And Am I BORN To Die

And Am I Born to Die is an exploration of a folk tune. I've been particularly interested in American folk music recently. The original lyrics were written by Charles Wesley as a hymn. Over time the tune has come to mean many things to many people and has evolved to fit many styles of music, namely Old-Time Appalachian folk music. I fell in love with the light melancholy and thoughtful contemplation of death in the tune. In this spirit of music evolving, I sought to take that original tune and bring it into a new context: the a cappella chorus.

-J. M. Gallagher

Am I Born To Die

And am I born to die
To lay this body down
And as my trembling spirit fly
Unto a world unknown

And as my trembling spirit fly
Unto a world unknown

Soon as from earth I go
What will become of me
Eternal happiness far away
Must then my portion be

Eternal happiness far away
Must then my portion be

A land of deepest shade
Unpierced by human thought
That weary region of the dead
Where all things are forgot

That weary region of the dead
Where all things are forgot