Pity me not because the light of day At close of day no longer walks the sky; Pity me not for beauties passed away From field and thicket as the the year goes by; Pity me not the waning of the moon, Nor that the ebbing tide goes out to sea, Nor that a man's desire is hushed so soon, And you no longer look with love on me. This have I known always: Love is no more Than the wide blossom which the wind assails, Than the great tide that treads the shifting shore, Strewing fresh wreckage gathered in the gales: Pity me that the heart is slow to learn What the swift mind beholds at ever turn.
I Will Breath a Mountain: A Song Cycle from American Women Poets
Song Cycle by William Bolcom (b. 1938)
1. Pity me not because the light of day  [sung text checked 1 time]
Authorship:
- by Edna St. Vincent Millay (1892 - 1950), appears in The Harp-Weaver and other poems, first published 1923
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Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]2. How to swing those obbligatos around  [sung text checked 1 time]
He had shag hair & a boutique [ ... ]
Authorship:
- by Alice Fulton (b. 1952), copyright ©
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This text may be copyright, so we will not display it until we obtain permission to do so or discover it is public-domain.3. The crazy woman  [sung text checked 1 time]
I shall not sing a May song [ ... ]
Authorship:
- by Gwendolyn Elizabeth Brooks (1917 - 2000), copyright ©
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This text may be copyright, so we will not display it until we obtain permission to do so or discover it is public-domain.4. Just once  [sung text checked 1 time]
Just once I knew what life was for [ ... ]
Authorship:
- by Anne Sexton (1928 - 1974), "Just once", copyright ©
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This text may be copyright, so we will not display it until we obtain permission to do so or discover it is public-domain.5. Never more will the wind  [sung text checked 1 time]
Never more will the wind cherish you again, never more will the rain. Never more shall we find you bright in the snow and wind. The snow is melted, the snow is gone, and you are flown: Like a bird out of our hand, like a light out of our heart, you are gone.
Authorship:
- by Hilda Doolittle (1886 - 1961)
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Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada, but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]6. The sage  [sung text checked 1 time]
The cat is eating the roses [ ... ]
Authorship:
- by Denise Levertov (1923 - 1997), copyright ©
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This text may be copyright, so we will not display it until we obtain permission to do so or discover it is public-domain.7. O to be a dragon  [sung text checked 1 time]
If I, like Solomon, [ ... ]
Authorship:
- by Marianne Moore (1887 - 1972), "O to be a dragon", from O to Be a Dragon, first published 1959, copyright ©
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This text may be copyright, so we will not display it until we obtain permission to do so or discover it is public-domain.8. The bustle in a house  [sung text checked 1 time]
The bustle in a house The morning after death Is solemnest of industries Enacted upon earth, - The sweeping up the heart, And putting love away We shall not want to use again Until eternity.
Authorship:
- by Emily Dickinson (1830 - 1886), no title, appears in Poems of Emily Dickinson, first published 1890
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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , copyright © 2021, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
9. I saw Eternity  [sung text checked 1 time]
O beautiful Forever! O grandiose Everlasting! Now, now, now, I break you into pieces, I feed you to the ground. O brilliant, O languishing Cycle of weeping light! The mice and birds will eat you And you will spoil their stomachs As you have spoiled my mind. Here, mice, rats, Porcupines and toads, Moles, shrews, squirrels, Weasels, turtles, lizards,-- Here's a bright Everlasting! Here's a crumb of Forever! Here's a crumb of Forever!
Authorship:
- by Louise Bogan (1897 - 1970), "I saw Eternity"
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Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada, but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]10. Night practice  [sung text checked 1 time]
will/ remember [ ... ]
Authorship:
- by Anna Thilda May "May" Swenson (1913 - 1989), "Night practice", copyright ©
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This text may be copyright, so we will not display it until we obtain permission to do so or discover it is public-domain.11. The fish  [sung text checked 1 time]
I caught a tremendous fish [ ... ]
Authorship:
- by Elizabeth Bishop (1911 - 1979), copyright ©
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