When I return | When I return

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by Guillaume de Machaut (c1300 - 1377)

Translation © by Patrick Cardy

Quant je sui mis au retour

Language: Old French (Ancien français)

Our translations: ENG

 Quant je sui mis [au]¹ retour 
 De veoir ma dame, 
 Il n'est peine ne dolour 
 Que j'aie, par m'ame. 
  Diex! c'est drois que je l'aim,
  sans blame, de loial amour.
 
 Sa biauté, sa grant douçour
 D'amoureuse flame,
 Par souvenir, nuit et jour
 M'esprent et enflame. 
  Diex! c'est drois que je l'aim,
  sans blame, de loial amour.

 Et quant sa haute valour
 Mon fin cuer entame,
 Servir la [vueil]² sans folour
 Penser ne diffame. 
 [Diex]³ ! C'est drois que je l'aim,
 sans blame, de loial amour.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

• P. Cardy • G. Machaut

P. Cardy sets stanzas 1:1-4, 2:1-4, 3

About the headline (FAQ)

View text without footnotes
¹ Cardy: "en"
² Cardy: "weil"
³ Cardy: "Dieus"

Text Authorship:

by Guillaume de Machaut (c1300 - 1377) [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 Patrick Cardy (1953 - 2005), "Quant je sui mis", first performed 1990, stanzas 1:1-4, 2:1-4, 3 [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
by Guillaume de Machaut (c1300 - 1377), "Quant je sui mis au retour" [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Patrick Cardy) , "When I return", copyright © 1990, (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: 18
Word count: 88

When I return

Language: English after the Old French (Ancien français)

  When I return
  from seeing my lady, 
  upon my soul, 
  I haven't a care in the world. 
 Dear God, how I love her,
 with a pure and faithful love. 
 
  The memory of her gentle beauty
  makes me glow, 
  night and day,
  with the flame of love. 
 Dear God, how I love her,
 with a pure and faithful love. 
 
  The very thought of her sweet perfection
  so melts my tender heart 
  that my one wish is to serve her
  constantly and selflessly. 
  Dear God, how I love her,
  with a pure and faithful love.

Available sung text translations: ← What is this?

• P. Cardy

Text Authorship:

Translation from Old French (Ancien français) to English copyright © 1990 by Patrick Cardy, (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.
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Based on:

a text in Old French (Ancien français) by Guillaume de Machaut (c1300 - 1377)
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 18
Word count: 94