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C'était en avril, un dimanche, Oui, le dimanche ! -- J'étais heureux... Vous aviez une robe blanche Et deux gentils brins de pervenche, Oui, de pervenche, Dans les cheveux. Nous étions assis sur la mousse, Oui, sur la mousse, Et sans parler, Nous regardions l'herbe qui pousse, La la feuille verte et l'ombre douce, Oui, l'ombre douce, Et l'eau couler. Un oiseau chantait sur la branche, Oui, sur la branche, Puis il s'est tu. J'ai pris dans ma main ta main blanche... C'était en avril, un dimanche, Oui, le dimanche... T'en souviens-tu ?
Available sung texts: (what is this?)
• C. Chaminade • A. Fermin • S. Rachmaninov • M. de Rothschild • G. StrongC. Chaminade sets stanza 1
About the headline (FAQ)
View text with all available footnotesConfirmed with Revue des Deux Mondes, 2e période, tome 49, 1864, page 751.
Text Authorship:
- by Édouard Jules Henri Pailleron (1834 - 1899), "Chanson", appears in Avril, Chansons et poèmes, first published 1864 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
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Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Guy Laffaille [Guest Editor] , Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2008-06-11
Line count: 21
Word count: 97
It was in April, a Sunday, Yes, Sunday; I was happy... You wore a white dress And two sweet sprigs of periwinkle. Yes, of periwinkle, In your hair. We sat upon the moss Yes, on the moss; And without speaking We looked at the grass that was growing, The green leaves and the gentle shade, Yes, the gentle shade, And the flowing water. A bird sang upon the branch, Yes, upon a branch. Then it fell silent. I took in my hand your white hand... It was in April, a Sunday, Yes, Sunday... Do you remember?
About the headline (FAQ)
View text with all available footnotesTranslations of titles
"Chanson du printemps" = "Song of spring"
"T'en souviens-tu ?" = "Do you remember?"
"C'était en avril" = "It was in April"
"Chanson" = "Song"
Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2025 by Emily Ezust
Emily Ezust permits her translations to be reproduced without prior permission for printed (not online) programs to free-admission concerts only, provided the following credit is given:
Translation copyright © by Emily Ezust,
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Based on:
- a text in French (Français) by Édouard Jules Henri Pailleron (1834 - 1899), "Chanson", appears in Avril, Chansons et poèmes, first published 1864
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This text was added to the website: 2017-01-19
Line count: 21
Word count: 103