“Only for you, fair Eurydice,
I bless my torment,
After pain, life is more joyous,
After misfortune, life is happier.”
Is an English translation of a verse from the Italian libretto:
“Sol per te, bella Euridice,
Benedico il mio tormento,
Dopo ‘l duol vie più contento,
Dopo il mal vie più felice.”
Dear friend, J:
I know life has been a little tough for you recently. I thought that perhaps you could use some cheering up, and maybe even some distractions every now and then. I’ve therefore decided to get back into sharing my music with you, after being busy with school thus not having much time to write. Today’s piece is one that I go to whenever I myself need some cheering up, so I thought I’d share it with you as well!
(And anyone else who may be reading this!)
This piece is from the opera L’Orfeo by Claudio Monteverdi. It was written in 1607, and is therefore a late renaissance/early baroque piece. If you know a bit about opera’s history, you’ll recall this was also when the opera genre was just starting to take form. Therefore a fun fact about this piece is that it is one of the earliest operas that have survived until today, and that is still regularly being played on stage. I have mentioned this before, but the idea of connecting to humans who lived 400 years before me through listening to the same music, is very powerful. The fact that this opera stretches that far back, probably makes me enjoy it even more.
The opera is based on the Greek legend of Orpheus, the son of god Apollo, who on his lyre can play the most beautiful melodies. He falls in love and then marries the beautiful Eurydice. However, Eurydice dies shortly after, and Orpheus descends into the underworld to try to bring her back.
Orpheus sings this song to express his joy before Eurydice passes away unexpectedly. I particularly like the ritornello, the music played between the verses he sings, as it is so cheerful. The dancers as well make it so that I can’t help but smile whenever I watch the video.
I hope it at least has somewhat of the same effect on you!
Ps. La Ci Darem La Mano will come eventually as well, as promised 😉
Kovu's music 