Three Paul Verlaine Songs

by Roger Guy Steptoe (b. 1953)

1. La lune blanche [sung text not yet checked]

La lune blanche 
Luit dans les bois ;
De chaque branche 
Part une voix 
Sous la ramée...

Ô bien aimée.

L'étang reflète,
Profond miroir,
La silhouette
Du saule noir
Où le vent pleure...

Rêvons, c'est l'heure.

Un vaste et tendre
Apaisement
Semble descendre
Du firmament
Que l'astre irise...

C'est l'heure exquise.

Authorship:

by Paul Verlaine (1844 - 1896), no title, appears in La bonne chanson, no. 6, first published 1870 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2023, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
CZE Czech (Čeština) (Jaroslav Vrchlický) , "Píseň"
ENG English (Grant A. Lewis) , "The white moon", copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Charles Hopkins) , "The Moment of Ecstasy", written 2002, first published 2002, copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Charles Hopkins) , written c2005, copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FIN Finnish (Suomi) (Erkki Pullinen) , "Kalpea kuu ", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
GER German (Deutsch) (Pierre Mathé) , "Der weiße Mond", copyright © 2012, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
GER German (Deutsch) (Elaine Marie Ortiz-Arandes) , copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
GRE Greek (Ελληνικά) [singable] (Christakis Poumbouris) , "Λευκή σελήνη", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
HUN Hungarian (Magyar) (Tamás Rédey) , copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
HUN Hungarian (Magyar) (Árpád Tóth) , "La lune blanche"
HUN Hungarian (Magyar) (Dezső Kosztolányi) , "Fehér hold"
ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , "La luna bianca", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
SPA Spanish (Español) (Elisa Rapado) , "La hora exquisita", copyright © 2007, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
SPA Spanish (Español) (Alberto Bonati) , "La luna blanca", copyright © 2007, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

2. Il pleut doucement sur la ville [sung text not yet checked]

Il pleure dans mon cœur
Comme il pleut sur la ville ;
Quelle est cette langueur
Qui pénètre mon cœur ?

Ô bruit doux de la pluie,
Par terre et sur les toits!
Pour un cœur qui s'ennuie,
Ô le [chant]¹ de la pluie !

Il pleure sans raison
Dans [ce]² cœur qui s'écœure.
Quoi! nulle trahison ? ...
[Ce]³ deuil est sans raison.

C'est bien la pire peine,
De ne savoir pourquoi
Sans amour et sans haine
Mon cœur a tant de peine!

Authorship:

by Paul Verlaine (1844 - 1896), no title, appears in Romances sans paroles, in Ariettes oubliées, no. 3, Sens, Typographie de Maurice L'Hermite, first published 1874 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

CAT Catalan (Català) [singable] (Núria Colomer) , copyright © 2020, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Peter Low) , "There is weeping in my heart", copyright © 2000, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Thomas Ang) , "In my heart it weeps", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Es weint in meinem Herzen", copyright © 2005, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
GER German (Deutsch) (Stefan George) , no title, appears in Zeitgenössische Dichter, in Frankreich, in Paul Verlaine, in Aus: Lieder ohne Worte, in Vergessene Weisen, no. 3
GER German (Deutsch) (Pierre Mathé) , "Es weint in meinem Herz", copyright © 2012, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
SPA Spanish (Español) (Elisa Rapado) , copyright © 2020, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

View original text (without footnotes)
¹ Debussy: "bruit"
² Fauré: "mon"; Madetoja: "le"
³ Fauré: "Mon"

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

3. Chanson d'Automne [sung text not yet checked]

Les sanglots longs
Des violons
   De l'automne
Blessent mon cœur
D'une langueur
   Monotone.

Tout suffocant
Et blême, quand
   Sonne l'heure,
Je me souviens
Des jours anciens
   Et je pleure ;

Et je m'en vais
Au vent mauvais
   Qui m'emporte
Deçà, delà,
Pareil à la
   Feuille morte.

Authorship:

by Paul Verlaine (1844 - 1896), "Chanson d'automne", appears in Poèmes saturniens, in 3. Paysages tristes, no. 5, Paris, Alphonse Lemerre, first published 1866 [author's text checked 2 times against a primary source]

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

ENG English (Bergen Weeks Applegate) , "Autumn Song", appears in Poems Saturnine, in 3. Somber Landscapes, no. 5
HUN Hungarian (Magyar) (Árpád Tóth) , "Őszi chanson"
POL Polish (Polski) (Teresa Prażmowska) , "Pieśń jesienna", first published 1889
POL Polish (Polski) (Barbara Beaupré) , "Jesienna pieśń"

Confirmed with Paul Verlaine, Poëmes saturniens, Paris: Alphonse Lemerre, 1866, in Paysages tristes, pages 57-58.

Research team for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Poom Andrew Pipatjarasgit [Guest Editor]

Total word count: 181