Prospero’s Vision
Work notes | For Peter on September 27th, 2002. Part of ‘The Tempest Songbook’ |
Publisher | Chester Music Ltd |
Category | Solo Voice(s) and up to 6 players |
Year Composed | 2002 |
Duration | 5 Minutes |
Soloist | baritone |
Orchestration | cl/hp/vn.db |
Availability | Sale |
Programme Note
Prospero’s Vision (2002)
PROSPERO
You do look, my son, in a moved sort,
As if you were dismayed. Be cheerful, sir.
—
These our actors,
As I foretold you, were all spirits, and
Are melted into air, into thin air;
And, like the baseless fabric of this vision,
The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces,
The solemn temples, the great globe itself,
Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve,
And, like this insubstantial pageant faded,
Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff
As dreams are made on; and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep. Sir, I am vext.
—
A turn or two I’ll walk,
To still my beating mind.
Shakespeare, The Tempest