The Lyrics of Henry VIII/QUid petis o fily, Pygott

[ff. 112v-116r]

QUid petis ofily mater dulassima baba. O pateri ofili michi plausus oscula da da.

The moder full manerly and mekly as a mayd lokyng on her lyttill son so laughyng in lap layde so pretyly so pertly so passyngly well apayd ful softly and full soberly vnto her swet son she said qid petys.

I mene this by mary or makers moder of myght full louely lookyng on or lord the lanterne of lyght thus sayng to or sauior this saw I In my syght this reson that I rede you now I rede it full ryght. Qid petes

musyng on her maners so ny mard was my mayne saue it plesyd me so passyngly that past was my payn. yet softly to her swete son'n'' me thought I hard sayn now gracius god and goode swete babe yet ons this game agyne. Qid petes

pygott

Textual Commentary
The sole vernacular religious song in H, this lyric is a moralization of an episode in which the Virgin plays with the Son as a child. The alliteration in the verse suggests an earlier style than the other lyrics in H, and certainly a style prior to its setting here by Pygott. The first few lines are present in Skelton’s Phyllyp Sparowe: “Quid petis filio, mater dulcissima? Ba ba!” (l. 1091).


 * 1–4 Gloss: “What are you seeking, O Son? Sweetest mother, kiss, kiss.  O Father, O Son.  Give me kisses of liking” (from Stevens M&P 421); spoken by the Virgin.


 * 7   pertly   Openly, without concealment, smartly, sharply (OED  adv. 1, 3).     apayd  satisfied, contented, pleased (OED v 1).


 * 13 reson  Statement, narrative, or speech (OED n.1 3.a).


 * 15 mard  Marred.     mayne   Physical strength, force, or power (OED I.1.a).


 * 18 ons  Once.

In “QUid petis o fily” both the Latin burden, the first stanza, and the English verses are through-set for four voices; the remaining text is underlaid. This piece contains notes relating to the music on f. 114v (bottom) and f. 115r (top), and is ascribed to “pygott” (f. 116r).

“QUid petis o fily” is indexed in Robbins Index & Suppl. 3438.3 and Ringler MS TM1570. It is reprinted in Chappell Account 384, Flügel Anglia 252–53, Flügel Neuengl 121, Rickert 63–64, Stevens M&P 421, and Stevens MCH8 82–85.

Texts Collated
H1,2,3,4 (ff. 112v–116r, ll. 1–9 and 14–19 H3, ll. 1–9 H4), CPet (inside front cover, ll. 1–3)


 * 1   substitute  o mater o fili pets CPet;     ofily] ofili qid petes ofili H2,4


 * 2   mater] me CPet


 * 3   O pater] quid petis H1;    ofili] ofili o pater ofili H2,4


 * 4   da da.] dada da da. H4


 * 5   The ~ mayd] omit H1,3


 * 6   lokying ~ son]  omit H1,4;     layde] layd so laughyng in lap laid H2, ~ in ~ H3


 * 7   apayd] apayd so passyngly well a payd^ H2, a payd so pa passyngly well apayd. H4, apayed so pretyly so pertly ~ apayd. H3


 * 8   ful ~ soberly]  omit H3;     said] said she H3, saide vn to her son sa H2


 * 9   petys.] petes^ ofily. H4


 * 12 thus sayng to]  sayng H2


 * 14 petes] petes / Qid petys ofili / Qid petys ofily H1, petes ofili. H2


 * 17 sayn] her sayn H2, her sayne H3


 * 19 petes] petis ofili. / Qid petes ofili H2