This edition was prepared by Allen Garvin — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
Che giova posseder
Staff Notation • Secular, Madrigals
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Che giova posseder by Andrea Gabrieli — Lyrics
Che giova posseder cittadi e regni,
e palagi abitar d'alto lavoro,
e servi intorno aver d'imperio degni,
e le arche gravi per molto tesoro,
esser cantate da sublimi ingegni
di porpora vestir, mangiar in oro,
e di bellezza pareggiar il sole,
giacendo poi nel letto fredde e sole?
Ma che non giova aver fedeli amanti,
E con essi partir ogni pensiero,
I desir, le paure, i risi, i pianti,
E l’ira e la speranza, e ’l falso e ’l vero,
Ed hor con opre care, hor con sembianti
Il grave della vita far leggiero,
E se di rozze in atto, e ’n pensier vili,
Sovra l’uso mondan vaghe, e gentili.
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About Che giova posseder
Andrea Gabrieli, a leading figure of the Venetian school, composed this secular Italian madrigal for STB voices. The text opens with a series of rhetorical questions, pondering the worth of worldly possessions and status – cities, kingdoms, grand palaces, vast treasures, and regal attire – if one ultimately faces death alone and cold. It then shifts to consider the value of companionship and shared intimacy, where joys and sorrows are mutually experienced, and burdens are lightened. The composer sets these contrasting ideas with musical sensitivity. The piece explores themes of human desire, the fleeting nature of material wealth, and the profound importance of connection and shared experience.
