CORO

O the pleasure of the plains! happy nymphs and happy swains, harmless, merry, free and gay, dance and sport the hours away. For us the zephyr blows, for us distils the dew, for us unfolds the rose, and flow'rs display their hue. For us the winters rain, for us the summers shine, spring swells for us the grain, and autumn bleeds the vine.

¡Oh, el placer de las llanuras! ninfas y pastores felices, inocentes, alegres, libres y contentos, bailan y disfrutan todo el tiempo. Por nosotros el céfiro sopla, por nosotros destila el rocío, por nosotros se revela la rosa, y las flores despliegan su matiz. Por nosotros los inviernos llueven, por nosotros los veranos resplandecen, la primavera hincha por nosotros el grano, y el otoño hace sangrar a la vid.

RECITATIVO GALATEA
Ye verdant plains and woody mountains, purling streams and bubbling fountains, ye painted glories of the field, vain are the pleasures which we yield; too thin the shadow of the grove, too faint the gales, too cool my love.

ARIA GALATEA
Hush, ye pretty warbling choir! your thrilling strains awake my pains, and kindle fierce desire. Cease your song, and take your flight, bring back my Acis to my sight!

ARIA ACIS
Where shall I seek the charming fair? direct the way, kind genius of the mountains! O tell me, if you saw my dear, seeks she the groves, or bathes in crystal fountains?

RECITATIVO DAMON
Stay, sheperd, stay! see how the flocks in yonder valley stray! What means this melancholy air? no more thy tuneful pipe we hear.

ARIA DAMON
Shepherd, what art thou pursuing? heedless running to thy ruin; share our joy, our pleasure share! Leave thy passion till tomorrow let the day be free from sorrom, free from love, and free from care!

RECITATIVO ACIS
Lo! hear my love! turn Galatea hither turn thine eyes see, at they feet the longing Acis lies

ARIA ACIS
Love in her eyes sits playing and sheds delicious death; love on her lips is straying and warbling in her breath! Love on her breast sits panting, and swells with soft desire; no grace no charm is wanting, to set the heart on fire.

RECITATIVO GALATEA
Oh! didst thou know the pains of absent love, Acis would ne'er from Galatea rove.

ARIA GALATEA
As when the dove laments her love, all on the naked spray; when he returns, no more she mourns, but love the live-long day. Billing, cooing, panting, wooing, melting murmurs fill the grove, melting murmurs, lasting love.

DUETTO (Acis & Galatea) - CORO
Happy we! what joys I feel! what charms I see! of all youth, thou dearest boy! of all nymphs, thou brightest fair! thou all my bliss, thou all my joy!

CORO
Wretched lovers! Fate has passed this sad decree: no joy shall last. Wretched lovers, quit your dream! behold the monster Polypheme! See what ample strides he takes! the mountain nods, the forest shakes: the waves run frightened to the shores: Hark, how the thund'ring giant roars!

RECITATIVO POLYPHEMUS
I rage, I melt, I burn! the feeble god has stabb'd me to the heart. Thou, trusty pine, prop of my god-like steps, I lay thee by! bring me a hundred reeds of decent growth, to make a pipe for my capacious mouth; in soft enchanting accents let me breathe sweet Galatea's beauty, and my love.

ARIA POLYPHEMUS
O ruddier than the cherry, o sweeter than the berry, o nymph more bright than moonshine night, like kidlings blithe and merry! ripe as the melting cluster, no lily has such lustre; yet hard to tame as raging flame and fierce as storms that bluster!

RECITATIVO

Polyphemus Whither, fairest, art thou running, still my warm embraces shunning? Galatea The lion calls not to his prey, nor bids the wolf the lambkin stay. Polyphemus Thee, Polyphemus, great as Jove, calls to empire and to love, to his palace in the rock, to his dairy, to his flock, to the grape of purple hue, to the plum of glossy blue, wildings, which expecting stand, proud to be gather'd thy hand. Galatea Of infant limbs to make my food, and swill full draughts of human blood! go, monster! bid some other guest: I loathe the host, I loathe the feast!

ARIA POLYPHEMUS
Cease to beauty to be suing, ever whining love disdaining. Let the brave their arms pursuing, still be conqu'ring not complaining.

RECITATIVO ACIS
His hideous love provokes my rage; weak as I am, I must engage! inspir'd with thy victorious charms, the god of love will lend his arms.

ARIA ACIS
Love sounds th'alarm, and fear is a flying! when beauty's the prize, what mortal fears dying? In defence of my treasure, I'd bleed at each vein: without her no pleasure for life is a pain.

ARIA DAMON
Consider, fond shepherd, how fleeting's the pleasure, that flatters our hopes in pursuit of the fair! the joys that attend it, by moments we measure, but life is too little to measure our care.

RECITATIVO GALATEA
Cease, o cease, thou gentle youth, trust my constancy and truth, trust my truth, and pow'rs above, the pow'rs propitious still to love!

TRIO

Galatea & Acis The flocks shall leave the mountains, the woods the turtle dove, the nymphs forsake the fountains, ere I forsake my love! Polyphemus Torture! fury! rage! despair! I cannot, cannot bear! Galatea & Acis Not show'rs to larks so pleasing, not sunshine to the bee, not sleep to toil so easing, as these dear smiles to me. Polyphemus Fly swift, thou massy ruin, fly! die, presumptuous Acis, die!

RECITATIVO ACIS
Help, Galatea! help ye parent gods! and take me dying to your deep abodes.

CORO
Mourn, all ye muses! weep all ye swains! tune your reeds to doleful strains! Groans, cries and howlings fill the neighb'ring shore: Ah, the gentle Acis is no more!

GALATEA - CORO
Galatea Must I my Acis still bemoan, inglorious crush'd beneath that stone? Coro Cease, Galatea, cease to grieve! bewail not whom thou canst relieve. Galatea Must the lovely charming youth die for his constancy and truth? Coro Call for thy pow'r, employ thy art, the goddess soon can heal thy smart. Galatea Say what comfort you can find? for dark despair o'erclouds my mind.

RECITATIVO GALATEA
'Tis done: thus I exert my pow'r divine; be thou immortal, tho' thou art not mine!

ARIA GALATEA
Heart, the seat of soft delight, be thou now a fountain bright! purple be no more thy blood, glide thou like a crystal flood. Rock, thy hollow womb disclose! the bubbling fountain, lo! it flows; Through the plains he joy to rove, murm'ring still his gentle love.

CORO
Galatea, dry thy tears, Acis now a god appears! see how he rears him from his bed, hail thou gentle murm'ring stream, shepherds pleasure, muses' theme! through the plains still joy to rove, murm'ring still thy gentle love.