by Pierre de Ronsard (1524 - 1585)
Translation © by Laura L. Nagle, David Wyatt

Le doux sommeil
Language: French (Français) 
Our translations:  ENG
Le doux sommeil, qui toute chose appaise,
N'appaise point le [mal]1 qui m'a ravi.
En vous je meurs, en vous seule je vis,
Ne voyant rien, si non vous qui me plaise.

[Vos yeux au coeur m'ont allumé la flamme,
Un feu toujours depuis m'a poursuivi,
Et dès le jour que pleurer je vous vis,
Je meurs pour vous, et à vous est mon âme.]2

De mal en mal, de soucy en soucy,
J’ay l’ame triste, et le cœur tout transi,
Sans eschauffer le froid de vostre glace,

Au moins lisez et voyez sur mon front,
Combien de morts voz beaux sourcis me font
Le soing caché se connoist à la face.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

•   L. Gouvy •   P. Monte 

L. Gouvy sets stanzas 1-2

View original text (without footnotes)
1 de Monte: "soing"
2 de Monte: 
Vos yeux au Coeur m’ont jetté telle braize
Qu’un feu treschaut s’est depuis ensuivy,
Et des le jour qu’en dansant je vous vy,
Je meurs pour vous et si suis bien ayze.

Text Authorship:

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

  • ENG English (Laura L. Nagle) (David Wyatt) , "Sweet slumber", copyright © 2006, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Research team for this page: John Glenn Paton [Guest Editor] , David Wyatt

This text was added to the website: 2006-12-03
Line count: 14
Word count: 114

Sweet slumber
Language: English  after the French (Français) 
Sweet slumber, which appeases all else,
In no way appeases the [evil]1 that has ravished me.
In you I die; in you alone I live,
Seeing nothing but you who please me.

Your eyes have lit a flame in my heart;
A fire has pursued me ever since;
And since the day I saw you crying,
I die for you, and my soul is yours.

With evil on evil, with pain on pain,
My soul is sad and my heart pierced through,
Without warming the coldness of your ice;

At least read and see on my brow
How many deaths your fair eyebrows deal me.
Hidden pain makes itself known in the face.

View original text (without footnotes)

Note: the first two stanzas were translated by Laura Nagle.

1 de Monte: "pain"
2 de Monte: 
Your eyes have shot such a blaze into my heart
That a very hot fire has pursued me ever since;
And since the day I saw you dancing,
I die for you and so am at my ease.

Text Authorship:

  • Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2006 by Laura L. Nagle and David Wyatt, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
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This text was added to the website: 2007-01-11
Line count: 14
Word count: 114