Now have I bidden farewell To the Spring, that is ah! how fleet And a long farewell to my lover, Alas! how long is the pain! Truly the flowers in a year will blossom afresh at my feet. But never the season return When I and my darling shall meet. Who gave me a gift so precious, But left me to love it in vain? The Master of Magic who sent it, Ah! surely could send it again. If only to darken the darkness, O Thou in Thy heavens above, Why dost Thou light for a moment The lamp of a beautiful thing? Who is there now that will carry My little winegourd for love, When I go next year to the meadow To look on the joy of the Spring?
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Authorship:
- by Clifford Bax (1886 - 1962) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Chinese (中文) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist [text unavailable]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Herbert Norman Howells (1892 - 1983), "Lost love", published 1934 [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Virginia Knight
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 20
Word count: 131