Breaking beams on vocal parts

Take a look at Finzi’s Clear and gentle stream, from his Seven Songs of Robert Bridges, published by Boosey & Hawkes in 1939.

Metre changes between 4/4 and 12/8, and the 4/4 has some triplets whilst the 12/8 has some duplets. Rarely do the singers do this at the same time. And no beams. It’s a nightmare, as a sight-reader, trying to identify where the beat is.

JohnF