Dimmi di grazia, amor, se gli occhi i...

Dimmi di grazia, amor, se gli occhi i mei
veggono 'l ver della beltà ch'aspiro,
o s'io l'ho dentro allor che, dov' io miro,
veggio più bello el viso di costei.

Tu 'l de' saper, po' che tu vien con lei
a torm' ogni mie pace, ond' io m'adiro:
Nè vorre' manco un minimo sospiro,
nè men ardente foco chiederei.

La beltà che tu vedi è ben da quella;
ma crescie poi ch'a miglior loco sale,
se per gli occhi mortali all' alma corre.

Quivi si fa divina, onesta e bella,
com' a sè simil vuol cosa immortale:
Questa, e non quella, a gli occhi tuo' precorre.

by Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564) , from Rime, no. 42

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)

by Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich (1906-1975) , no title, op. 145 no. 3, from Suite, no. 3, also set in Russian

by Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich (1906-1975) , no title, op. 145 no. 3 (1974), from Suite, no. 3, also set in Italian

GER German (Sophie Hasenclever)
ENG English (John Addington Symonds)

Added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.

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Skazhi, Ljubov', voistinu li vzoru

Skazhi, Ljubov', voistinu li vzoru
Zhelannaja predstala krasota,
Il' to moja tvorjashchaja mechta
Sluchajnyj lik vzjala sebe v oporu?

Tebe l' ne znat'? – Ved' s nim po ugovoru
Ty sna menja lishila. Pust'! Usta
Lelejut kazhdyj vzdokh, i zalita
Dusha ognjom, ne znajushchim otporu.

Ty istinnuju vidish' krasotu,
No blesk jejo gorit, vsjo razrastajas',
Kogda skvoz' vzor k dushe voskhodit on;

Tam obretajet bozh'ju chistotu,
Bessmertnomu tvorcu upodobljajas', –
Vot pochemu tvoj vzgljad zavorozhjon.

Show Cyrillic (Покажите текст в кириллице)
Note on Transliteration

by Abram Efros (1888-1954)

a text in Italian by Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564) , from Rime, no. 42 ENG GER

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)

by Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich (1906-1975) , no title, op. 145 no. 3 (1974), from Suite, no. 3, also set in Italian

Date added to the website: 2008-10-02.