by Edmond Rostand (1868 - 1918)
Translation by Alfred Noyes (1880 - 1958)
O, many a lover sighs
Language: English after the French (Français)
O, many a lover sighs
Beneath the summer skies
For black or hazel eyes
All day.
No light of hope can mar
My whiter brighter star;
I love a Princess far
Away.
Now you that haste to meet
Your love's returning feet
Must plead for every sweet
Caress;
But, day and night and day,
Without a prayer to pray,
I love my far away
Princess.
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Collected Poems by Alfred Noyes, Volume One, New York, Frederick A. Stokes, 1913, page 62.
Text Authorship:
- by Alfred Noyes (1880 - 1958), "Song" [an adaptation] [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in French (Français) by Edmond Rostand (1868 - 1918), no title, appears in La princesse lointaine, Act II, Scene 7
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Benjamin Burrows (1891 - 1966), "Oh, many a lover", 1915 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2022-01-05
Line count: 16
Word count: 65