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Il faut chanter un chant pastoral, invoquer Pan, dieu du vent d'été. Je garde mon troupeau et Sélénis le sien, à l'ombre ronde d'un olivier qui tremble. Sélénis est couchée sur le pré. Elle se lève et court, ou cherche des cigales, ou cueille des fleurs avec des herbes, ou lave son visage dans l'eau fraîche du ruisseau. Moi, j'arrache la laine au dos blond des moutons pour en garnir ma quenouille, et je file. Les heures sont lentes. Un aigle passe dans le ciel. L'ombre tourne: changeons de place la corbeille de [figues]1 et la jarre de lait. Il faut chanter un chant pastoral, invoquer Pan, dieu du vent d'été.
1 Debussy: "fleurs" (and some editions of Louÿs)
Text Authorship:
- by Pierre-Félix Louis (1870 - 1925), as Pierre Louÿs, "Chant pastoral", appears in Les Chansons de Bilitis, in Bucoliques en Pamphylie, no. 2 [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 André-Marie Cuvelier (d. 1947), "Chant pastoral", 1932 [ high voice and piano ], from Chansons de Bilitis, 2ème recueil, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Claude Achille Debussy (1862 - 1918), "Chant pastoral", L. 102/(96) no. 1, from Chansons de Bilitis, no. 1, note: incidental music to accompany the recitation of twelve prose poems [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Joseph Jongen (1873 - 1953), "Chant pastoral", op. 42 (1913) [ women's chorus and piano or chamber orchestra ] [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Marvin J. Ward) , "Pastoral Song", copyright © 2003, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Hirtenlied", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Marvin J. Ward
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 112
Ein Hirtenlied gilt's anzustimmen, Pan, den Gott des Sommerwindes zu beschwören. Ich hüte meine Herde und Selene hütet ihre im runden Schatten einer flirrenden Olive. Selene ruht im Wiesengrund. Auf steht sie, läuft, hascht nach Zikaden, pflückt Blumen samt den Gräsern; im kühlen Nass des Bachs erfrischt sie ihr Gesicht. Und ich, ich zupfe Wolle aus den hellen Rücken meiner Schafe, dem Rocken aufzuwinden, und ich spinne. Die Stunden schleichen. Am Himmel zieht ein Adler. Der Schatten wandert: lasst uns den Feigenkorb umsetzen und den Krug mit Milch. Ein Hirtenlied gilt's anzustimmen, Pan, den Gott des Sommerwindes zu beschwören.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to German (Deutsch) copyright © 2013 by Bertram Kottmann, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you must ask the copyright-holder(s) directly for permission. If you receive no response, you must consider it a refusal.
Bertram Kottmann. Contact: BKottmann (AT) t-online.de
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Based on:
- a text in French (Français) by Pierre-Félix Louis (1870 - 1925), as Pierre Louÿs, "Chant pastoral", appears in Les Chansons de Bilitis, in Bucoliques en Pamphylie, no. 2
This text was added to the website: 2013-03-06
Line count: 16
Word count: 99