by Anonymous / Unidentified Author
Winter wakeneth al my care
Language: English
Winter wakeneth al my care, Now thise leves waxeth bare; Ofte I sike and mourne sare When hit cometh in my thoht Of this worldes joie, hou hit geth al to noht. Nou hit is, and nou hit nys, Al so hit ner nere, ywys; Al goth bote Godes wille: Alle we shule deye, thah us like ylle. Al that gren me graveth grene, Nou hit faleweth al bydene: Jehsu, help that hit be sene, And shild us from helle! For y not whider y shal, ne hou longe her duelle.
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Modernized version (as set by Bax) :
Winter wakeneth all my care, Now these leaves waxeth bare; Oft I sigh and mourne sare When it cometh in my thought, Of this world's joy, how it goeth all to nought. Now it is, and now it nys, All so it ne'er were, I-wis; That many man saith, sooth it is: All goeth bote Godes will: All we shall die, tho' us like ill. All that green me groweth green, Now it fadeth albydene, Jesu, help that it be seen, And shield us from hell! For I know not whither I shall, Nor how long here dwell.
Text Authorship:
- by Anonymous / Unidentified Author, Ludlow 1340 [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 Arnold Edward Trevor Bax, Sir (1883 - 1953), "This worldes joie" [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Geoffrey Bush (1920 - 1998), "The Vanity of Human Wishes", 1970 [ baritone and piano ], from Five Medieval Lyrics, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Michael (Stockwin) Howard (1922 - 2002), "This Worldes Joie", 1951, rev. 1973 [ voice and piano ], from Three Middle English Songs, no. 3 [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-03-26
Line count: 14
Word count: 91