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Foy porter, Honneur garder Et pais querir, Oubeir, Doubter, servir Et honnourer Vous vueil jusques au morir, Dame sans per. Car tant vous aim, sans mentir, Qu'on porroit avant tarir La haute mer Et ses ondes retenir Que me peüsse alentir De vous amer, Sans fausser; Car mi penser, Mi souvenir, Mi plaisir Et me desir Sont sans finer En vous que ne puis guerpir N'entroublier. Foy porter, Honneur garder Et pais querir, Oubeir, Doubter, servir Et honnourer Vous vueil jusques au morir, Dame sans per. Il n'est joie ne joïr N'autre bien qu'on puist sentir N'imaginer Qui ne me samble languir, Quant vo douceur adoucir Vuet mon amer. Dont loer Et aourer Et vous cremir, Tout souffrir, Tout conjoïr, Tout endurer Vueil plus que je ne desir Guerredonner. Foy porter, Honneur garder... Vous estes le vray saphir Qui puet tous mes maus garir Et terminer, Esmeraude à resjoïr, Rubis pour cuers esclarcir Et conforter. Vo parler, Vo regarder, Vo maintenir Font fuir Et enhaïr Et despiter Tout vice et tout bien cherir Et desirer. Foy porter, Honneur garder Et pais querir, Oubeir, Doubter, servir Et honnourer Vous vueil jusques au morir, Dame sans per.
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 Guillaume de Machaut (c1300 - 1377), "Foy porter", monophonic virelai [text verified 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (David Wyatt) , title 1: "To keep faith", copyright © 2015, (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: 68
Word count: 195
To keep faith, To guard your honour, To seek peace, To obey, To fear, to serve And to honour – [All these] I wish to do for you until death, Peerless lady. For I love you so much – it’s no lie! – That one could dry up The high seas And hold back its waves, before I could hold back From loving you, I do not lie, For my thoughts, My memory, My pleasure And my desire Are endlessly In you, whom I cannot abandon Nor drive from my mind. To keep faith, To guard your honour, To seek peace, To obey, To fear, to serve And to honour – [All these] I wish to do for you until death, Peerless lady. There is no joy or enjoying Nor any other good thing one could feel Or imagine Which does not seem to fade When your sweetness chooses To sweeten my bitterness. Therefore to praise And adore And fear you, To suffer everything, To enjoy everything with you, To endure everything, [all these] I wish more than I desire To win reward. To keep faith, To guard your honour... You are the true sapphire Which can cure all my ills And end them; An emerald to enjoy, A ruby to brighten my heart And comfort it . Your words, Your look, Your bearing Make us flee And hate And defy All vice, and all good things hold dear And desire. To keep faith, To guard your honour, To seek peace, To obey, To fear, to serve And to honour – [All these] I wish to do for you until death, Peerless lady.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from Latin to English copyright © 2015 by David Wyatt, (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 Latin by Guillaume de Machaut (c1300 - 1377)
This text was added to the website: 2015-01-13
Line count: 68
Word count: 273