Care-charmer Sleep, son of the sable Night, Brother to Death, in silent darkness born, Relieve my [languish]1 and restore [the]2 light, With dark forgetting of my cares, return; And let the day be time enough to mourn The shipwreck of my ill-adventur'd youth: Let waking eyes suffice to wail their scorn, Without the torment of the night's untruth. Cease, dreams, th' [imagery of our]3 day-desires To model forth the passions of the morrow; Never let rising sun approve you liars, To add more grief to aggravate my sorrow. Still let me sleep, embracing clouds in vain; And never wake to feel the day's disdain.
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)Note: Imitated from Desportes, Hippolyte, 75.
1 Argento: "anguish"
2 Argento: "thy"
3 Argento: "images of"
Text Authorship:
- by Samuel Daniel (1562 - 1619), "Delia XLV", appears in Delia. Contayning certayne sonnets: with the complaint of Rosamond, first published 1592 [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 Dominick Argento (1927 - 2019), "Sleep", 1957, published 1970 [ high voice and piano ], from 6 Elizabethan Songs, no. 2, New York, Boosey [sung text checked 1 time]
- by (William) Havergal Brian (1876 - 1972), "Sonnet: Care-charmer sleep", c1919, published >>1970 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Peter W. F. Lawson (b. 1951), "Sonnet", 1978 [ soprano or tenor and piano ], from Care Charmer Sleepe, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- GER German (Deutsch) (Richard Flatter) , "Sonett an den Schlaf", appears in Die Fähre, Englische Lyrik aus fünf Jahrhunderten, first published 1936
Researcher for this page: Robert Grady
This text was added to the website: 2004-06-26
Line count: 14
Word count: 107
Schlaf, der den Gram beschwört, Sohn du der Nacht, Bruder dem Tod, aus Dunkelheit geboren, Nimm mir die Qual, die mir das Licht gebracht, Gib mir Vergessen, daß mein Heil verloren! Der wüste Schiffbruch, der mein Schifflein schlug, Ich klag´ um ihn des Tags aus wunder Seele; Das Aug´, das wacht, weint um den bittern Trug – Lass´ es nicht zu, daß noch die Nacht mich quäle! Kein Traum – des Tages Bild und seiner Sucht – Ruf´ mein Begehren aus der dunkeln Ruh´: Die Sonne jagt die Lüge in die Flucht Und fügt zur Qual nur neue Qual hinzu. Schlaf, lass´ mich schlummern, sanften Arms umfaßt; Lass´ mich nicht fühlen, wie der Tag mich haßt!
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Confirmed with Die Fähre, Englische Lyrik aus fünf Jahrhunderten Übersetzt von Richard Flatter, Walter Krieg Verlag, Wien-Bad Bocklet-Zürich, 1954, 2nd edition (1st edition 1936), page 60.
Text Authorship:
- by Richard Flatter (1891 - 1960), "Sonett an den Schlaf", appears in Die Fähre, Englische Lyrik aus fünf Jahrhunderten, first published 1936 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English by Samuel Daniel (1562 - 1619), "Delia XLV", appears in Delia. Contayning certayne sonnets: with the complaint of Rosamond, first published 1592
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- [ None yet in the database ]
Researcher for this page: Volkmar Henschel
This text was added to the website: 2021-02-24
Line count: 14
Word count: 116