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Miser Catulle, desinas ineptire, Et quod uides perisse perditum ducas. Fulsere quondam candidi tibi soles, Cum uentitabas quo puella ducebat Amata nobis quantum amabitur nulla. Ibi illa multa cum iocosa fiebant, Quae tu uolebas nec puella nolebat. Fulsere uere candidi tibi soles. Nunc iam illa non uult: tu quoque inpotens, noli, Nec quae fugit sectare, nec miser uiue, Sed obstinata mente perfer, obdura. Vale, puella! iam Catullus obdurat, Nec te requiret nec rogabit inuitam: At tu dolebis, cum rogaberis nulla. Scelesta, uae te! quae tibi manet vita! Quis nunc te adibit? cui uideberis bella? Quem nunc amabis? cuius esse diceris? Quem basiabis? cui labella mordebis? At tu, Catulle, destinatus obdura.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Gaius Valerius Catullus (c84 BCE - 54 BCE), no title, appears in Carmina, no. 8 [author's text checked 1 time 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 Carl Orff (1895 - 1982), "[XI]. Miser Catulle, desinas ineptire", 1940-43, published 1943, from cantata Catulli Carmina, no. 12 [sung text checked 1 time]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in English, a translation by Dominick Argento (1927 - 2019) [an adaptation] ; composed by Dominick Argento.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Grant Hicks) , copyright © 2026, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Mario Rapisardi) , no title, first published 1889
- SPA Spanish (Español) (Saúl Botero Restrepo) , copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-12-17
Line count: 19
Word count: 110
Desgraciado Catulo, déjate de tonterías, y lo que ves que ha perecido, dalo por perdido. Brillaron para ti, en otro tiempo, días luminosos, cuando acudías a donde te llevaba la muchacha, amada por mí como ninguna. Allí tenían lugar entonces, muchos goces, que tú deseabas y ella no rechazaba. Cierto es que brillaron para ti días luminosos, mas ahora, que ella no quiere, también tú deja de querer, y no corras tras la que te huye ni vivas desgraciado, sino obstinado resiste y no cedas. ¡Adiós muchacha! Ahora Catulo se ha endurecido, no te buscará ni te suplicará, pero tú lamentarás que no te ruegue. ¡Desgraciada, ay de ti! ¡Qué vida te espera! ¿Quién te visitará ahora? ¿A quién parecerás hermosa? ¿A quién amarás ahora? ¿De quién dirás que eres? ¿A quién besarás? ¿Qué labios morderás?. Pero tú, Catulo, mantente firme.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- Translation from Latin to Spanish (Español) copyright © 2015 by Saúl Botero Restrepo, (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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Based on:
- a text in Latin by Gaius Valerius Catullus (c84 BCE - 54 BCE), no title, appears in Carmina, no. 8
This text was added to the website: 2015-10-08
Line count: 19
Word count: 141