by James Fordyce (1720 - 1796)
The black eagle
Language: English
Hark! yonder eagle lonely wails; His faithful bosom grief assails: Last night I heard him in my dream, When death and woe were all the theme. Like that poor bird I make my moan, I grieve for dearest Delia gone; With him to gloomy rocks I fly, He mourns for love, and so do I. 'Twas mighty love that tam'd his breast, 'Tis tender grief that breaks his rest; He droops his wings, he hangs his head, Since she he fondly lov'd was dead; With Delia's breath my joy expir'd, 'Twas Delia's smiles my fancy fir'd; Like that poor bird, I pine, and prove Naught can supply the place of love.
Authorship:
- by James Fordyce (1720 - 1796), note: sometimes misattributed to the poet's brother David Fordyce [author's text not yet checked 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 (Franz) Joseph Haydn (1732 - 1809), "The black eagle", JHW. XXXII/1 no. 66, Hob. XXXIa no. 66. [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2012-08-14
Line count: 16
Word count: 111