by Emily Brontë (1818 - 1848)
The linnet in the rocky dells
Language: English
The linnet in the rocky dells The moor lark in the air The bee among the heather bells That hide [a]1 lady fair The wild deer browse above her breast The wild birds raise their brood And they, her smiles of love caressed Have left her solitude I ween that when the graves dark wail Did first her form retain They thought their hearts could ne'er recall The light of joy again They thought the tide of grief would flow Unchecked through future years But where is all their anguish now And where are all their tears? Well let them fight for honours breath Or pleasures shade pursue The dweller in the land of death Is changed and careless too And, if their eyes should watch and weep Till sorrows source were dry She would not, in her tranquil sleep Return a single sigh Blow west-wind, by the lonely mound And murmur summer streams There is no need of other sound To soothe [a]1 lady's dreams
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)Note: in the Fisk work, this is sung by Isabella
1 Bronte: "my"
Text Authorship:
- by Emily Brontë (1818 - 1848), "Song", appears in Poems by Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell, first published 1846 [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 Arthur Butterworth (b. 1923), "The linnet in the rocky dells", published 1970 [ alto, clarinet obbligato, and orchestra ], from The Night Wind [sung text not yet checked]
- by Terry Fisk , no title, published 2002 [ voice, piano ], from Wuthering Heights, no. 29 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Joan Littlejohn (b. 1937), "Song", 1967-71 [ mezzo-soprano solo and piano ], from The Heights of Haworth [sung text not yet checked]
- by John Mitchell (b. 1941), "My lady dreams", op. 71 (Seven Journeys to Earth), Heft 1 no. 1, published 1989 [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Terry Fisk
This text was added to the website: 2004-03-22
Line count: 28
Word count: 166