Today, May 8, is the birthday of my friend Sylvia. I have always loved her name. Shakespeare got a pretty good song out of it:
Who is Sylvia? What is she
that all our swains commend her?
Holy, fair, and wise is she;
the heaven such grace did lend her,
that she might admired be.
Is she wise as she is fair?
For beauty lives with kindness.
Love doth to her eyes repair,
to help him of his blindness,
and, being helped, inhabits there.
Then to Sylvia let us sing,
that Sylvia is excelling;
she excels each mortal thing
upon the dull earth dwelling:
to her garlands let us bring.
And now listen to what Schubert (and the great Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau) did with it!
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