by Oscar Wilde (1854 - 1900)
Translation by Dezső Kosztolányi (1885 - 1936)
Les Ballons
Language: English
Against these turbid turquoise skies The light and luminous balloons Dip and drift like satin moons, Drift like silken butterflies; Reel with every windy gust, Rise and reel like dancing girls, Float like strange transparent pearls, Fall and float like silver dust. Now to the low leaves they cling, Each with coy fantastic pose, Each a petal of a rose Straining at a gossamer string. Then to the tall trees they climb, Like thin globes of amethyst, Wandering opals keeping tryst With the rubies of the lime.
First published in Lady's Pictorial, Christmas Number, 1887, as one of the "Fantaisies Décoratives"
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
Authorship:
- by Oscar Wilde (1854 - 1900), "Les Ballons" [author's text checked 1 time 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 Gary Bachlund (b. 1947), "Les Ballons", 2006 [ soprano and piano or harp ], from Fantaisies Décoratives, no. 2 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Gerald Gover (1914 - 1982), "Les Ballons", published <<1956 [ soprano and 2 clarinets ], from Fantaisies Décoratives [sung text not yet checked]
- by Charles Tomlinson Griffes (1884 - 1920), "Les Ballons", A. 40 (1912-5), published 1986 [ high voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Juhani Komulainen (b. 1953), "Les Ballons", 1997 [ mixed chorus ], from Fantaisies Décoratives, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Dezső Kosztolányi) , "Les ballons"
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 87
Les ballons
Language: English  after the English
A tompa türkiszkék egen léggömb inog, sok cifra folt, mint atlaszból megannyi hold, selyempillangó, félszegen. Forog, mikor szél hajtaná és imbolyog, mint táncba nő, mint drágagyöngy gurul elő s mint az ezüstpor hull alá. Most lenti gallyakon libeg, mind tétovázik és mereng, akár a rózsa szirma leng s rajt az ökörnyál a zsineg. Majd föl a fára hömpölyög s ring-ring az ametisztgolyó, bolygó opál, sok lángoló, rubintpiros levél között.
Authorship:
- by Dezső Kosztolányi (1885 - 1936), "Les ballons" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English by Oscar Wilde (1854 - 1900), "Les Ballons"
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- [ None yet in the database ]
Researcher for this page: Andrew Schneider [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2019-07-21
Line count: 16
Word count: 69