Tirsi morir volea

General information

Author: Giovanni Battista Guarini, 1598 in Rime. Madrigal 149, "Concorso d'occhi amarosi"

One of Guarini's poems (Madrigali 151), the erotic Tirsi morir volea, recounting the amorous encounter of a shepherd and a nymph, was set to music as a madrigal more often than any other pastoral poem of the era. The ensembles singing the madrigals of that time consisted of noble men and women or educated burghers. In particular in the Ferrarese and Mantuan courts Guarini's poem was immediately set to music, which created a hype that not many composers could resist. The other famous poet at the Ferrarese court Torquato Tasso could not resist making his own version of this very popular theme (Rime per Lucretia Bendidio 378), which was set to music by a.o Luca Marenzio: Nel dolce seno and Andrea Rota: Nel dolce seno della bella Clori.

Settings by composers

Anonymous SSTTTB (possibly by Peter Philips) Gioseppe Caimo SSATB Giovanni Croce SSATTB Andrea Gabrieli SATTTTB Carlo Gesualdo SATTB Luca Marenzio SATTB Leonard Meldert SATTB Philippe de Monte SSATB or AATTB; two somewhat different versions: Tirsi morir volea I Tirsi morir volea II Benedetto Pallavicino SSATTB Giovanni Piccioni SSATB Vincenzo dal Pozzo SSAAT or SSTTB Ascanio Trombetti SATB Willem Verkaik SSATB Giaches de Wert SSAATTB Camillo Zanotti SSATB

Text and translations

The text is very similarly used by all composers, the two main variations are shown using brackets, the first is the one coinciding with Guarini's publication. Interestingly all deviate from Guarini in line 17 and 18, where he has: "Ed io; rispose subito il pastore,/ E teco nel morir mi discoloro."

Italian text Tirsi morir volea, Gl'occhi mirando di colei ch'adora; Quand'ella, che di lui non meno ardea, Gli disse: "Ahimè, ben mio, Deh, non morir ancora, Che teco bramo di morir anch'io." Frenò Tirsi il desio, Ch'ebbe di pur sua vit'allor finire; Ma (E) sentea morte,in (e) non poter morire. E mentr'il guardo suo fisso tenea Ne' begl'occhi divini E'l nettare amoroso indi bevea, La bella Ninfa sua, che già vicini Sentea i messi d'Amore, Disse, con occhi languidi e tremanti: "Mori, cor mio, ch'io moro." Cui rispose il Pastore: "Ed io, mia vita, moro." Cosi moriro i fortunati amanti Di morte si soave e si gradita, Che per anco morir tornaro in vita.

English translation Thyrsis desired death, looking into the eyes of the girl he adored, when she, who burned no less for him, said to him, "Alas, my dear, oh, do not die yet, for I desire to die with you." Thyrsis reined in his desire to end his life alone; but he felt death in not being able to die. And while he kept his gaze fixed on those beautiful divine eyes and drank the amorous nectar, his beautiful nymph, who felt love's beckonings drawing nigh, said with languid and trembling eyes, "Die, my heart, for I die." The shepherd answered her, "And I, my life, die." So the fortunate lovers died so sweet and welcome a death, that they returned to life to die again.

Dutch translation Thyrsus verlangde te sterven, starend in de ogen van zijn beminde, toen zij, niet minder hitsig dan hij, tot hem zei: “oh, mijn liefste, oh, sterf nog niet, want ik wil samen met jou sterven”. Thyrsus bedwong zijn aandrang om alleen zijn eigen leven te beëindigen; hij voelde het einde, maar kon niet sterven. En hij hield zijn blik gericht op haar goddelijk mooie ogen, en dronk de amoureuse nectar. Zijn mooie nimf, die het einde van de liefde nabij voelde komen, sprak met een waas voor haar trillende ogen: “Sterf, mijn lief, want ik sterf”. Waarop de herder antwoordde: “En ik, mijn schat, sterf ook”. Aldus sterven gelukkige minnaars een aangename en welkome dood, om weer tot leven gekomen opnieuw te sterven.

German translation Tirsi wollte sterben, seiner Angebetenen in die Augen schauend, als jene, die nicht minder für ihn brannte, ihm sagte: "Ach, mein Liebster, ach stirb noch nicht, weil ich auch begehre, mit dir zu sterben." Tirsi zügelte das Verlangen, das er spürte, seinem Leben ein Ende zu setzen, aber er fühlte den Tod nahe, während er nicht sterben konnte. Und während er den Blick unverwandt ruhen ließ auf den schönen göttlichen Augen, und darus den Nektar der Liebe trank, sprach  die schöne Nymphe, die schon nahe fühlte die Boten Amors, mit schmachtenden und bebenden Augen: "Stirb, mein Herz, damit ich sterbe." Darauf antwortete der Schäfer: "Auch ich, mein Leben, sterbe." So starben die glücklichen Liebenden eines so süßen und ersehnten Todes, dass sie, um noch einmal zu sterben, ins Leben zurückkehrten. Translation by Gerhard Weydt External links