My hope a counsel with my heart
  Hath long desired to be,
And marvels much so dear a friend
  Is not retain’d by me.

She doth condemn my haste
  In passing the estate
Of my whole life into their hands
  Who nought repays but hate:

And not sufficed with this, she says,
  I did release the right
Of my enjoyèd liberties
  Unto your beauteous sight.

Lyrics from the Song-Books of the Elizabethan Age, ed. by A. H. Bullen, London, John C. Nimmo, 1887, pages 76-77.

Text Authorship:

• by Anonymous / Unidentified Author [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 Michael East (c1580 - 1648), "My hope a counsel with my heart", published 1604 [chorus], from the collection Madrigals to three, four, and five parts, madrigal [
   text verified 1 time
  ]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2014-02-25
Line count: 12
Word count: 65