by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 - 1893)
Translation © by Ronald Combs

Бабушка и внучек
Language: Russian (Русский)  after the Russian (Русский) 
Available translation(s): ENG FRE
Под окном чулок старушка
Вяжет в комнате уютной,
И в очкй свои большие
Смотрит в угол поминутно.

А в углу кудрявый мальчик
Молча к стенке прислонился.
На лице его забота,
Взгляд на что-то устремился.

Что сидишь всё дома, внучек?
Шёл бы в сад, копал бы грядки
Или кликнул бы сестренку,
Поиграл бы с ней в лошадки.

Подошёл к стапушке внучек
И головкою курчавой к ней припал.
Он молчит, глаза большие
На неё глядят лукаво...

Знать, гостинцу захотелось?
Говорит ему старушка,	
Винных ягод, винограду,
Иль тебе нужна игрушка?

Нет, гостинцев мне не надо!
У меня игрушек много.
Сумку ты купи да в школу
Покажи-ка мне дорогу.

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Authorship

Based on

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

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

  • Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Hans Schmidt (1854 - 1923) ENG FRE RUS ; composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

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

  • ENG English [singable] (Ronald Combs) , "Grandmother and Grandson", copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "La grand-mère et le petit-fils", copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Researcher for this text: Mary Freeman

Text added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Last modified: 2014-06-16 10:01:45
Line count: 24
Word count: 105

Grandmother and Grandson
Language: English  after the Russian (Русский) 
By the window in the sunlight
sits grand-ma-ma with her knitting,
and above her gold-rimmed glasses
watches grandson where he's sitting.

There he sits with thoughtful glances,
on his face no happy beaming.
Worry fills his youthful visage,
and his eyes are filled with dreaming.

"All day long you sit here grandson,"
The old woman started saying,
"You should find your little sister
and be in the garden playing."

Then the little fellow came to
grandma's knee and shyly leaned his curly head.
He is silent but his eyes are
big and bright with what he's thinking...

"Would you like a piece of candy?"
Grandma says as he grows bolder,
"or some figs, or grapes or apples,
or a ball or wooden soldier?"

"No, I don't want any candy!
It's not toys for which I'm yearning.
I'm a big boy now;
it's time I went to school and started learning."

Note: The English and Russian syllables in this song match up note for note. Words made of a single letter - for example "v" - have no note value and are appended to either the syllable before or after them.

Authorship

  • Singable translation from Russian (Русский) to English copyright © by Ronald Combs, (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.

    Ronald Combs. We have no current contact information for the copyright-holder.
    If you wish to commission a new translation, please contact:

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Text added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Last modified: 2014-06-16 10:01:45
Line count: 24
Word count: 150