by John Keats (1795 - 1821)
Ah! woe is me! poor Silver‑wing!
Language: English
Ah! woe is me! poor Silver-wing! That I must chaunt thy lady’s dirge, And death to this fair haunt of spring, Of melody, and streams of flowery verge, — Poor Silver-wing! Ah! woe is me! That I must see These blossoms snow upon thy lady’s pall! Go, pretty page, and in her ear Whisper that the hour is near! Softly tell her not to fear Such calm favonian burial! Go, pretty page, and soothly tell, — The blossoms hang by a melting spell, And fall they must, ere a star wink thrice Upon her closed eyes, That now in vain are weeping their last tears, At sweet life leaving, and these arbours green, — Rich dowry from the spirit of the spheres, — Alas! poor queen!
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Authorship:
- by John Keats (1795 - 1821), "Ah! woe is me! poor Silver-wing" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Rutland Boughton (1878 - 1960), "Ah! woe is me!", 1901 [ voice and piano ], from Four Faery Songs, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, Sir (1848 - 1918), "Ah! woe is me!", 1869 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2022-01-02
Line count: 19
Word count: 127