‘Australia, Or Heart To Heart And Hand To Hand’
c1890s. Sheet music, colour lithograph cover, inscribed “To Harry Glauville from his old friend the composer, Toso” above image on cover and annotated in ink verso, 35.7 x 26cm. Foxing, tears and missing portions to edges. Text on cover includes “Sung with enormous success at the Theatre Royal, Sydney; Theatre Royal, Melbourne; Opera House, Brisbane; and Theatre Royal, Adelaide, and all the principal music halls throughout the colonies and universally acknowledged to be the national song of Australia. Publishers W.D. Johnstone & Co., Strand and Oxford Sts, Syd.” Annotation verso includes a 3rd verse: “At first we may wonder / to hear the guns thunder / though fearful, we’ll never show fear / defending the lives / of mothers & wives /…[signed] Toso.” Held in NLA. The sheet music for this song was re-issued in 1908 but did not contain Australian composer Toso Taylor’s proposed 3rd verse. The chorus was later incorporated into the Australian cricket team’s victory song, ‘Under the Southern Cross I Stand.’ Ref: NLA (digitised copy); Institute of Aust. Culture.
Item #CL194-69
Price (AUD): $1,950.00 other currencies