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.
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
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