This edition was prepared by Gary D. Cannon — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
Come, blessed bird
Staff Notation • Secular, Madrigals
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2 editions of this piece
Different typesettings and voicings of the same work. This page shows the main edition; the others are below.
SSAATB · Roel Griffioen
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Come, blessed bird by Edward Johnson — Lyrics
Come, come, blessed bird,
and with thy sugared relish
help our declining choir now to embellish,
For Bonnyboots, for Bonnyboots,
that so aloft would fetch it,
Ohe is dead and none of us can reach it.
Then tune to us,
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About Come, blessed bird
This English madrigal for SSAATB voices, by Edward Johnson, is a secular piece originally composed for a pastoral setting. The text describes a choir calling upon a 'blessed bird' to help them embellish their song, lamenting the loss of a singer referred to as 'Bonnyboots'. The choir, including Elpin and Dorus, asks the bird to lead them in chorus. The lyrics then shift to recall the 'woodborn minstrel of Diana' singing 'Long live fair Oriana', suggesting a connection to Queen Elizabeth I's court. This madrigal offers a playful narrative within a rich, polyphonic texture, ideal for a skilled choir looking to explore Renaissance part-music.
