This edition was prepared by Pauline Emily — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
If care do cause men cry
Staff Notation • Secular, Partsongs
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If care do cause men cry by Anonymous — Lyrics
1. If care do cause men cry,
Why do not I complain?
If each man do bewail his woe,
Why show I not my pain?
2. Since that amongst them all,
I dare well say is none.
So far from weal, so full of woe,
Or hath more cause to moan.
3. For all things having life,
Sometime hath quiet rest;
The bearing ass, the drawing ox,
And every other beast;
4. The peasant and the post,
That serve at all assays;
The shipboy and the galleyslave,
Have time to take their ease;
5. Save I, alas! whom care
Of force doth so constrain
To wail the day, and wake the night,
Continually in pain.
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About If care do cause men cry
This anonymous English partsong for SATB voices offers a poignant exploration of sorrow. The text expresses a deep sense of personal suffering, contrasting the singer's unending grief with the brief moments of respite enjoyed by all other living things, from beasts of burden to common labourers. The lyrics detail a cyclical descent from pensiveness to tears and back to pain, portraying a life worn away by constant distress. The music would likely reflect this emotional weight, providing a powerful vehicle for the choir to convey the composer's profound lament. This piece stands as a stark and moving example of secular vocal music from its era.
