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Sur l'eau bleue et profonde Nous allons voyageant, Environnant le monde D'un sillage d'argent, Des îles de la Sonde, De l'Inde au ciel brûlé, Jusqu'au pôle gelé... ... Nous pensons à la terre Que nous fuyons toujours, À notre vieille mère, À nos jeunes amours ; Mais la vague légère Avec son doux refrain Endort notre chagrin. ... Existence sublime ! Bercés par notre nid, Nous vivons sur l'abîme Au sein de l'infini ; Des flots rasant la cime, Dans le grand désert bleu Nous marchons avec Dieu !
Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1,3,5 of the original text.
Composition:
- Set to music by Gabriel Fauré (1845 - 1924), "Les Matelots", op. 2 no. 2 (1867), published 1876, stanzas 1,3,5 [ medium voice and piano ], Paris, Choudens
Text Authorship:
- by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872), "Les matelots", written 1841, appears in Poésies diverses, poésies nouvelles et inédites, poésies posthumes, in Poésies diverses 1838-1845
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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
- ENG English (Shawn Thuris) , "The sailors", copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) (Nele Gramß) , "Die Matrosen", copyright © 2007, (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: 35
Word count: 142
Upon the blue, deep water We shall travel, Encircling the world With a silver wake. From the Sunda Islands, From India of the burning sky, As far as the frozen pole! ... Sublime existence, Rocking in our nest. We live upon the abyss, On the breast of the infinite, Grazing the crests of the waves. In the great blue desert We go with God! ...
Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1,3,5 of the original text.
Note: this is a translation of Fauré's setting.Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © by Shawn Thuris, (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.
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Based on:
- a text in French (Français) by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872), "Les matelots", written 1841, appears in Poésies diverses, poésies nouvelles et inédites, poésies posthumes, in Poésies diverses 1838-1845
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This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 21
Word count: 93