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Lison revenait au village, -C’était le soir- Elle aperçut sur son passage -Il faisait noir;- Accourir le jeune Sylvandre, Lison eut peur. Elle ne voulut pas l’attendre; C’est un malheur. Refrain C’était le soir Il faisait noir, Lison eut peur, C’est un malheur. Que pouvait faire cette belle? -C’était le soir- Sylvandre court plus vite qu’elle; -Il faisait noir;- Il la joint et soudain l’arrête; Lison eut peur. La peur la fit choir sur l’herbette, C’est un malheur. Refrain Quand Lison fut ainsi tombée, -C’était le soir- Le berger, à la dérobée, -Il faisait noir;- Voulut ravir certaine rose. Lison eut peur. La peur ne sert pas à grand’ chose, C’est un malheur. Refrain Personne n’était sur la route; -C’était le soir- Bientôt Lison n’y vit plus goutte. -Il faisait noir;- Sa taille devint moins légère, Lison eut peur. L’hiver d’après, elle était mère, C’est un malheur. Refrain
Text Authorship:
- by (Pierre Ambroise François) Choderlos de Laclos (1741 - 1803) [author's text not yet checked 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 Gustave Ferrari (1872 - 1948), "La Peureuse", published 1911, copyright © 1911 [voice and piano], B. Schott's Söhne, Mainz [ sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Garrett Medlock) , "The fearful girl", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Garrett Medlock [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2019-01-07
Line count: 40
Word count: 148
Lison was returning to the village, -It was evening- She spied on her way -It was black- Rushing [toward her] the young Sylvandre, Lison was afraid. She did not want to wait for him [to catch up]; It is a shame1. Refrain It was evening It was black, Lison was afraid, It is a shame. What could this beauty do? -It was evening- Sylvandre runs faster than she; -It was black- He meets her and suddenly stops her; Lison was afraid. Fear made her fall onto the grass, It is a shame. Refrain When Lison [had] fallen this way, -It was evening- The shepherd, in secret, -It was black- Wanted to steal [a] certain rose. Lison was afraid. Fear [is of no great use,] It is a shame. Refrain No one was on the road; -It was evening- Soon Lison no longer saw a thing. -It was black- Her [figure] became less light, Lison was afraid. The next winter, she was [a] mother, It is a shame. Refrain
1 Or more severely, "tragedy," but the text's delivery suggests a certain indifference.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2019 by Garrett Medlock, (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 French (Français) by (Pierre Ambroise François) Choderlos de Laclos (1741 - 1803)
This text was added to the website: 2019-01-07
Line count: 40
Word count: 170