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possibly by Walter Raleigh, Sir (1552? - 1618)

What is our life?
Language: English 
What is our life? a play of passion:
Our mirth? the music of division.
Our mothers’ wombs the tyring-houses be
Where we are drest for this short comedy:
Heaven the judicious sharp spectator is
That sits and marks whoe’er doth act amiss:
Our graves, that hide us from the searching sun,
Are like drawn curtains when the play is done:
Thus march we playing to our latest rest,
Only we die in earnest, — that’s no jest.

Lyrics from the Song-Books of the Elizabethan Age, ed. by A. H. Bullen, London, John C. Nimmo, 1887, pages 152-153.

Text Authorship:

  • possibly by Walter Raleigh, Sir (1552? - 1618) [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 Orlando Gibbons (1583 - 1625), "What is our life?", published 1612 [madrigal], from First Set of Madrigals, chorus [ sung text verified 1 time]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2014-02-25
Line count: 10
Word count: 77

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