by Alfred Tennyson, Lord (1809 - 1892)
Translation Singable translation by Ed. Sachs
Hapless doom of woman
Language: English
Hapless doom of woman
happy in betrothing,
Beauty passes like a breath
and love is lost in loathing;
Low! my lute:
Speak low, but say the world is nothing.
Low! lute, low!
Love will hover round the flowers
when they first awaken;
Love will fly the fallen leaf,
and not be overtaken;
Low, my lute!
O low, my lute! we fade and are forsaken.
Low, dear lute, low!
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Alfred Tennyson, Lord (1809 - 1892), no title, appears in Queen Mary, Act V, scene 2, first published 1875 [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 Edward Elgar, Sir (1857 - 1934), "Queen Mary's Song", 1892, published 1907, first performed 1897 [ voice and piano ], from Seven Lieder of Edward Elgar, no. 2, note: first published separately in 1892, also set in German (Deutsch) [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Horatio William Parker (1863 - 1919), "Lute-Song", published 1904 [ medium voice and piano ], from Two Songs from Tennyson's "Queen Mary", no. 1 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Charles Villiers Stanford, Sir (1852 - 1924), "The Lute Song", op. 6 no. 2 (1875), published 1876 [ voice and piano ], from Two Songs from incidental music to the play Queen Mary, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Ed. Sachs ; composed by Edward Elgar, Sir.
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: 68
Maria Stuart's Lied zur Laute
Language: German (Deutsch) after the English
Glücklos Schicksal des Weibes,
Glücklich nur im Wähnen,
Schönheit schwindet wie ein Hauch
Und Lieb' vergeht in Tränen :
Leis', mein Spiel !
Tön' leis, o leis, mein Spiel, doch sag der Welt mein Sehnen.
Sanft! Laute, sanft !
Liebe schützt die zarten Keime,
Wenn sie Wurzel fassen ;
Liebe flieht die welken Blüten,
Wenn Farb' und Leben blassen ;
Leis', mein Spiel !
Tön' leis, o leis, mein Spiel! Verwelkt sind wir verlassen.
Sanft, o Laute, sanft !
Text Authorship:
- Singable translation by Ed. Sachs [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English by Alfred Tennyson, Lord (1809 - 1892), no title, appears in Queen Mary, Act V, scene 2, first published 1875
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Edward Elgar, Sir (1857 - 1934), "Maria Stuart's Lied zur Laute", 1892, published 1907, first performed 1897 [voice and piano], from Seven Lieder of Edward Elgar, no. 2, also set in English [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-08-28
Line count: 14
Word count: 72