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Lorsque ma bien-aimée m'apparaîtra, le soir des épousailles, je veux qu'elle soit vêtue d'une robe verte comme l'étendard du Prophète. Les femmes ne joncheront pas les dalles de fleurs et de palmes, car je veux voir si le marbre ne frissonnera pas sous ses pieds. Lorsque ma bien-aimée m'apparaîtra, le soir des épousailles, je veux que l'on arrête le jet d'eau de la cour, afin que j'entende mieux l'hymne de mon cœur. Lorsque ma bien-aimée m'aura ouvert ses bras, les femmes emporteront toutes les lampes, et je serai encore ébloui !
Confirmed with Franz Toussaint, Le jardin des caresses, Paris: H. Piazza, 1921, page 106.
Text Authorship:
- by Franz Toussaint (1879 - 1955), "Le Soir secret", appears in Le jardin des caresses, no. 109 [author's text checked 2 times against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Arabic (العربية) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist [text unavailable]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by M.-A. Guyot , "Le Soir secret", published 1926 [ voice and piano ], from Deux mélodies, no. 2, Paris : Maurice Sénart [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Grant Hicks) , "The Secret Evening", copyright © 2026, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Grant Hicks [Guest Editor] , Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2025-02-12
Line count: 10
Word count: 90
When my beloved appears to me on our wedding night, I want her to be dressed in a gown that is green like the flag of the Prophet. The women will not strew the tiles with flowers and palm leaves, for I want to see whether the marble will not tremble beneath her feet. When my beloved appears to me on our wedding night, I want them to shut off the fountain in the courtyard, so that I may better hear the hymn in my heart. When my beloved opens her arms to me, the women will carry off all the lamps, and I will still be dazzled!
Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2026 by Grant Hicks, (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 Franz Toussaint (1879 - 1955), "Le Soir secret", appears in Le jardin des caresses, no. 109
Based on:
- a text in Arabic (العربية) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist [text unavailable]
This text was added to the website: 2026-02-22
Line count: 10
Word count: 108