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There's a bower of roses, by Bendemeer's Stream, And the nightingale sings 'round it all the day long. In the time of my childhood 'Twas sweet like a dream, To sit by the roses And hear the bird's song. That bow'r and its music I ne'er can forget, But of when alone In the bloom of the year I think, "Is the nightingale singing there yet?" Are the roses still bright by the calm Bendemeer?" No, the roses soon withered that hung o'er the wave, But the blossoms were gathered While freshly they shone, And the dew was distilled On the flowers, that gave All the fragrance of summer - when summer is gone. Thus memory draws from delight ere it dies, An essence that breathes of it many a year. Thus, bright to my soul as 'twas then to my eyes, Is that bow'r on the banks of the calm Bendemeer.
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Thomas Moore, Lalla Rookh: an Oriental Romance, third edition, London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown, 1817, page 63. Appears in The Veiled Prophet of Khorassan.
Text Authorship:
- by Thomas Moore (1779 - 1852), no title, appears in Lalla Rookh, in The Veiled Prophet of Khorassan, London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown, first published 1817 [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 Henry Balfour Gardiner (1877 - 1950), "The Banks of calm Bendemeer", 1893 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Charles Marshall (1857 - 1927), "Bendemeer's Stream" [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Maude Valérie White (1855 - 1937), "There's a bower of roses", published 1881 [ voice and piano ], London: Boosey & Co. [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in French (Français), a translation by Sabine-Casimire-Amable Tastu (1795 - 1885) , "L'Odalisque" [an adaptation] ; composed by Giulio Alary, Alfredo Catalani, Léon Dufils.
- Also set in French (Français), a translation by Marceline Desbordes-Valmore (1786 - 1859) , "Chant d'une jeune esclave", subtitle: "Imité de Moore", written 1821, first published 1821 [an adaptation] ; composed by Edmond de Coussemaker, Caroline Martainville, Edmond Michotte.
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Friedrich Ludwig Breuer (1786 - 1833) , no title [an adaptation] ; composed by Franz Aloys Theodor Commer, Johann Peter Cornelius D'Alquen.
- Also set in Italian (Italiano), a translation by Sabine-Casimire-Amable Tastu (1795 - 1885) [an adaptation] ; composed by Alfredo Catalani.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , copyright © 2026, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Melanie Trumbull
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 32
Word count: 151
Il y a une tonnelle de roses, au bord de la rivière Bendemeer, Et le rossignol chante tout autour, toute la journée. Au temps de mon enfance, c'était doux comme un rêve, De m'asseoir près des roses Et d'écouter le chant de l'oiseau. Cette tonnelle et sa musique, je ne pourrai jamais les oublier, Mais quand je suis seul Dans l’épanouissement de l’année, Je me dis : « Le rossignol, chante-t-il encore là-bas ? » Les roses sont-elles toujours éclatantes au bord du calme Bendemeer ? » Non, les roses se sont vite fanées, celles qui pendaient au-dessus des vagues, Mais les fleurs furent cueillies Quand elles brillaient de fraîcheur, Et la rosée s’est distillée Sur les fleurs, leur offrant Tout le parfum de l’été alors que l’été était passé. Ainsi, le souvenir puise dans le plaisir avant qu’il ne s’éteigne, Une essence qui en respire le parfum pendant de nombreuses années. Ainsi, aussi lumineuse pour mon âme qu’elle l’était alors pour mes yeux, Est cette tonnelle sur les rives de la calme Bendemeer.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translations of titles:
"Bendemeer's Stream" = "La rivière Bendemeer"
"The Banks of calm Bendemeer" = "Les rives de la calme Bendemeer"
"There's a bower of roses" = "Il y a une tonnnelle de roses"
Text Authorship:
- Translation from English to French (Français) copyright © 2026 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.
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Based on:
- a text in English by Thomas Moore (1779 - 1852), no title, appears in Lalla Rookh, in The Veiled Prophet of Khorassan, London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown, first published 1817
This text was added to the website: 2026-05-30
Line count: 32
Word count: 171