Attention! Some of this material is not in the public domain.
It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. It is also illegal to reprint copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator.
To inquire about permissions and rates, contact Emily Ezust at licenses@email.lieder.example.net
If you wish to reprint translations, please make sure you include the names of the translators in your email. They are below each translation.
Note: You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.
Air -- "Captain O'Kean." The small birds rejoice [in]1 the green leaves returning, The murmuring streamlet winds clear thro' the vale; The primroses blow in the dews of the morning, And wild scatter'd cowslips bedeck the green dale: But what can give pleasure, or what can seem fair, When the lingering moments are [numbered by]2 care? No birds sweetly singing, nor flow'rs gaily springing, Can soothe the sad bosom of joyless despair. The deed that I dared, could it merit their malice? A king and a father to place on his throne! His right are these hills, and his right are these valleys, Where [the]3 wild beasts find shelter, tho' I can find none! But 'tis not my suff'rings, thus wretched, forlorn, My brave gallant friends, 'tis your ruin I mourn; Your faith proved so loyal in hot bloody trial, -- Alas! [I can]4 make it no better return!
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)Confirmed with Burns, Robert. Poems and Songs. Vol. VI. The Harvard Classics. New York: P.F. Collier & Son, 1909–14; Bartleby.com, 2001. www.bartleby.com/6/223.html
1 Haydn: "on"
2 Haydn: "number'd wi' "
3 omitted by Haydn
4 in another version by Burns: "can I" (cf. The Complete Poetical Works of Robert Burns, Cambridge edition, Boston and New York, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1897, page 318; in this publication the poem has an extra line break in the penultimate line of each stanza.)
Text Authorship:
- by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), "Song -- The Chevalier's Lament" [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 (Franz) Joseph Haydn (1732 - 1809), "Captain Okain", JHW. XXXII/4 no. 290, Hob. XXXIa no. 224bis [text verified 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , title unknown, copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2011-03-06
Line count: 17
Word count: 152
Air -- "Captain O'Kean." Les petits oiseaux se réjouissent dans les feuilles vertes revenues, Le ruisseau clair serpente dans la vallée, Les primevères éclosent dans les rosées du matin, Et les coucous éparpillés couvrent le vert vallon : Mais où trouver du plaisir ou de belles choses, Quand les heures s'éternisent, comptées par les soucis ? Ni l'oiseau chantant doucement, ni la fleur jaillissant gaiement, Ne peuvent calmer le cœur triste d'un mélancolique désespoir. L'action que j'ai osée, pouvait-elle mériter leur malveillance ? Placer un roi et un père sur son trône ! Il possède de droit ces collines et ces vallées, Où les bêtes sauvages trouvent abri, bien que je n'en trouve pas ! Mais ce ne sont pas mes souffrances, misérable, abandonné, Que je pleure, mes braves et nobles amis, c'est votre ruine ! Votre fidélité se montra si loyale dans ce violent et sanglant procès, Hélas ? Ne puis-je pas faire de meilleurs remerciements ?
About the headline (FAQ)
Translation of Burns's title: "La lamentation du chevalier"Text Authorship:
- Translation from English to French (Français) copyright © 2014 by Pierre Mathé, (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:
- a text in English by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), "Song -- The Chevalier's Lament"
This text was added to the website: 2014-08-04
Line count: 17
Word count: 150