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She rested by the Broken Brook,
She drank of Weary Well,
She moved beyond my lingering look,
Ah, whither none can tell!
She came, she went. In other lands,
Perchance in fairer skies,
Her hands shall cling with other hands,
Her eyes to other eyes.
«She vanished. In the sounding town,
Will she remember too?
Will she recall the eyes of brown
As I recall the blue?
Dilla da l’Acqua is a 16th c. song deploring the fate of a lover who has to overcome the tricks of an obnoxious guardian that protects his beloved. The guardian is not spared every imaginable epithet, including a “pig’s face”. I first heard it interpreted by the British chamber music orchestra, Orlando Consort.
The piece belongs to the 16th c. Italian composer Francesco Patavino (c. 1478-c.1556) from Santa Croce in Padua. He was a rather important figure in the realm of sacred music of the Italian Renaissance and introduced the principle of a “broken choir”, then widely used by the Venetian school of polyphonic composition. Dilla da l’acqua must be one of the seven “profane” pieces that Patavino composed in his lifetime. He died in Loreto (Ancona) around the year 1556.
On occasion of the International Women’s Day a few days ago I came across a photo on the House of Scotland page on Facebook, which turned to be a pleasant sight to see for many of my lady friends. Indeed what’s not to like? Long hair, a beard and mustache, and even a kilt and some leather. Just perfect.
John Coltrane — tenor saxophone,
Red Garland — piano,
Paul Chambers — bass,
Arthur Taylor — drums.