by Walahfrid (c808 - 849)
Translation by Helen Jane Waddell (1889 - 1965)
Cum splendor lunae fulgescat ab aethere...
Language: Latin
Cum splendor lunae fulgescat ab aethere purae, Tu sta sub divo cernens speculamine miro, Qualiter ex luna splendescat lampade pura Et splendore suo caros amplectitur uno Corpore divisos, sed mentis amore ligatos. Si facies faciem spectare nequivit amantem, Hoc saltim nobis lumen sit pignus amoris! Hos tibi versiculos fidus transmisit amicus; Si de parte tua fidei stat fixa catena, Nunc precor, ut valeas felix per saecula cuncta.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Walahfrid (c808 - 849), "Ad amicum" [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 Ailsa Dixon (1932 - 2017), "Cum Splendor Lunae", 1991, copyright © 2025 [ soprano or tenor and piano ], from Songs to Medieval Latin Lyrics, no. 2, Composers Edition
Publisher: Composers Edition [external link] [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in English, a translation by Helen Jane Waddell (1889 - 1965) , no title ; composed by Ailsa Dixon.
Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2026-08-17
Line count: 10
Word count: 67
When the moon's splendour shines in...
Language: English after the Latin
When the moon's splendour shines in naked heaven
Stand thou and gaze beneath the open sky.
See how that radiance from her lamp is riven
And in one splendour foldeth gloriously
Two that have loved, and now divided far,
Bound by love's bond, in heart together are.
What though thy lover's eyes in vain desire thee,
Seek for love's face, and find that face denied?
Let that light be between us for a token;
Take this poor verse that love and faith inscribe.
Love, art thou true? and fast love's chain about thee?
Then for all time, O love, give thee joy!
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Helen Waddell, Mediaval Latin Lyrics, 5th edition, London : Constable, 1948, p. 117
Text Authorship:
- by Helen Jane Waddell (1889 - 1965), no title [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Latin by Walahfrid (c808 - 849), "Ad amicum"
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Ailsa Dixon (1932 - 2017), "When the moon's splendour", 1991, copyright © 2025 [ soprano or tenor and piano ], from Songs to Medieval Latin Lyrics, no. 3, Composers Edition
Score: Composers Edition [external link] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2026-08-17
Line count: 12
Word count: 102