by Robert Herrick (1591 - 1674)
A willow garland thou did'st send
Language: English
A willow garland thou did'st send
Perfum'd, last day, to me,
Which did but only this portend —
I was forsook by thee.
Since so it is, I'll tell thee what,
To-morrow thou shalt see
Me wear the willow ; after that,
To die upon the tree.
As beasts unto the altars go
With garlands dress'd, so I
Will, with my willow-wreath, also
Come forth and sweetly die.
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Works of Robert Herrick, Vol I, ed. by Alfred Pollard, London, Lawrence & Bullen, 1891, page 201.
Text Authorship:
- by Robert Herrick (1591 - 1674), "The willow garland" [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 Bruce Adolphe (b. 1955), "A willow garland", published 1982 [ tenor and piano ], from To His Imaginary Mistress, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Fritz Bennicke Hart (1874 - 1949), "The willow garland", op. 89 (Nine Sets of Four Songs Each, Set VIII) no. 2 (1930) [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2022-01-19
Line count: 12
Word count: 67