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Vu que tu es plus blanche que le lis, Qui t'a rougi ta lèvre vermeillette D'un si beau teint ? Qui est-ce qui t'a mis Sur ton beau sein cette couleur rougette ? Qui t'a noirci les arcs de tes sourcils ? Qui t'a bruni tes beaux yeux, ma maîtresse ? Ô grand beauté remplie de soucis, Ô grand beauté pleine de grand liesse ! Ô douce, belle, honnête cruauté, Qui doucement me contraint de te suivre, Ô fière, ingrate, et fâcheuse beauté, Avecque toi je veux mourir et vivre.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Pierre de Ronsard (1524 - 1585), "Vu que tu es plus blanche", subtitle: "Chanson", appears in Les Amours (1553), first published 1553 [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 Anthoine de Bertrand (1540? - 1581?), "Veu que tu es plus blanche que le liz", published 1578, first performed 1576 [ vocal quartet a cappella ], from Les Amours de Pierre de Ronsard à 4 parties, Livre 2, no. 9 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Pierre Thilloy (b. 1970), "Vu que tu es plus blanche", op. 172 no. 2 (2010), published 2010 [ baritone and piano ], from Le Piège des fleurs, trois mélodies pour baryton sur des poèmes de Ronsard, no. 2, Éd. Musicales de La Salamandre [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (David Wyatt) , "Since you are whiter than the lily", copyright © 2012, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-10-28
Line count: 12
Word count: 85
Since you are whiter than the lily, Who reddened your crimson lips for you With so fair a tint? Who was it Set this delicate red on your fair breast? Who darkened the arcs of your eyebrows for you? Who made your lovely eyes so brown, mistress mine? O great beauty, filled with cares, O great beauty, full of great happiness! O sweet, fair, reasonable cruelty Which gently forces me to follow you; O proud, ungrateful and displeasing beauty, With you I wish to die -- and live!
Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2012 by David Wyatt, (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 Pierre de Ronsard (1524 - 1585), "Vu que tu es plus blanche", subtitle: "Chanson", appears in Les Amours (1553), first published 1553
This text was added to the website: 2012-07-26
Line count: 12
Word count: 87