Belle Polly Stewart | Ô belle Polly Stewart

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by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796)

Translation © by Pierre Mathé

O lovely Polly Stewart

Language: Scottish (Scots)

Our translations: FRE

Chorus
    O lovely Polly Stewart,
    O charming Polly Stewart,
There's not a flower that blooms in May,
    That's half so fair as thou art.

The flower it blaws, it fades and fa's,
    And art can ne'er renew it ;
But Worth and Truth eternal Youth
    Will give to Polly Stewart!

May he [whase arms shall fauld thy charms]¹
    Possess a leal a true heart !
To him be given to ken the heav'n
    He [grasps]² in Polly Stewart !

Chorus
    O lovely Polly Stewart,
    O charming Polly Stewart.
There's ne'er a flower that blooms in May
    That's half so sweet as thou art.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

• L. Beethoven

About the headline (FAQ)

View text without footnotes
Confirmed with The Complete Poetical Works of Robert Burns, Cambridge edition, Boston and New York, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1897, page 259.

¹ Beethoven: "who wins thy matchless charm"
² Beethoven: "gains"

Text Authorship:

by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), "Lovely Polly Stewart" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827), "Polly Stewart", WoO. 156 (12 Scottish Songs) no. 7, G. 227 no. 7, published 1818 [ vocal trio, piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by Ignaz Brüll.

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

CZE Czech (Čeština) (Josef Václav Sládek) , "Polly Stewartova"
GER German (Deutsch) [singable] (Georg Pertz) , "Polly Stewart"

Research team for this page: Ferdinando Albeggiani , Pierre Mathé [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2006-06-11
Line count: 18
Word count: 102

Belle Polly Stewart

Language: French (Français) after the Scottish (Scots)

Refrain
    Ô belle Polly Stewart,
    Ô charmante Polly Stewart,
Il n'y a pas de fleur fleurissant en mai
    Qui soit moitié aussi belle que tu es.

La fleur, elle s'épanouit, se fane et tombe,
    Et l'art ne pourra jamais la renouveler ;
Mais Valeur et Vérité donneront
    À Polly Stewart une éternelle jeunesse !

Puisse celui dont les bras enlaceront tes charmes
    Posséder un cœur loyal et fidèle !
Qu'il lui soit donné de connaître le ciel
    En étreignant Polly Stewart !

Refrain
    Ô belle Polly Stewart,
    Ô charmante Polly Stewart,
Il n'y a pas de fleur fleurissant en mai
    Qui soit moitié aussi belle que tu es.

Text Authorship:

Translation from Scottish (Scots) to French (Français) copyright © 2014 by Pierre Mathé, (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 Scottish (Scots) by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), "Lovely Polly Stewart"
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2014-07-26
Line count: 18
Word count: 104