This edition was prepared by David Anderson — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
Go, lovely Rose
Staff Notation • Secular, Partsongs
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Go, lovely Rose by John George Callcott — Lyrics
Go, lovely Rose!
Tell her that wastes her time and me,
That now she knows,
When I resemble her to thee,
How sweet and fair she seems to be.
Tell her that’s young,
And shuns to have her graces spied,
That hadst thou sprung
In deserts where no men abide,
Thou must have uncommended died.
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About Go, lovely Rose
John George Callcott was a prominent composer of glees and catches, a popular genre of English secular vocal music from the 18th and 19th centuries. His SATB setting of Edmund Waller's "Go, lovely Rose" is a fine example of this tradition. The text, a poem on the ephemeral nature of beauty and youth, is set with sensitivity. Callcott's music captures the delicate plea of the rose, urging its owner to reveal her beauty before it fades, reflecting the poem's melancholic yet persuasive tone. This setting is ideal for choirs looking to explore the rich heritage of English secular part-songs.
