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Combien j'ai douce souvenance Du joli lieu de ma naissance ! Ma sœur, qu'ils étaient beaux les jours De France ! Ô mon pays, sois mes amours Toujours ! Te souvient-il que notre mère, Au foyer de notre chaumière, Nous pressait sur son cœur joyeux, Ma chère, Et nous baisions ses blancs cheveux Tous deux ? Ma sœur, te souvient-il encore Du château que baignait la Dore ! Et de cette tant vieille tour Du Maure, Où l'airain sonnait le retour Du jour ? Te souvient-il du lac tranquille Qu'effleurait l'hirondelle agile, Du vent qui courbait le roseau Mobile, Et du soleil couchant sur l'eau Si beau ? Oh ! qui me rendra mon Hélène, Et ma montagne, et le grand chêne ? Leur souvenir fait tous les jours Ma peine ! Mon pays sera mes amours Toujours !
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with François-René de Chateaubriand, Les Aventures du Dernier Abencérage, Garnier frères, 1861, in Œuvres complètes, tome III, pages 130-131.
Text Authorship:
- by François-René, Vicomte de Chateaubriand (1768 - 1848), "Le Montagnard exilé", appears in Les Aventures du Dernier Abencérage [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 César Franck (1822 - 1890), "Souvenance", FWV. 70 (1842-1843) [ female voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Axel Grandjean (1847 - 1932), "Le Montagnard émigré", op. 44 (Chansons françaises à 1 Voix avec Piano) no. 4, published 1895 [ voice and piano ], Leipzig, W. Hansen [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Amy Pfrimmer) , "Remembrance", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 30
Word count: 128
How sweet is the remembrance of our beautiful birthplace. My sister, they were beautiful, those days in France! O my country, be my beloved always! Do you remember our mother at the heart of our cottage, pressing us near to her joyful heart, my dearest, and when we two kissed her white hair? My sister, do you remember the castle that was bathed by the Dore, and the old tower, “The Moor” where the brass sounded the return of the day? Do you remember the tranquil lake skimmed by the agile swallow, the wind that bent the reeds, and the sun setting beautifully on the water? Oh! Who will bring me back my Helen and my mountain, and the great oak! Their remembrance makes every day painful. My country will always be my beloved, always!
Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2019 by Amy Pfrimmer, (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 François-René, Vicomte de Chateaubriand (1768 - 1848), "Le Montagnard exilé", appears in Les Aventures du Dernier Abencérage
This text was added to the website: 2019-07-04
Line count: 30
Word count: 135