“The Triumphs of Oriana” included works by 23 different English composers, including Thomas Tomkins, Thomas Morley, John Farmer, John Wilbye, and Thomas Weelkes, and was based on “Il trionfo di Dori”, an Italian collection from 1592.
Long live fair Oriana
Notice a pattern? Every madrigal in The Triumphs of Oriana ends with “then sang the shepherds and nymphs of Diana, ‘Long live fair Oriana.’” Those lines were taken from Croce’s “Ove tra l’herbe e I fiori”, which was in turn reworked by Morley as “Hard by a crystal fountain.”
Come Gentle Swains
The Triumphs of Oriana was a collection of English madrigals edited by Thomas Morley and published in 1601 for Elizabeth I. In addition to “Vesta” from last week, it also included “Come gentle swains” by Cavendish.
Word painting in madrigals
Madrigals are famous for their word painting, especially this one by Weelkes. Whether it’s “two by two”, “all alone”, or “ascending” and “descending”, he took advantage of every opportunity with this text!