In darkness let me dwell, the ground shall sorrow be,
The roof despair to bar all cheerful light from me,
The walls of marble black that moistened still shall weep,
My music hellish jarring sounds to banish friendly sleep:
Thus wedded to my woes, and bedded [in]1 my tomb
[O let me dying live till death doth come]2.

My dainties grief shall be, and tears my poisoned wine,
My sighs the air through which my panting heart shall pine,
My robes my mind shall suit exceeding blackest night,
My study shall be tragic thoughts sad fancy to delight,
Pale ghosts and frightful shades shall my acquaintance be:
O thus, my hapless joy, I haste to thee.

J. Dowland sets stanza 1

View original text (without footnotes)
Lyrics from the Song-Books of the Elizabethan Age, ed. by A. H. Bullen, London, John C. Nimmo, 1887, pages 53-54.

¹ Dowland: "to"
² Dowland: "O, let me living die, till death do come"

Text Authorship:

• by Anonymous / Unidentified Author [author's text not yet checked 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 Giovanni Coprario, né John Cooper (c1570 - 1626), "In darkness let me dwell", published 1606, from Funeral Tears for the death of the Right Honourable the Earl of Devonshire [ sung text checked 1 time]
• possibly by John Dowland (1562 - 1626), "In darkness let me dwell", published 1610, stanza 1, from Robert Dowland's Musical Banquet [ sung text checked 1 time]

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

• FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this page: Ted Perry

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 116