possibly by
Aleksey Vasil'yevich Kol'tsov (1808 - 1842) and possibly by
Modest Petrovich Musorgsky (1839 - 1881) and possibly by
Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin (1799 - 1837)
Отчего, скажи, душа‑девица
Language: Russian (Русский)
Our translations: ENG FRE
Отчего, скажи, душа-девица,
ты сидишь теперь пригорюнилась
и безмолвная на дороженьку
ты, вздохнув, глядишь не насмотришься?
Иль с тобой при тебе нету милого,
иль остыла в нем кровь горячая,
или ты ему уж наскучила,
иль забыл тебя твой сердечный друг?
Нет, мой милый друг не забыл меня
и не то щемит сердце бедное,
а я милова в дальну сторону,
в путь-дороженьку снаряжаю я,
а я милова в дальну сторону,
в путь-дороженьку снаряжаю я.
About the headline (FAQ)
Show a transliteration: Default | DIN | GOST
Note on TransliterationsText Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Modest Petrovich Musorgsky (1839 - 1881), "Отчего, скажи, душа-девица", 1858, published 1867 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Shakhmatov (1864 - 1920), "Отчего, скажи, душа-девица" [sung text not yet checked]
- by Pauline Viardot-García (1821 - 1910), "Отчего, скажи" [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Sergey Rybin) , "Tell me, why, beautiful maiden", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Pourquoi, dis-moi, belle jeune fille", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) [singable] (Hans Schmidt) , "Sag warum"
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [
Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2003-11-13
Line count: 14
Word count: 73
Tell me, why, beautiful maiden
Language: English  after the Russian (Русский)
Tell me, why, beautiful maiden,
You sit so sorrowfully
And look, sighing, silently at the road
Peering away in the distance?
Is he not near you, your dear one,
Or has his fervent blood cooled down?
Has he grown bored of you,
Or forgotten you, your heart's friend?
No, my dear friend has not forgotten me,
It is not that which makes my poor heart ache -
But to far away lands,
On a long journey I’m sending off my dear one,
To far away lands,
On a long journey I’m sending him.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from Russian (Русский) to English copyright © 2015 by Sergey Rybin, (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:
This text was added to the website: 2015-10-26
Line count: 14
Word count: 92