Hail to thee" we sing.
The school was first performed at the first sports meeting 18 June 1924. This was also the official opening ceremony for the high school. The Lord Lieutenant of Sussex, Lord Leconfield, did the honours.
The score reproduced here is the result of a valliant effort by Keith Challen (1954-59) to reconstruct the music for the School Song from memory. As such it may not be perfect, but it is the best that is available at the present time, and we gratefully acknowledge the work that Keith has put into its production.
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If anyone still has an original copy of the music, please contact the Editor.
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Keith has also managed to produce a sound file from an earlier version of his score that is slightly different to the music score here. Try it!