by
(Paul) Jules Barbier (1825 - 1901) and by
Michel Carré (1822 - 1872)
Le bonheur est chose légère
Language: French (Français)
Available translation(s): ENG
Le bonheur est chose légère,
Passagère,
On croit l'attendre, on le poursuit,
Il s'enfuit!
Hélas! Vous en voulez un autre
Que le nôtre;
Il faut à vos ardents désirs
Des plaisirs.
Dieu vous préserve des alarmes
Et des larmes
Qui peuvent assombrir le cours
Des beaux jours.
Si jamais votre coeur regrette
La retraite
Qu'aujourd'hui vous abandonnez,
Revenez!
De tous les chagrins de votr'âme,
Je réclame
Pour notre fidèle amitié
La moitié.
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 (John Glenn Paton) , "Happiness is a light thing", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [
Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 20
Word count: 72
Happiness is a light thing
Language: English  after the French (Français)
Happiness is a light thing,
passing;
one waits for it, pursues it,
it vanishes!
Alas, you want some other happiness
than ours;
your ardent desires require
pleasures.
May God keep you from alarms
and tears
that could darken the course
of your beautiful days.
If your heart ever misses
the safe refuge
that you are giving up today,
come back!
Whatever your soul's disappointments,
I will claim,
for the sake of our faithful friendship,
half of them.
Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2009 by John Glenn Paton, (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.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net
Based on:
This text was added to the website: 2009-10-14
Line count: 20
Word count: 77