Dans [Arle]1, où sont les Aliscams,
Quand l'ombre est rouge, sous les roses,
Et clair le temps,
Prends garde à la douceur des choses.
Lorsque tu sens battre sans cause
Ton coeur trop lourd ;
Et que se taisent les colombes :
Parle tout bas, si c'est d'amour,
Au bord des tombes.
View original text (without footnotes)
Note provided by Peter Low: the poet spells the city "Arle" in the first line to ensure an 8-syllable line.
1 Roland-Manuel: "Arles"; further changes may exist not shown above.
Text 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 François Berthet (1873 - 1956), "En Arles", op. 21 no. 1 [ medium voice and piano ], from Trois Contrerimes, no. 1, Paris, Éd. Rouart-Lerolle [sung text not yet checked]
- by Louis Beydts (1896 - 1953), "En Arles", 1946, published 1947 [ voice and piano ], from Trois mélodies pour chant et piano, no. 3, Éd. Durand [sung text not yet checked]
- by Jean-Robert Blanc (b. 1907), "En Arles ", published 1939 [ medium voice and piano ], from Trois mélodies pour chant et piano, no. 2, Bordeaux [sung text not yet checked]
- by Maurice Jaubert (1900 - 1940), "En Arles", 1923-1924, published 1925 [ medium voice and piano ], from Quatre Romances, no. 1, Éd. Jobert [sung text not yet checked]
- by Roland Alexis Manuel Levy (1891 - 1966), as Roland-Manuel, "En Arles", 1922, published 1923 [ voice and piano ], from Trois romances de P. J. Toulet, no. 1, Éd. Heugel [sung text not yet checked]
- by Jean-Louis Petit (b. 1937), "En Arles", 1997 [ high voice and piano ], from Livre de poésies, no. 10 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Ludwig-Wolfgang Simoni , "En Arles", 1944 [ mezzo-soprano and strings ], from Quatre Contrerimes de P.J. Toulet, no. 1, Éd. du Chant du Monde [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Peter Low) , "In Arles", copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [
Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2014-06-12
Line count: 9
Word count: 52
In Arles, at the Alyscamps graveyard,
when the shadows under the roses are red
and the weather is bright,
beware the sweetness of things.
When you feel your too-heavy heart
beating without a reason,
and when the doves are silent,
speak softly, if you're speaking of love
beside the tombs.
