This crumbling Pageant shall devour,
The trumpet shall be heard on high,
The dead shall live, the living die,
And musick shall untune the Sky." - Meaning and context.">
QuotesCosmos
Grand Chorus
“

So, when the last and dreadful Hour
This crumbling Pageant shall devour,
The trumpet shall be heard on high,
The dead shall live, the living die,
And musick shall untune the Sky.

— John Dryden

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "So, when the last and dreadful Hour
This crumbling Pageant shall devour,
The trumpet shall be heard on high,
The dead shall live, the living die,
And musick shall untune the Sky." in the context of "Grand Chorus" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "John Dryden" (Quotes, A Song for St. Cecilia's Day (1687)) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app

Tags

#John Dryden#shall#crumbling#devourthe#dreadful#hourthis#pageant#trumpet#highthe#living#dieand#musick
John Dryden

About John Dryden

John Dryden (19 August O.S. 9 August 1631 – 12 May O.S. 1 May 1700) was an English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who in 1668 was appointed England's first Poet Laureate.