If love's a sweet passion, Z 629/17 (Henry Purcell)
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- Editor: James Gibb (submitted 2018-01-01). Score information: A4, 3 pages, 69 kB Copyright: CPDL
- Edition notes: Reformatting of #3020, with corrections. 2nd verse added.
- Editor: Udo Baake (submitted 2002-02-20). Score information: A4, 1 page, 26 kB Copyright: CPDL
- Edition notes: v. 2 only.
Possible error(s) identified. See the discussion page for full description.
- Editor: Alfred M. Drenth (submitted 2001-09-28). Score information: A4, 2 pages, 104 kB Copyright: CPDL
- Edition notes: v. 1 only.
Possible error(s) identified. See the discussion page for full description.
General Information
Title: If love's a sweet passion
Composer: Henry Purcell
Number of voices: 4vv Voicing: SATB
Genre: Secular, Opera
Language: English
Instruments: A cappella
First published:
Description: From The Fairy-Queen, Act III.
External websites:
- Free choir training aids for this work are available at Choralia.
Original text and translations
English text
1 If love's a sweet passion why does it torment?
If a bitter, oh tell me, whence comes my content?
Since I suffer with pleasure, why should I complain,
or grieve at my fate, when I know it's in vain?
Yet so pleasing the pain is so soft as the dart,
That at once it both wounds me and tickles my heart
2 I press her hand gently, look languishing down,
and by passionate silence I make my love known.
But oh! How I'm blest when so kind she does prove,
by some willing mistake to discover her love.
When in striving to hide, she reveals her flame,
and in our eyes tell each other what neither dares name.