by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872)
Ma belle amie est morte
Language: French (Français)
Ma belle amie est morte : Je pleurerai toujours ; [Sous]1 la tombe elle emporte Mon âme et mes amours. Dans le ciel, sans m'attendre, Elle s'en retourna ; L'ange qui l'emmena Ne voulut pas me prendre. Que mon sort est amer ! Ah ! sans amour, s'en aller sur la mer ! La blanche créature Est couchée au cercueil. Comme dans la nature Tout me paraît en deuil ! La colombe oubliée Pleure et songe à l'absent ; Mon âme pleure et sent Qu'elle est dépareillée. Que mon sort est amer ! Ah ! sans amour, s'en aller sur la mer ! Sur moi la [nuit]2 immense [S'étend]3 comme un linceul ; Je chante ma romance Que le ciel entend seul. Ah ! comme elle était belle, [Et comme]4 je l'aimais ! Je n'aimerai jamais Une femme autant qu'elle. Que mon sort est amer ! Ah ! sans amour, s'en aller sur la mer !
Available sung texts: ← What is this?
• H. Berlioz • F. David • G. Fauré • C. Gounod • C. Gounod • L. Lacombe • Paladilhe • F. Pedrell • M. de Rothschild • P. Viardot-GarcíaP. Viardot-García sets stanzas 1, 3
E. de Polignac sets stanzas 1-2
About the headline (FAQ)
View text without footnotesConfirmed with Théophile Gauthier, La comédie de la mort, Desessart editeur, Paris, 1838, page 227.
1 Viardot-García: "Dans"2 Viardot-García: "mer"
3 Fauré: "Plane"
4 Fauré: "Et combien"; Viardot-García: "Comme"
Text Authorship:
- by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872), "Lamento", subtitle: "La chanson du pêcheur", appears in La Comédie de la Mort, first published 1838 [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 Hector Berlioz (1803 - 1869), "Sur les lagunes", op. 7 no. 3 (<<1841) [ voice and orchestra ], from Les Nuits d'Été, no. 3, also set in German (Deutsch) [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Paul Bertrie , "La chanson du pêcheur", subtitle: "Lamento", published [1872] [ voice and piano ], Paris, Ed. E. Heu [sung text not yet checked]
- by Édouard Boilly (1799 - 1854), "La chanson du pêcheur" [ tenor and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Édouard Bruguière (1793 - 1863), "Ma belle amie est morte - Lamento", published c1838 [ high voice and piano ], Paris, Ed. Castelin & Fils [sung text not yet checked]
- by Louise Clarke , "My love is dead - Ma belle amie est morte", published 1896, Melbourne, Sydney, W. H. Glen & Co. [sung text not yet checked]
- by Paul-Charles-Marie Curet (1848 - 1917), as Paul Puget, "Lamento - La chanson du pêcheur", published 1881 [ high voice and piano ], from Vingt mélodies, Vol. 1, no. 19, Paris, Girod [sung text not yet checked]
- by Alexandre Gustave Daussoigne-Méhul (1830 - 1902), "Ma belle amie est morte !", published 1873 [ high voice and piano ], Paris, G. Flaxland [sung text not yet checked]
- by Félicien César David (1810 - 1876), "La chanson du pêcheur", 1845, published 1866 [ medium voice and piano ], E. Gérard [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Jules Toussaint De Sutter (1889 - 1959), "Lamento - Ma belle amie est morte", 1937 [ soprano and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by (Charles Gustave) Alban Cocural Dorcy (1856 - 1931), "Lamento", published 1890, copyright © 1890 [ medium voice and piano ], from Vingt mélodies pour chant et piano, no. 4, Paris, Durdilly [sung text not yet checked]
- by (François-Clément) Théodore Dubois (1837 - 1924), "Lamento - La chanson du pêcheur", published 1903 [ medium voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Sylvain Dupuis (1856 - 1931), "La chanson du pêcheur - Lamento", from Six mélodies, no. 6, Bruxelles, Schott [sung text not yet checked]
- by Gabriel Fauré (1845 - 1924), "Chanson du pêcheur (Lamento)", op. 4 no. 1 (1872), published 1877 [ voice and piano or orchestra ], Paris, Choudens [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Ferdinand-François Féret (b. 1823), "Ah ! Sans amour s'en aller sur la mer !", published 1856 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Anna François , "Lamento", op. 32 no. 1, published 1899 [ medium voice and piano ], from Deux mélodies, no. 1, Paris, G. Legouix [sung text not yet checked]
- by André Gédalge (1856 - 1926), "La chanson du pêcheur", 1878 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by L. Giunti-Bellini , "Lamento", c1855 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Charles Gounod (1818 - 1893), "La chanson du pêcheur", subtitle: "Lamento", CG. 397 (1841), published 1895 [ high voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Charles Gounod (1818 - 1893), "Ma belle amie est morte", subtitle: "Lamento", CG 404 (1872), published 1877 [ voice and piano or orchestra ], H. Lemoine [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Théodore Jadoul (b. 1848), "Ma belle amie est morte", 1874 [ high voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Pierre Joret , "Lamento - Chanson du pêcheur", published 1890 [ voice and piano ], from Douze mélodies, no. 1, Paris, L. Laloue [sung text not yet checked]
- by Léon Jouret (1828 - 1905), "La chanson du pêcheur", Bruxelles, Ed. Meynne Cons. Royal d'Anvers [sung text not yet checked]
- by Théodore Jouret (1821 - 1887), "La chanson du pêcheur" [sung text not yet checked]
- by René Jacques Koering (b. 1940), "Sur les lagunes", published 1984 [ voice and orchestra ], from Nuits d'été daraus, no. 2, a re-orchestration of the melody by Berlioz ; Paris, München : Salabert [sung text not yet checked]
- by Louis (Trouillon) Lacombe (1818 - 1884), "Lamento - La chanson du pêcheur", op. 56 no. 2, published 1860 [ voice and piano ], Paris, G. Brandus et S. Dufour [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Charles Lefebvre (1843 - 1917), "Lamento", subtitle: "La chanson du pêcheur", published c1873 [ voice and piano ], from Six poésies mises en musique, no. 4, Paris, G. Hartmann [sung text not yet checked]
- by Charles Ferdinand Lenepveu (1840 - 1910), "Lamento", published 1881 [ baritone and piano ], Paris, Lemoine [sung text not yet checked]
- by Hippolyte Monpou (1804 - 1841), "Sur la mer", 1837, published 1838? [ high voice and piano ], Éd. Bernard-Latte [sung text not yet checked]
- by Jacques Offenbach (1819 - 1880), "Ma belle amie est morte", 1852, published 1852 [ high voice and piano ], from Les voix mystérieuses, no. 4, Paris, Heugel [sung text not yet checked]
- by Émile Paladilhe (1844 - 1926), "Chanson du pêcheur", subtitle: "Lamento", 1867, published 1872 [ medium voice and piano ], from Vingt mélodies pour chant, no. 9, Paris, Éd. G. Hartmann [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Georges Pantillon (1870 - 1962), "La chanson du pêcheur", published 1925 [ four-part men's chorus a cappella ], Ed. La Chaux-de-Fonds [sung text not yet checked]
- by Felipe Pedrell (1841 - 1922), "La chanson du pêcheur", subtitle: "Lamento", published 1877 [ high voice and piano ], from Consolations - 12 Mélodies sur des poésies de Théophile Gautier, no. 11, Milan: Francesco Lucca [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Jules Philipot (1824 - 1897), "Lamento", op. 120, published 1874 [ medium voice and piano ], from Poèmes et Chants, Poésies de Théophile Gautier, no. 1, Paris, Léon Grus [sung text not yet checked]
- by Edmond de Polignac, prince (1834 - 1901), "Sur les lagunes", published 1905, stanzas 1-2 [ medium voice and piano ], Paris, Astruc [sung text not yet checked]
- by Frederick A. Post , "La chanson du pêcheur", published 1886 [ medium voice and piano ], Milan, Ricordi [sung text not yet checked]
- by Jean-Théodore Radoux (1835 - 1911), "La chanson du pêcheur", subtitle: "Lamento", published 1874 [ high voice and piano ], Paris, L. Gregh [sung text not yet checked]
- by Jules Regnaud , "Lamento - La chanson du pêcheur", op. 2 no. 2, published 1865 [ medium voice, piano, and violin or cello ], from Deux mélodies de Théophile Gautier, no. 2, Paris, Flayland [sung text not yet checked]
- by Mathilde, Baroness Willy de Rothschild (1832 - 1924), "La chanson du pêcheur", published 1875 [ voice and piano ], from Trois nouvelles mélodies, no. 3, from Trente mélodies, no. 8, Paris [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Gabriel de Saint-Quentin (1846 - 1926), "Ma belle amie est morte (Lamento)" [ medium voice and piano ], Paris, J. Hamelle [sung text not yet checked]
- by Charles Camille Saint-Saëns (1835 - 1921), "Lamento", 1850 [ medium voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Alice Salvator , "Lamento", published 1863 [ high voice and piano ], Paris, Gambogi frères [sung text not yet checked]
- by Étienne Soubre (1813 - 1871), "La chanson du pêcheur", 1847 [ soprano and piano ], from Quatre mélodies, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Léonard Terry (1816 - 1882), "Lamento du pêcheur" [sung text not yet checked]
- by Jozef Troch , "Que mon sort est amer", published 1845 [ voice and piano ], from Les echos de la dendre: Album de chant 1845, no. 5, Bruges [sung text not yet checked]
- by Pauline Viardot-García (1821 - 1910), "Lamento", published 1886, stanzas 1,3 [ high voice and piano ], Paris, Enoch Frères & Costallat [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Eugène-Léon Vivier (1817 - 1900), "La chanson du pêcheur", subtitle: "Lamento", published 1850 [ voice and piano ], London, Wessel & Cie.; Berlin, H. Schleisinger [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Peter Cornelius (1824 - 1874) , "Auf den Lagunen" ; composed by Hector Berlioz.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Emily Ezust) , no title, copyright ©
- GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , copyright © 2004, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , "La mia bella amica è morta", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Grant Hicks [Guest Editor] , Bertram Kottmann , Pierre Mathé [Guest Editor] , Anne Rodier
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 30
Word count: 143