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Je respire où tu palpites, Tu sais ; à quoi bon, hélas ! Rester là si tu me quittes, Et vivre si tu t’en vas ? À quoi bon vivre, étant l’ombre De cet ange qui s’enfuit ! À quoi bon, sous le ciel sombre, N’être plus que de la nuit ? Je suis la fleur des murailles Dont avril est le seul bien. Il suffit que tu t’en ailles Pour qu’il ne reste plus rien. ... ... Je suis comme la colombe Qui vient boire au lac d’azur. Quand mon courage succombe, J’en reprends dans ton cœur pur ; ... Que veux-tu que je devienne, Si je n’entends plus ton pas ? Est-ce ta vie ou la mienne Qui s’en va ? Je ne sais pas. ... Sans toi, toute la nature N’est plus qu’un cachot fermé, Où je vais à l’aventure, Pâle et n’étant plus aimé. ... Je t’implore et te réclame ; Ne fuis pas loin de mes maux, Ô fauvette de mon âme Qui chante dans mes rameaux ! Ô fauvette de mon âme, que veux-tu que je devienne si je n’entends ton pas ? De quoi puis-je avoir envie, De quoi puis-je avoir effroi, Si ton âme m’oublie, Si tu n’es plus près de moi ? ... Que dirai-je aux champs que voile L’inconsolable douleur ? Que ferai-je de l’étoile ? Que ferai-je de la fleur ? Que ferai-je de la vie Si tu n’es plus près de moi ?
Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1-3, 7 (lines 3-4, 1-2), 6, 9, 11-12, 14 of the original text.
Composition:
- Set to music by Charles Marie Jean Albert Widor (1844 - 1937), "Je respire où tu palpites", stanzas 1-3, 7 (lines 3-4, 1-2), 6, 9, 11-12, 14 [ high voice and piano ], from Quarante mélodies, no. 37, Éd. J. Hamelle
Text Authorship:
- by Victor Hugo (1802 - 1885), no title, appears in Les Contemplations, in 2. Livre deuxiême -- L'âme en fleur, no. 25
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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English [singable] (Anonymous/Unidentified Artist) , "Without thee" [an adaptation]
- ENG English (Amy Pfrimmer) , copyright © 2023, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Jacques L'oiseleur des Longchamps , Emily Bateman , Amy Pfrimmer
This text was added to the website: 2009-03-18
Line count: 72
Word count: 381
I breathe where you tremble, you know; alas, what good is it to stay here if you leave me, and to live if you go? What good is living as the shadow of this angel withdrawing! What good is it, beneath the somber sky, to be nothing more than night? I am the flowers on the walls which bloom only in April. It is enough for you to leave, so that there is nothing left. ... ... What do you want me to become, if I no longer hear your footsteps? Is it your life or mine that must be over? I do not know. ... I am like the dove that comes to drink from the azure blue lake. When my courage fails, I take it up again in your pure heart! ... Without you, all of nature is no more than an impenetrable dungeon, Where I am wandering, pale and no longer loved. ... I implore you and call for you; Do not run away from my despair, O little bird of my soul who sings in my branches! O tiny bird of my soul, what do you want me to become if I no longer hear your footsteps? What can I desire, what can I be afraid of, If your soul forgets me, if you are no longer near me? ... What shall I say to the fields covered by inconsolable pain? What shall I do with the star? What will I do with the flower? What will I do with life if you are no longer close to me?
About the headline (FAQ)
Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1-3, 7 (lines 3-4, 1-2), 6, 9, 11-12, 14 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), no title, appears in Les Contemplations, in 2. Livre deuxiême -- L'âme en fleur, no. 25
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This text was added to the website: 2023-06-06
Line count: 72
Word count: 227