Tell me, where is fancy bred?

General information

Lyricist: William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice, Act III,Sc 2

Settings by composers (automatically updated)

• Henry Kimball Hadley — Love  English SATB
• George Alexander Macfarren — Tell me where is fancy bred  English SATB
• Ciro Pinsuti — Tell me where is fancy bred?  English SATB
• Ann Sheppard Mounsey Bartholomew — Tell me, where is fancy bred?  English SATB

Texts and Translations

English text

Tell me, where is fancy bred?
Or in the heart, or in the head?
how begot? how nourished?

It is engender'd in the eyes,
with gazing fed, and fancy dies,
In the cradle where it lies.

Let us all ring fancy's knell,
I'll begin it, ding dong bell.