by Robert Browning (1812 - 1889)
The moth's kiss, first!
Language: English
Chosen for Diff
The moth's kiss, first! Kiss me as if you made me believe You were not sure, this eve, How my face, your flower, had pursed Its petals up; so, here and there You brush it, till I grow aware Who wants me, and wide ope I burst. The bee's kiss, now! Kiss me as if you enter'd gay My heart at some noonday, A bud that dares not disallow The claim, so all is render'd up, And passively its shatter'd cup Over your head to sleep I bow.
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Text Authorship:
- by Robert Browning (1812 - 1889), no title, appears in Bells and Pomegranates, first published 1842 [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 Alice Barnett (1886 - 1975), "The moth's kiss", published 1920 [ high voice and piano ], from In a gondola, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Arthur Martinus Hartmann (1881 - 1956), "In a gondola", published 1911 [ voice and piano ], from Songs [sung text not yet checked]
- by Jan Maarten Komter (1905 - 1984), "In a gondola", published 1963 [ voice and guitar ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Ned Rorem (1923 - 2022), "In a gondola", published 1963 [ high voice and piano or orchestra ], from Six Songs for High Voice, no. 5 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Bryceson Treharne (1879 - 1948), "In a gondola", published 1921 [ high voice and piano ], from Lyrical Songs [sung text not yet checked]
- by Latham True (1874 - 1945), "The moth's kiss and the bee's kiss", published 1932 [ high voice and piano ], from Browning songs [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 14
Word count: 88