J'accorde ma lyre | J'accorde ma lyre et pour chanter les louanges

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by Giambattista Marino (1569 - 1625)

Translation © by Guy Laffaille

Tempro la cetra

Language: Italian (Italiano)

Our translations: FRE GER

Tempro la cetra, e per cantar gli onori
Di Marte alzo talor lo stil e i carmi.
Ma invan la tento e impossibil parmi
Ch'ella già mai risoni altro ch'amore.

Così pur tra l'arene e pur tra' fiori
Note amorose Amor torna a dettarmi,
Né vuol ch'io prend' ancora a cantar d'armi,
Se non di quelle, ond'egli impiaga i cori.

Or umil plettro a i rozzi accenti indegni,
Musa, qual dianzi, accorda, in fin ch'al canto
De la tromba sublime il Ciel ti degni.

Riedi a i teneri scherzi, e dolce intanto
Lo Dio guerrier, temprando i feri sdegni,
In grembo a Citerea dorma al tuo canto.

Text Authorship:

by Giambattista Marino (1569 - 1625) [author's text not yet checked 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 Claudio Monteverdi (1567 - 1643), "Tempro la cetra", published 1619 [chorus with instrumental ensemble (5)], from Libro VII de madrigali, no. 1, madrigal [ sung text checked 1 time]

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

FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "J'accorde ma lyre", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Ich stimme die Lyra", copyright © 2007, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this page: John Versmoren

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 14
Word count: 107

J'accorde ma lyre

Language: French (Français) after the Italian (Italiano)

J'accorde ma lyre et pour chanter les louanges
de Mars, j'élève le style et mes chants.
Mais en vain j'essaie et il est impossible
qu'elle ne sonne jamais pour autre chose que l'amour.

Donc dans l'arène ou parmi les fleurs
Amour revient me dicter des airs amoureux,
et ne veut pas que je chante les armes,
si ce n'est celles qui blessent les cœurs.

L'humble plectre et les accents grossiers et indignes,
ô muse, accorde-les comme avant, qu'enfin du chant
de la sublime lyre le ciel te juge digne.

Retourne à tes tendres plaisanteries, et que, doux instant,
le Dieu guerrier, tempérant sa colère féroce,
sur le sein de Cythère s'endorme à ton chant.

Text Authorship:

Translation from Italian (Italiano) to French (Français) copyright © 2019 by Guy Laffaille, (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 Italian (Italiano) by Giambattista Marino (1569 - 1625)
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2019-02-26
Line count: 14
Word count: 114