"That undertakes with well agreeing file And so I leave my trifles to their fate. CCCLXXXI. Down in a flow'ry vale, all on a summer morning, O shepherdess! have pity: Ah! why art thou to me so cruel? If gold thou hast, fond youth, 't will speed thy suing; The music to this Madrigal is by Constantius Festa, who flourished in the early part of the 16th century. I found it printed along with some others by the same author, amongst a set by Arcadelt, A.D. 1541. Although one of the oldest Madrigals now extant, it has about it all the elegance of a modern melody. The following are the Italian words: "Quando ritrovo la mia pastorella "Non men crudel che bella "Sei del mio ben ribella: "Ah! non esser ver me cotanto dura. 66 66 "Così rispond' anch' ella; Disposta son a quel tuo cor desía, Ma, se non hai denari, va alla tua via!” CCCLXXXII. Smile not, fair Amarillis, On me so sweetly. Turn those bright eyes away; lest I, while gazing, A mere imitation of an Italian Madrigal, the music by Giov. Pizzoni, A.D. 1580. "Duo begl' occhi lucente, "Anzi due stelle, "Per pena ch' ebbi ardir mirarli un poco, "Esca m'han fatto d'invisibil fuoco." CCCLXXXIII. Sigh not, fond shepherd, thus in sad despairing: Arise, why sleepest thou? take heart, be daring. And tho' thy nymph of boldness may accuse thee, "Put money i' thy purse," she 'll not refuse thee. Adapted to the music of Giovanni Ferretti, A.d. 1570,. being an imitation of the original words. "Siat' avertiti, O voi cortesi amante ; The little plagiarism from Shakspeare makes a good translation of the last line. Until the Vocal Society set the example of singing this Madrigal with due regard to the lively epigrammatic sense of the words; it used, when performed in Italian, to be drawled out in the time of the old hundredth Psalm, and even yet some of our Madrigalists cannot see the absurdity of such a violation of common sense-so great is the force of habit! CCCLXXXIV. Stay one moment, gentle river; Tell her, that time like thee is fleeting, Merely an old poetical idea, clothed in a dress imitative of the antique, to which I adapted music of my own, after the same fashion, and passed it off at the Anniversary Festival of the Madrigal Society, in 1837, as the composition of Blasio Tomasi, who flourished at the beginning of the 17th century. This practical joke (after the authorship was announced) amused some, and, I believe, offended others; but as it fully satisfied my mind upon a point I wished to ascertain, and which I leave to the conjecture of my readers, Signor Tomasi's Madrigal may (for what I care) be consigned to the "tomb of all the Capulets." CCCLXXXV. Ah me! where is my true love; Why comes not Damon nigh me? Has caus'd my dear to fly me! Sigh not, sigh not, my true love; Can make thy Damon leave thee. The original words (to which the above have no relation) are "Caggia fuoco dal cielo. The Music is by Felice Anerio, who according to some accounts was Maestro di Capella, at Rome, shortly after the death of Palestrina. Morley has taken the leading feature of this Madrigal, and called it his own. See one of his Canzonets for two voices, "Fire and Lightning." CCCLXXXVI. Damon to Cynthia fair a rose presented, After many vain attempts to translate the beautiful expression rosa donatrice, in the last line of the Italian version, I was obliged to change the idea of the sonnet in some small degree, by making Damon the giver. Luca Marenzio is the composer of the music; the original Italian is as follows: "Donò Cynthia a Damone una rosa "Cred' io di Paradiso : "E si vermiglia in viso "Che parea rosa che donasse rosa. "Con un sospir d'amore, "Perchè degno non sono, "D'haver la rosa donatrice in dono?" CCCLXXXVII. When April, deck'd in roses gay, But sweeter far it is to hear, When Phoebus high is mounting, Her tale of love recounting. The original Italian with a more literal translation will be found under No. XLVII. My version is adapted to the music of Luca Marenzio. |