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by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872)
Translation © by Bertram Kottmann

Le spectre de la rose
 (Sung text for setting by H. Berlioz)
 See original
Language: French (Français) 
Our translations:  CAT ENG FRI GER ITA
Soulêve ta paupière close
Qu'effleure un songe virginal ;
Je suis le spectre d'une rose
Que tu portais hier au bal.
Tu me pris encore emperlée
Des pleurs d'argent de l'arrosoir,
Et, parmi la fête étoilée,
Tu me promenas tout le soir.

Ô toi qui de ma mort fus cause,
Sans que tu puisses le chasser,
Toutes les nuits mon spectre rose
À ton chevet viendra danser :
Mais ne crains rien, je ne réclame
Ni messe ni De Profundis ;
Ce léger parfum est mon âme,
Et j'arrive du du paradis.

Mon destin fut digne d'envie ;
Et pour avoir un sort si beau,
Plus d'un aurait donné sa vie,
Car sur ton sein j'ai mon tombeau,
Et sur l'albâtre où je repose
Un poète, avec un baiser,
Écrivit : Ci-gît une rose
Que tous les rois vont jalouser.

Composition:

    Set to music by Hector Berlioz (1803 - 1869), "Le spectre de la rose", op. 7 no. 2 (1856) [ voice and orchestra ], from Les Nuits d'Été, no. 2, also set in German (Deutsch)

Text Authorship:

  • by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872), "Le spectre de la rose", written 1837, appears in La Comédie de la Mort, first published 1838

See other settings of this text.

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

  • CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Emily Ezust) , no title, copyright ©
  • FRI Frisian [singable] (Geart van der Meer) , "De siele fan de roas", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , "Lo spettro della rosa", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Pierre Mathé [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 24
Word count: 136

Der Geist der Rose
 (Sung text translation for setting by H. Berlioz)
 See original
Language: German (Deutsch)  after the French (Français) 
Schlag auf deine gesenkten Lider,
vom keuschen Traum flüchtig berührt -
ich bin der Geist, der Geist der Rose,
die gestern dich beim Ball geziert.
Du schnittst mich, silbern noch die Perlen,
beim Gießen auf mich ausgebracht,
und auf dem Feste unter Sternen
war ich bei dir die ganze Nacht.

O du, die schuld an meinem Tode
du kannst dich nicht von mir befrei’n,
allnächtlich wird der Geist der Rose
im Tanz an deiner Bettstatt sein.
Doch fürchte nichts, denn ich verlange
nicht Messe, noch De Profundis;
dies leicht’ Arom ist meine Seele,
ich komme aus dem Paradies.

Beneidenswürdig ist mein Los;
dass solches sei auch ihm zur Zier,
gäb mancher gern sein Leben hin.
Dein Busen ward zur Ruhstatt mir,
auf diesen Ruhealabaster
schrieb ein Poet mit einem Kuss
„Hier ruhet eine Rose,
der selbst ein König neiden muss.“

Text Authorship:

  • Translation from French (Français) to German (Deutsch) copyright © 2018 by Bertram Kottmann, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you must ask the copyright-holder(s) directly for permission. If you receive no response, you must consider it a refusal.

    Bertram Kottmann.  Contact: BKottmann (AT) t-online.de

    If you wish to commission a new translation, please contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

  • a text in French (Français) by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872), "Le spectre de la rose", written 1837, appears in La Comédie de la Mort, first published 1838
    • Go to the text page.

Go to the general single-text view


This text was added to the website: 2018-10-09
Line count: 24
Word count: 139

Gentle Reminder

This website began in 1995 as a personal project by Emily Ezust, who has been working on it full-time without a salary since 2008. Our research has never had any government or institutional funding, so if you found the information here useful, please consider making a donation. Your help is greatly appreciated!
–Emily Ezust, Founder

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