Attention! Some of this material is not in the public domain.
It is illegal to copy and distribute copyright-protected material without permission. It is also illegal to reprint copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator.
Note: You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.
See below for more information.
Fardée et peinte comme au temps des bergeries, Frêle parmi les nœuds énormes de rubans, Elle passe, sous les ramures assombries, Dans l'allée où verdit la mousse des vieux bancs, Avec mille façons et mille afféteries Qu'on garde d'ordinaire aux perruches chéries. Sa longue robe à queue est bleue, et l'éventail Qu'elle froisse en ses doigts fluets aux larges bagues S'égaie un des sujets érotiques, si vagues Qu'elle sourit, tout en rêvant, à maint détail. — Blonde, en somme. Le nez mignon avec la bouche Incarnadine, grasse et divine d'orgueil Inconscient. — D'ailleurs plus fine que la mouche Qui ravive l'éclat un peu niais de l'œil.
Confirmed with Paul Verlaine, Fêtes galantes, Paris: Alphonse Lemerre, 1869, pages 7-8.
Notes: All ampersands (&) as appear in the first publication are changed to "et". The error "en" is changed to "un".
Text Authorship:
- by Paul Verlaine (1844 - 1896), "L'allée", appears in Fêtes galantes, no. 4, Paris, Alphonse Lemerre, first published 1869 [author's text checked 2 times against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Riccardo Pick-Mangiagalli (1882 - 1949), "L'allée", published 1912 [ voice and piano ], from Fêtes galantes, no. 2, Milan, Ricordi [sung text not yet checked]
- by Kaikhosru Sorabji (1892 - 1988), "L'allée", KSS 37 no. 1 (1924), published 1924 [ voice and piano ], from Trois fêtes galantes de Verlaine, no. 1, London, Curwen ; confirmed with this edition [sung text checked 1 time]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Johannes Schlaf (1862 - 1941) , "Die Allee" ; composed by Richard Trunk.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Charles Hopkins) , "The lane", written 2002, first published 2002, copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Charles Hopkins) , "The path", written c2005, copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Poom Andrew Pipatjarasgit [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2009-01-04
Line count: 14
Word count: 106
Painted and made up as if part of some rural idyll, Frail amid the profusion of bows and ribbons, She passes, beneath the shadowy boughs, along the pathway made green by the moss of old banks, With a thousand airs and graces[,] a thousand simpering mannerisms, Of the sort one normally reserves for precious budgerigars. Her long dress with its train is blue, and the fan[,] Which she crumples between the bony fingers encrusted with rings[,] Is livened up by erotic pictures, so faded That they make her smile, dreaming about them all the while in the minutest detail. - In short, the blonde. The cute nose with the blood red lips, luxuriant with an unconsciously divine arrogance, - Furthermore, more subtle than the fleck That brings backs the slightly silly glint in the eye.
Confirmed with an original Microsoft Word Document provided by Alistair Hinton. Note: Hopkins forgot to add line breaks after line 6 and 11. They have been added here in accordance with the source text and the 2002 version.
Text Authorship:
- by Charles Hopkins (1952 - 2007), "The path", written c2005, copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in French (Français) by Paul Verlaine (1844 - 1896), "L'allée", appears in Fêtes galantes, no. 4, Paris, Alphonse Lemerre, first published 1869
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- [ None yet in the database ]
Another version of this text exists in the database.
Researcher for this page: Poom Andrew Pipatjarasgit [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2018-08-04
Line count: 14
Word count: 133