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by Paul Verlaine (1844 - 1896)
Translation by Georg von der Vring (1889 - 1968)

J'ai peur d'un baiser
Language: French (Français) 
Our translations:  ENG
J'ai peur d'un baiser
Comme d'une abeille.
Je souffre et je veille
Sans me reposer :
J'ai peur d'un baiser !

Pourtant j'aime Kate
Et ses yeux jolis.
Elle est délicate,
Aux longs traits pâlis.
Oh ! que j'aime Kate !

C'est Saint-Valentin !
Je dois et je n'ose
Lui dire au matin ...
La terrible chose
Que Saint-Valentin !

Elle m'est promise,
Fort heureusement !
Mais quelle entreprise
Que d'être un amant
Près d'une promise !

J'ai peur d'un baiser
Comme d'une abeille.
Je souffre et je veille
Sans me reposer :
J'ai peur d'un baiser !

About the headline (FAQ)

Text Authorship:

  • by Paul Verlaine (1844 - 1896), "A poor young shepherd", appears in Romances sans paroles, in Aquarelles, no. 5, first published 1874 [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 Jacques Beers (1902 - 1947), "A poor young shepherd", published 1943 [ voice and piano ], from Six chants de Paul Verlaine, no. 1, Amsterdam, Donemus [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Maxime Belliard (1888 - 1986), "Le petit berger", [1923] [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Paul Bonneau (1918 - 1995), "J'ai peur d'un baiser", published 1955 [ voice and piano ], from Six poésies de Paul Verlaine, no. 2, Paris, S.E.M.I. [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Jacques Bousquet (1883 - 1939), "A poor young shepherd", <<1911 [ voice and piano ], Éditions F. Durdilly [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Colin Brumby (b. 1933), "A poor young shepherd", copyright © 1947 [ medium voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Henri-Paul Büsser (1872 - 1973), "J'ai peur d'un baiser", op. 111 no. 2 (1924), published 1943 [ medium voice and piano ], Paris, Éd. Durand [sung text not yet checked]
  • by René Chansarel (1864 - 1945), "Aquarelle anglaise", published 1902 [ voice and piano ], Paris, Énoch [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Edgar Cosma (1925 - 2006), "A poor young shepherd", copyright © 1985 [ SATB chorus a cappella ], from Chansons en zigzag, no. 2, Lyon, À cœur joie [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Bernard-Louis Crocé-Spinelli (1871 - 1932), "J'ai peur d'un baiser", published 1898 [ voice and piano ], Paris, Heugel [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Hector Michel Fraggi (1882 - 1944), "J'ai peur d'un baiser", published 1931 [ voice and piano ], Paris, Salabert [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Eduardo García Mansilla (1871 - 1930), "J'ai peur d'un baiser" [ voice and piano ], from Cinq poèmes, no. 3, Paris, Grus [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Béatrix Helque , "A poor young shepherd", published 1935 [ voice and piano ], from Mélodies, no. 7 [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Paul Ladmirault (1877 - 1944), "A poor young shepherd", <<1900 [ high voice and piano ], from Mélodies pour voix et piano, no. 1, Paris, E. Gallet [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Robert Louis Iwan Le Grand (1894 - 1964), "J'ai peur d'un baiser", [1945] [ voice and piano ], from Aquarelles, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Jean Louël (b. 1914), "A poor little shepherd", 1939 [ voice and piano ], unpublished [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Arthur Vincent Lourié (1891 - 1966), "A poor shepherd", 1919 [ voice and piano ], from Verlaine, no. 6, Petrograd / Moscow, Государственное музыкальное издательство (Gosudarstvennoe muzykal’noe izdatel’stvo ) [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Henry de Marliave , "A poor young shepherd" [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Lucien Mawet (1875 - 1947), "J'ai peur d'un baiser", published 1921 [ voice and piano ], Bruxelles, L. Mawet [sung text not yet checked]
  • by René Mottart , "J'ai peur d'un baiser", [1900] [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Georges (Jerzy) Nawrocki , "A poor young shepherd", <<1971 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Émile-Barthélemy Passani , "A poor young shepherd", [1950] [ voice and piano ], from Trois poèmes de Verlaine, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Irena Regina Poldowski (1880 - 1932), "A poor young shepherd", published 1912 [ voice and piano ], Paris, Rœder [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Pierre-Jacob Robert-Cantabre , "A poor young shepherd", published [1921] [ high voice and piano ], from Mélodies, I, no. 3, Pau, Éd. Pierre Jacob Cantabre [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Augustin Smet (1878 - 1952), "A poor young shepherd", published 1930 [ voice and piano ], from Six mélodies, no. 6, Paris, Lorette [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Rudi Spring (b. 1962), "A poor young Shepherd", op. 96 no. 4 (2018) [ baritone and piano ], from Livre de Mélodies Françaises, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Jósef-Zygmunt Szulc (1875 - 1956), "J'ai peur d'un baiser", op. 83 (Dix mélodies sur des poésies de Verlaine) no. 4, published 1907 [ voice and piano ], Paris, Rouart Lerolle [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Jeanne Emilie Virginie Vignery (1913 - 1974), "J'ai peur d'un baiser", 1952 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

  • Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Georg von der Vring (1889 - 1968) ; composed by Karlheinz Stockhausen.
    • Go to the text.
  • Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by Arthur Grüber.
    • Go to the text. [Note: the text is not in the database yet.]
  • Also set in Russian (Русский), a translation by B. Lifshits ; composed by Aleksandr Borisovich Matyukhin.
    • Go to the text. [Note: the text is not in the database yet.]

Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

  • ENG English (Garrett Medlock) , copyright © 2020, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2008-09-12
Line count: 25
Word count: 87

Armer junger Hirt
Language: German (Deutsch)  after the French (Français) 
Angst hab' ich vor Küssen,
Als wären sie Bienen,
Wozu sie nur dienen!
Ach, wird man es müssen?
Angst hab' ich vor Küssen!

Zwar lieb' ich mein Kätchen -
Das mag ihr genügen.
Ein kitzliges Mädchen
Mit länglichen Zügen.
Ach, liebt' ich kein Kätchen!

Daß sie mir verlobt ist:
Schon gut; aber müssen,
Was sie noch erprobt ist:
Umarmen und küssen...
Wo nichts als verlobt ist!

Am Valentinstage
Da soll ich sie treffen.
Was ich ihr nur sage?
Nichts kann mich mehr äffen,
Als Valentinstage!

Angst hab' ich vor Küssen,
Als wären sie Bienen,
Wozu sie nur dienen?
Ach, wird man es müssen?
Angst hab' ich vor Küssen!

Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada, but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.

Text Authorship:

  • by Georg von der Vring (1889 - 1968) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]

Based on:

  • a text in French (Français) by Paul Verlaine (1844 - 1896), "A poor young shepherd", appears in Romances sans paroles, in Aquarelles, no. 5, first published 1874
    • Go to the text page.

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

  • by Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928 - 2007), "Armer junger Hirt", 1950, published 1971, from Chöre für Doris, no. 2, Vienna, Universal [sung text checked 1 time]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2003-11-05
Line count: 25
Word count: 107

Gentle Reminder

This website began in 1995 as a personal project by Emily Ezust, who has been working on it full-time without a salary since 2008. Our research has never had any government or institutional funding, so if you found the information here useful, please consider making a donation. Your help is greatly appreciated!
–Emily Ezust, Founder

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