Fummo felici un tempo

Orazio Vecchi's SSATB madrigal Fummo felici un tempo sets a text of lost love and changing affections. The composer paints a vivid scene of past happiness, where the singer was loved and loving, and the beloved was also loving and loved. This idyllic state, however, gives way to betrayal, with the beloved turning from lover to enemy. The singer's youthful desire turns to disdain, fueled by the shame of his rejected love. The text's imagery of the laurel leaves withering reflects the decay of this once-flourishing relationship, a potent expression of regret and scorn from a secular Renaissance master.