Be Happy | Be happy, oh my sweet beloved one

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by Victor Hugo (1802 - 1885)

Translation © by Amy Pfrimmer

Sois heureuse

(Sung text for setting by C. Widor)

See original

Language: French (Français)

Our translations: ENG

    Sois heureuse, ô ma douce amie,
Salue en paix la vie et jouis des beaux jours ;
Sur le fleuve du temps mollement endormie,
    Laisse les flots suivre leur cours !

 ... 

    Bientôt tu peux m'être ravie ;
Peut-être, loin de toi, demain j'irai languir.
Quoi, déjà tout est sombre et fatal dans ma vie !
    J'ai dû t'aimer, je dois te fuir !

Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1,3 of the original text.

Composition:

Charles Marie Jean Albert Widor

Quarante mélodies

6 Mélodies

Text Authorship:

by Victor Hugo (1802 - 1885), "Premier soupir", written 1819, appears in Odes et Ballades, in 5. Odes, Livre Cinquième - 1819-1828, no. 1

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

ENG English (Amy Pfrimmer) , "Be Happy", copyright © 2023, (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: 29
Word count: 215

Be Happy

(Sung text translation for setting by C. Widor)

See original

Language: English after the French (Français)

Be happy, oh my sweet beloved one, 
embrace life in peace and take pleasure in beautiful days;
On the softly sleeping river of time, 
let the waves follow their course!

 ... 

Soon you may be taken from me; 
Perhaps, tomorrow I will languish far from you.
Whatever happens, my entire life is already destined for darkness! 
I had to love you, so I must escape from you!

Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1,3 of the original text.

Text Authorship:

Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2023 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.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in French (Français) by Victor Hugo (1802 - 1885), "Premier soupir", written 1819, appears in Odes et Ballades, in 5. Odes, Livre Cinquième - 1819-1828, no. 1
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This text was added to the website: 2023-06-04
Line count: 29
Word count: 66