This edition was prepared by André Vierendeels — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
Douleur me bat
Staff Notation • Secular, Chansons
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Douleur me bat by Josquin des Prez — Lyrics
Original text
Douleur me bat et tristesse ma folle
Amour me nuyt et malheur me console
vouloir me suit mais aider ne me peult
iouir ne puis dung grant bien
quon me veult
de vivre ainsi pour dieu quon me decolle
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About Douleur me bat
This is a secular chanson from the Renaissance, sung in French by a five-part choir (soprano and four tenors/basses). Josquin des Prez sets a text expressing deep personal anguish. The singer laments that pain and sorrow overwhelm him, love harms him, and misfortune comforts him. His will follows him but cannot help, and he cannot enjoy the great good that is offered him. The final desperate plea to God to let him die rather than live in such misery underscores the profound emotional weight of the text.
