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When they come back -- if Blossoms do -- I always feel a doubt If Blossoms can be born again When once the Art is out -- When they begin, if Robins [may]1, I always had a fear I did not tell, it was their last Experiment Last Year, When it is May, if May return, [Had]2 nobody a pang Lest [in]3 a Face so beautiful [He]4 might not look again? If I am there -- One does not know What Party -- One may be Tomorrow, but if I am there I take back all I say --
About the headline (FAQ)
View text without footnotes1 Copland: "do"
2 Coulthard: "Hath", Copland: "Has"
3 Coulthard, Copland: "on"
4 Copland: "We"
Text Authorship:
- by Emily Dickinson (1830 - 1886), no title, appears in Further poems of Emily Dickinson [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 Aaron Copland (1900 - 1990), "When they come back", 1949-50, published 1951 [ voice, piano ], from Twelve Poems of Emily Dickinson, no. 8 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Jean Coulthard (1908 - 2000), "When they come back -- if Blossoms do" [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "Quan elles retornin", copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Quand elles reviennent, si les fleurs reviennent", copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 98
Quand elles reviennent, si les fleurs reviennent Je ressens toujours un doute Que les fleurs puissent renaître Quand leur beauté est finie Quand ils commencent, si les merles commencent J'ai toujours eu une crainte Je n'ai pas dit que c'était leur dernier Essai l'an dernier Quand c'est le mois de Mai, si Mai revient Personne n'a une crainte Qu'un visage si beau Nous ne puissions le revoir. Si je suis là, on ne sait pas En quelle compagnie, on peut être Demain, mais si je suis là Je retire tout ce que j'ai dit.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from English to French (Français) copyright © 2008 by Guy Laffaille, (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 Emily Dickinson (1830 - 1886), no title, appears in Further poems of Emily Dickinson
This text was added to the website: 2008-11-09
Line count: 16
Word count: 94