Du corps absent

Orlando di Lasso's Du corps absent is a secular French chanson for SATB choir. The music opens with an imitative texture, as the voices enter one by one, building a rich polyphonic fabric. The setting captures the poignancy of the text, which speaks of a heart offered in absence, eternally serving its beloved despite the constraints of despair and secret shame that prevent open expression of love. Lasso masterfully uses the interplay of the four voices to convey both the yearning and the frustration inherent in the poem's sentiments. It is a fine example of Renaissance part-music, demonstrating the composer's skill in weaving together independent melodic lines to create a cohesive and expressive whole.