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Listen, Euterpe
Listen, Euterpe, to the sweet song
That Love begs me to sing,
And the sweet song is tuned
To the golden tone of my lyre
So I can show how my inspiration
Springs from the sweetest of loves.
At night, behind a chaste veil,
My Lydia covered her breasts,
But the moon, halfway up the sky,
Gently revealed her breasts to me,
And I saw the lovely treasure
Blaze with golden flames.
But so gently burned her heart
That every flicker and flame
From my beloved's breasts
Constantly refreshed my gaze,
And though my heart was aching
They served to soften the pain.
English translation by Paul Archer of the text of Odi, Euterpe by Guilio Caccini (1551-1618) from Le nuove musiche, 1601. The full text by Ansaldo Cebà (1565-1623) consists of ten verses but is usually shortened in performance - the text here uses the 1st, 2nd and 9th verse. Euterpe was one of the nine Muses, she was named the Muse of lyric poetry. See the copyright notice below.
Odi, Euterpe
Odi, Euterpe, il dolce canto
Ch'a lo stil Amor m'impetra,
Et accorda al dolce canto
L'aureo suon della mia cetra,
Ch'a dir quel ch'ei mi ragiona
Troppe dolce Amore mi sprona.
Di notturno a casto velo
La mia Lidia il sen copria.
Ma la luna in mezzo il cielo
Dolcemente il sen m'apria,
Ch'a mirar si bel tesoro
Lampeggiò di fiamme d'oro.
Ma si dolce ardeva il core,
Ch'ogni fiamma ed ogni dardo
In quel caro sen d'amore
Rinfrescava ogni ora un guardo,
E già m'era il cor ferito
A le piaghe un dolce invito.
Recording. Performed by The Archduke's Consort.
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnD0yMrxNdU
Copyright notice. The translation is provided as an aid to musicians and audiences. Publication of the translation in print or digital formats is expressly forbidden unless permission from the author has been first obtained and acknowledgement of authorship is duly made. Permission will usually be granted so please contact Paul Archer with details of how you wish to make use of the translation.
For more translations into English of early music texts, go to:
Translations of early music texts. |
