Sweet bird Il penseroso, Handel

Sweet bird, that shun'st the noise of

folly,
Most musical, most melancholy!
Thee, chauntress, oft the woods among,
I woo to hear thy even-song.
Or, missing thee, I walk unseen,
On the dry smooth-shaven green,
To behold the wand'ring moon
Riding near her highest noon.

La Rondinella Amante Griselda, Antonio Vivaldi

La rondinella amante, The loving swallow
Lungi dal proprio nio far from his own nest
Serba costante e fido keeps constant and faithful
Al suo diletto il cor. to his beloved.

Non è possibil mai It is never possible

Cacciar dal proprio petto to drive from one's own breast
Il radicato affetto, the deep-seated affection,
Il primo dolce amor. the first sweet love.

Villanelle Les nuits d’été, Hector Berlioz

Quand viendra la saison nouvelle, When the new season comes,
Quand auront disparu les froids, When the cold has gone,
Tous le deux nous irons, ma belle, We two will go, my sweet,
Pour cueillir le muguet au bois. To gather valley lilies in the woods;
Sous nos pieds égrenant les perles Scattering as we tread the pearls of dew
Que l’on voit au matin trembler, We see quivering each morning,
Nous irons écouter les merles, We’ll go and hear the blackbirds
siffler! Sing!

Le printemps est venu, ma belle, Spring has come, my sweet;

C’est le mois des amants béni; It is the season lovers bless,
Et l’oiseau, satinant son aile, And the birds, preening their wings,
Dit des vers au rebord du nid. Sing songs from the edge of their nests.
Oh! viens donc sur ce banc de mousse Ah! Come, then, to this mossy bank
Pour parler de nos beaux amours, To talk of our beautiful love, And tell me
Et dis-moi de ta voix si douce, toujours! in your sweet voice, forever
Loin, bien loin, égarant nos courses, Far, far away we’ll stray from our path,
Faisons fuir le lapin caché, Startling the rabbit from his shelter
Et le daim, au miroir des sources, And the deer reflected in the spring,
Admirant son grand bois penché! Admiring his great lowered antlers;
Puis chez nous, tout heureux, tout aises, Then home we’ll go, serene and at ease,
En paniers enlaçant nos doigts, And basket-entwining our fingers,
Revenons, rapportons des fraises We’ll bring back home strawberries
Des bois! Of the wood!

Le spectre de la rose Les nuits d’été, Hector Berlioz

Soulève ta paupière close Open your eyelids
Qu'effleurer un songe virginal Brushed by a virginal dream
Je suis le spectre d’une rose I am the spectre of a rose
que tu portais hier au bal. That yesterday you wore at the dance.
Tu me pris encore emperlée You plucked me still sprinkled With
Des pleurs d’argent de l’arrosoir silver tears of dew
Et parmi le fête étoilée And amid the glittering feast You wore
Tu me promenais tout le soir me all evening long. O you who brought
Ô toi, qui de ma mort fus cause about my death
Sans que tu puisses le chasser You shall be powerless to banish me
Toutes les nuits mon spectre rose The rosy spectre which every night
À ton chevet viendra danser Will come to dance at your bedside.
Mais ne crains rien, But be not afraid,
je ne réclame I demand
Ni messe ni De profundis Neither Mass nor De Profundis
Ce léger parfum est mon âme, This faint perfume is my soul,
Et j’arrive du paradis. And I come from Paradise.
Mon destin fut digne d’envie My destiny was worthy of envy
Et pour avoir un sort si beau And for such a beautiful fate
Plus d’un aurait donné sa vie Many would have given their lives
Car sur ton sein j’ai mon tombeau For my tomb is on your breast
Et sur l’albâtre où je repose And on the alabaster where I lie
Un poëte avec un baiser Écrivit: Ci-gît A poet with a kiss Has written: Here lies
une rose a rose
Que tous les rois vont jalouser. Which every king will envy.
Le Colibri 7 melodies, op. 2, Chausson
Le vert colibri, le roi des collines, The green humming-bird, the king of
the hills,
Voyant la rosée et le soleil clair On seeing the dew and gleaming sun
Luire dans son nid tissé d'herbes fines, Shine in his nest of fine woven grass,
Corme lm frais rayon s'échappe dans Darts into the air like a shaft of light.
l'air.
II se hâte et vole aux sources voisines, He hurries and flies to the nearby
Ou les bambous font le bruit de la mer, springs Where the bamboos sound like
Ou I' aoka rouge aux odeurs divines the sea, Where the red hibiscus with its
heavenly scent
S'ouvre et porte au cœur un humide Unveils the glint of dew at its heart.
éclair. He descends, and settles on the golden
Vers la fleur dorée il descend, se pose, flower,
Et boit tant d'amour dans la coupe rose Drinks so much love from the rosy cup
Qu'il meurt, ne sachant s'il l'a pu tarir. That he dies, not knowing if he’d drunk
it dry.
Sur ta lèvre pure, o ma bien-aimée, On your pure lips, O my beloved,
Telle aussi mon âme eut voulu mourir, My own soul too wold sooner have died
Du premier baiser qui l'a parfumée. From that first kiss which scented it!

Parla Arditi
Più nel dubbio non farmi penare Do not make me suffer longer in doubt,
Mi conforti una dolce parola, Comfort me with a sweet word,
Io la implora per tutte le care I beseech it for all your dear
Tue promesse del passato! Promises of the past!
Mi ripeti d'amare me sola I repeat that you love me alone,
Ch'ancor sono il tuo primo pensiero, That I am still your first thought,
Con un detto ti mostra sincero With a word you are shown
Al mio core affanato! To my troubled heart to be sincere!
Parla! Parla! Parla! Speak! Speak! Speak!
Ah! Si! Ah! Yes!
Parla mio ben Speak my beloved
Mi sorridi, mi parla, o mio ben, Smile at me, speak to me, oh my love,
Santa gioja, mi versa nel sen! Holy joy, pour me into your breast!
Un altro cor del mio più fedel, Another heart more faithful than mine
Non troverai, no! You will not find, no!
Tanto amor mostrarti crudel, You will not be able to show yourself
Tu non potrai, Ah! Ah! No! cruel with so much love, ah! No!
Ogni tormento di gelosio, Every jealous torment
Un sol tuo detto svanir farà, si! Only one of your words will make vanish
Un tuo detto, ah!
Schoenberg 4 lieder, opua 2

Erwartung
Aus dem meergrünen Teiche From the sea-green pond
neben der roten Villa near the red villa
unter der toten Eiche scheint der Mond. beneath the dead oak the moon shines.
Wo ihr dunkles Abbild Where her dark image
durch das Wasser greift, gleams through the water,
steht ein Mann a man stands,
und streift einen Ring von seiner Hand. and draws a ring from his hand.
Drei Opale blinken; Three opals glimmer;
durch die bleichen Steine among the pale stones
schwimmen rot und grüne funken float red and green sparks
und versinken. and sink.
Und er küßt sie, And he kisses her,
und seine Augen leuchten and his eyes gleam
wie der meergrüne Grund. like the sea-green depths
Ein Fenster tut sich auf. A window opens.
Aus der roten Villa From the red villa
neben der toten Eiche near the dead oak,
winkt ihm eine bleiche Frauenhand. a woman’s pale hand waves to him.

Schenk mir deinen goldenen Kamm

Schenk mir deinen goldenen Kamm; Give me your golden comb;
Jeder Morgen soll dich mahnen, every morning shall remind you
Daß du mir die Haare küßtest. that you kissed my hair.
Schenk mir deinen seidenen Schwamm; Give me your silken sponge;
Jeden Abend will ich ahnen, every evening I want to sense for whom
Wem du dich im Bade rüstest, you prepared yourself in the bath
O Maria! oh, Maria!
Schenk mir Alles, was du hast; Give me everything you have;
Meine Seele ist nicht eitel, my soul is not vain,
Stolz empfang ich deinen Segen. proudly I receive your blessing.
Schenk mir deine schwerste Last: Give me your heavy burden:
Willst du nicht auf meinen Scheitel Auch will you not lay on my head
dein Herz, your heart too,
dein Herz noch legen, your heart
Magdalena? Magdalena?
Erhebung Exaltation
Gib mir deine Hand, Give me your hand,
nur den Finger, only a finger,
dann seh ich diesen ganzen Erdkreis then I shall see this whole round earth
als mein Eigen an! as my own!
O, wie blüht mein Land! Oh, how my country blossoms!
Sieh dir's doch nur an, Just look at me,
daß es mit uns über die Wolken that I may go with you above the clouds
in die Sonne kann! into the sun!

Waldsonne Forest sun

In die braunen, rauschenden Nächte Into the brown rustling nights
Flittert ein Licht herein, There flutters a light,
Grüngolden ein Schein. A green-golden gleam.
Blumen blinken auf und Gräser Glinting flowers gaze up
Und die singenden, springenden And the singing, leaping
Waldwässerlein, forest brooklets,
Und Erinnerungen. And memories.
Die längst verklungenen: The long silent ones:
Golden erwachen sie wieder, Golden, they awaken again,
All deine fröhlichen Lieder. All your joyous songs.
Und ich sehe And I see
deine goldenen Haare glänzen, your golden hair glitter,
Und ich sehe And I see
deine goldenen Augen glänzen your golden eyes gleam
Aus den grünen, raunenden Nächten. Out of the green murmuring nights.
Und mir ist, And I feel as though
ich läge neben dir auf dem Rasen I were lying on the lawn by your side
Und hörte dich wieder And heard you once more
auf der glitzeblanken Syrinx blow on your brightly glinting pipes
In die blauen Himmelslüfte blasen. Into the blue air of heaven.
In die braunen, wühlenden Nächte Into the brown, turbulent nights
Flittert ein Licht, There flutters a light,
Ein goldener Schein. A golden gleam.
The Bird John Duke
O clear and musical,
Sing again! Sing again!
Hear the rain fall
Through the long night.
Bring me your song again,
O dear delight!
O dear and comforting,
Mine again! Mine again!
Hear the rain sing
And the dark rejoice!
Shine like a spark again,
O clearest voice

Sweet, sweet, sweet!

O happy that I am!
Listen to the meadow-larks,
across the fields that sing!
Sweet, sweet, sweet!
O subtle breath of balm,
O winds that blow,
O buds that grow,
O rapture of the spring!
Sweet, sweet, sweet!
O skies serene and blue,
That shut the radiant pastures in,
that fold the mountain's crest!
Sweet, sweet, sweet!
What of the clouds ye knew?
The vessels ride a golden tide
Upon a sea at rest.
Sweet, sweet, sweet!
Who prates of care and pain?
Who says that life is sorrowful?
O life, so glad, so fleet!
Ah! he who leads the noblest life
Finds life the noblest gain,
The tears of pain a tender rain
To make its waters sweet.
Sweet, sweet, sweet!
O happy world that is!
Dear heart!
I hear across the fields
my mateling pipe and call.
Sweet, sweet, sweet!
O world so full of bliss,
O world so full of bliss!
For life is love, the world is love,
And love is over all,
For life is love, the world is love,
And love is over all!