by Franz Toussaint (1879 - 1955)
Translation © by Grant Hicks

Attente
 (Sung text for setting by A. Bonhomme)
 See original
Language: French (Français)  after the Arabic (العربية) 
Our translations:  ENG
Plus rouge que la fleur de l'océan 
le soleil descendait dans les sables. 
C'était l'heure convenue. J'avais entravé mon cheval. Je m'étais assis. 

Tu es arrivée ! 
Et j'ai frissonné, comme le dormeur 
qui est surpris par l'aurore.

Composition:

Text Authorship:

Based on:

See other settings of this text.

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: Harry Joelson , Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2010-08-01
Line count: 6
Word count: 45

Redder than the flower of the ohkouan
 (Sung text translation for setting by A. Bonhomme)
 See original
Language: English  after the French (Français) 
Redder than the flower of the ocean
the sun set into the sands.
It was the appointed hour.  I'd tied up my horse. I'd sat down.

You appeared!
And I shivered, like a sleeper
who is surprised by the dawn.

About the headline (FAQ)

Translations of titles:
"Attente" = "Waiting"
"Ebn Zeïdoun" = "Ebn Zeïdoun"
"L'Attente" = "Waiting"

Note to stanza 1, line 1, line 7: ohkouan appears in Toussaint's translation from the Arabic and is left unexplained.

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: 

Based on:

Based on:

Go to the general single-text view


This text was added to the website: 2025-09-13
Line count: 6
Word count: 50