This verse anthem with organ was probably Handel's first contribution to English church music and possibly his first setting of an extended English language text. As pants the Hart is undated and there is no historical record of the anthem's first performance, though evidence from the appearance of the autograph itself suggests it proceeded the Te Deum, and an estimated composition date is from November-December 1712. Arranged for soprano, alto, tenor, and bass soloists, SATB chorus and organ. Words from Psalm 42, edited by Donald Burrows.
AS PANTS THE HART FOR COOLING STREAMS IN THE VOICE OF PRAISE, OF THANKSGIVING PUT THY TRUST IN GOD, TEARS ARE MY DAILY FOOD WHY SO FULL OF GRIEF, O MY SOUL