Henry Purcell’s infamous mastery of English declamation can be seen clearly in his late 17th century work, “Lord, What is Man, Lost Man,” for solo voice and basso continuo. Hand in hand with the text written by William Fuller, this three-part, contemplative piece expresses the speaker’s varied emotions while he reflects on his Lord’s sacrifice of his son as man, essentially rhetorically asking the Lord, “Why were men deserving of this honor?”
Fuller’s text is largely reflective, rather than forward-moving. The emotional state of the speaker in the poem is that of general thoughtfulness and awe, though there is a hint of despair. It seems as though the speaker was prompted to speak to God in this way after some event in his life which made him feel worthless, encouraging him to seek answers through religion. He also seems rather jaded by humanity of late which could also have contributed to his soliloquy. Though there is no narrative, there is a sense of movement through this speaker’s emotions as he progresses from contemplative, perhaps a bit dejected, to grateful (as he is no doubt thankful for this sacrifice despite his unresolved questions regarding its logic) to joyful, expressing his praise to God. Clear images support the powerful ideas behind this poetry, such as “a quill drawn from your wing” or the depiction of man as a worm. The choice of “worm,” being unusual, is particularly effective in this instance. “Shrunk” has a similar effect, while “torment” is especially emotion-filled.
There is no set rhyme scheme in Fuller’s poem, though there are occasional paired rhyming lines (“man” and “span,” “tell” and “excel) as well as the ABAB pattern of the second stanza. Though the poem is essentially free verse, it is divided into three clear sections. Purcell retained this element of the structure when composing his work, though the musical phrases do not structurally coincide with the lines of poetry. Purcell also added quite a bit of repetition to this poem when setting it, serving different purposes in varying instances.
As stated, this piece is in three parts. To depict the reflective (rather than action-filled) text, Purcell elected to transform the first stanza of poetry into a recitative-like musical setting comprising the first part of the song. It is declamatory and syllabic with slow harmonic motion in the basso continuo, and its declamation is purposefully distorted: not by accompaniment or range, but by unnatural rhythms (Purcell’s well-known “Scotch snap,” lengthening the unstressed syllable and vice versa). This actually brings greater attention to the words in this section where text is of utmost importance. Here, repetition allows text to serve different meanings, allowing Purcell to develop the poem’s emotions further and more deeply; it is as if each time text is repeated, another layer of meaning is added upon the last.
The second section, corresponding directly with the second stanza of poetry, becomes much more tuneful. It also brings about a change in meter: to 3/4, evoking dance or (more specifically) the aria monody. The text becomes less prominent as the tune takes greater focus, although while the text is somewhat obscured by range and overshadowed by melody, its declamation in this section is much more natural. The accompaniment changes in this section as well, from harmonic support (as it was in the last section) to providing counterpoint.
In the third and final section, there is just one word (to which Purcell has clearly added extensive repetition not found in Fuller’s original poetry): Alleluia. Here, through all the instances of repetition, the text is clearly expressed, though in this instance the importance is on the meaning of the word articulated through the extremely melodic, melismatic music more so than the word itself. The accompaniment given by Purcell continues to provide counterpoint. There is no postlude or prelude in this piece.
The vocal line throughout this piece spans a large range (D4 through A5). The phrases range from very short to very long (particularly where the lengthy melismas are introduced). Throughout the entirety of the work, Purcell’s understanding of the poetry is apparent, and the vocal line is no exception to this. For example, “lost man” in measure 13″ contains the lowest note in the piece, illustrating the worthlessness the speaker feels. Beginning at measure 41, both repetitions of “a worm” and “a God” occur with the former on lower notes, depicting the lowliness of this representation of man, and the latter on higher notes, representing God’s holiness. Direct text painting can be found throughout this piece as well. Measure 10 contains the word “tormented,” at which point the harmony expresses torment through lack of resolution. At measure 20, the word “shrunk” almost literally expresses its meaning as it is lowered melismatically in pitch. “Glorious” (m. 29) resembles a fanfare, and “joy” (m. 36) similarly echoes its sentiment throughout its triumphant melisma. “Sung,” too, is placed on an extended melisma to represent the action which the word expresses.
Purcell’s desire for specific musical expression was most likely his predominant concept in this piece. However, in focusing on such he certainly did not neglect the importance of the poetry as clearly seen by his text painting, attention to declamation (though through unconventional methods such as the “Scotch snap,” a trademark of Purcell’s) and repetition of important phrases.