Poor Jeannette | LiederNet

Attention! Some of this material is not in the public domain.

It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. It is also illegal to reprint copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator.

To inquire about permissions and rates, contact Emily Ezust at licenses@email.lieder.example.net

If you wish to reprint translations, please make sure you include the names of the translators in your email. They are below each translation.

Note: You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.

by Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian (1755 - 1794)

Translation © by Grant Hicks

Pauvre Jeannette

Language: French (Français)

Our translations: ENG

   Pauvre Jeannette,
Qui chantoit si bien,
      Lalirette,
   Triste et seulette,
Tu ne dis plus rien.
   Las ! je soupire
Loin de mon ami :
   Ne sais rien dire
A d'autres qu'à lui.

   Jeune et fillette,
Ne peux-tu changer ?
      Lalirette :
   Crois-moi, Jeannette,
Choisis un berger.
   Le roi lui-même
Auroit un refus ;
   Du jour qu'on aime
On ne choisit plus.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

• F. Mendelssohn

About the headline (FAQ)

View text with all available footnotes

Confirmed with Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian, Nouvelles nouvelles, Paris: L'Imprimerie de Didot l'aîné, 1792, Page 89.

Text Authorship:

by Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian (1755 - 1794), no title, appears in Claudine [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 Fanny Hensel (1805 - 1847), "Romance de Claudine", H-U 5 (1820) [ medium voice and piano ], from Frühe Französische Lieder, no. 1 [sung text not yet checked]
by Charles-Léon Hess (1844 - 1926), "Vieille chanson", published 1878-1879 [ voice and piano ], in Journal du Musique [sung text not yet checked]
by Felix Mendelssohn (1809 - 1847), "Pauvre Jeanette", c1820 [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Grant Hicks) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Grant Hicks [Guest Editor] , Guy Laffaille [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2010-07-27
Line count: 18
Word count: 58

Poor Jeannette

Language: English after the French (Français)

  "Poor Jeannette,
Who sang so well,
      Tralala,
   Sad and all alone,
You no longer say anything."
   "Alas! I am pining
Far from my sweetheart:
   I can't say anything 
To anyone but him."

   "Young little girl,
Can't you make a change?
      Tralala:
   Believe me, Jeannette,
Choose a shepherd."
   "The king himself 
I would turn away;
   Once one falls in love
One no longer has a choice."

About the headline (FAQ)

View text with all available footnotes

Translations of titles:
"Pauvre Jeanette" = "Poor Jeanette"
"Romance de Claudine" = "Claudine's Romance "
"Vieille chanson" = "Old Song "

Text Authorship:

Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2025 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.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in French (Français) by Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian (1755 - 1794), no title, appears in Claudine
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2025-11-24
Line count: 18
Word count: 70