by Ernest Christopher Dowson (1867 - 1900)
They are not long, the weeping and the...
Language: English
They are not long, the weeping and the laughter, Love and desire and hate: I think they have no portion in us after We pass the gate. They are not long, the days of wine and roses: Out of a misty dream Our path emerges for a while, then closes Within a dream.
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Ernest Dowson, Verses, London: Leonard Smithers, 1896, front matter.
Text Authorship:
- by Ernest Christopher Dowson (1867 - 1900), "Vitae summa brevis spem nos vetat incohare longam", appears in Verses, London, Leonard Smithers, first published 1896 [author's text checked 2 times against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Frederick Delius (1862 - 1934), "Vitae summa", 1906-7, published 1911 [ mezzo-soprano and baritone soli, chorus, and orchestra ], from Songs of Sunset, no. 8 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Cecil Forsyth (1870 - 1941), "Within a dream", published <<1940 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Peggy Glanville-Hicks (1912 - 1990), "They are not long", <<1932 [ voice and piano ], unpublished [sung text not yet checked]
- by Pamela Harrison (1915 - 1990), "Vitae summa brevis spem nos vetat incohare longam" [ tenor and string orchestra ], from Five Poems of Ernest Dowson [sung text not yet checked]
- by Edward Burlingame Hill (1872 - 1960), "They are not long", published <<1940 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Robert William Jones (1932 - 1997), "Envoy", from Two Songs [sung text not yet checked]
- by Barbara Pentland (b. 1912), "They are not long", 1935 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Paul Amadeus Pisk (1893 - 1990), "Envoy", 1938-9 [ voice and piano ], note: text incorrectly attributed to C. G. Rossetti [sung text not yet checked]
- by Roger Quilter (1877 - 1953), "Passing dreams", op. 10 no. 2 (c1904), published 1908, rev. 1907, first performed 1904 [ voice and piano ], from Songs of Sorrow, no. 2, London, Boosey [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Cyril Meir Scott (1879 - 1970), "Meditation", published 1915 [ voice and piano ], London : Elkin [sung text not yet checked]
- by Grigory Smirnov (b. 1985), "The days of wine and roses", subtitle: "Vitae summa brevis spem nos vetat incohare longam", 2013, published 2013, first performed 2014 [ tenor and piano ], from Dowson Songs, no. 10 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Ian Venables (b. 1955), "Vitae Summa Brevis", op. 33 (Six Songs) no. 3 (2002), first performed 2003 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Howard Wells , "They are not long", published 1960 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Research team for this page: David K. Smythe , Poom Andrew Pipatjarasgit [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 8
Word count: 53