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Like to the falling of a star, Or [as the flights]1 of eagles are; Or like the fresh spring's gaudy hue, Or silver drops of morning dew; Or like a wind that chafes the flood, Or bubbles which on water stood: Even such is man, whose borrowed [light]2 Is straight call'd in, and paid to night. The wind blows out, the bubble dies; The spring entombed in autumn lies. The dew dries up, the star is shot; The flight is past and man forgot.
About the headline (FAQ)
View text without footnotesNote: author given as "Harry King" in the Bennett score.
1 Bennett: "like the flight"
2 Bennett: "plight"
Text Authorship:
- by Henry King (1592 - 1669), first published 1664 [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 Richard Rodney Bennett (1936 - 2012), "Like to the falling of a star", from Tenebrae, no. 2 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Olivier Greif (1950 - 2000), "Sic vita", op. 310 no. 4 (1995) [ voice and piano ], from Les chants de l'âme, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Judith Weir (b. 1954), "Like to the Falling of a Star", 1995 [ satb chorus and organ ], from Two Human Hymns, no. 2, Chester Music Ltd
Publisher: Wise Music Classical [external link] [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Ainsi est la vie", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 86
Semblable à la chute de l'étoile, Ou comme est le vol de l'aigle ; Ou comme la couleur éclatante du frais printemps, Ou les gouttes d'argent de la rosée du matin ; Ou comme un vent qui frotte le flot, Ou des bulles qui se tenaient sur l'eau : Même ainsi est l'homme, dont la lumière empruntée Est aussitôt passée, et payée pour la nuit. Le vent s'arrête, la bulle meurt ; Le printemps est enseveli dans les mensonges de l'automne. La rosée sèche, l'étoile est abattue ; Le vol est passé et l'homme oublie.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from English to French (Français) copyright © 2010 by Guy Laffaille, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
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Based on:
- a text in English by Henry King (1592 - 1669), first published 1664
This text was added to the website: 2010-08-01
Line count: 12
Word count: 90