Aoo! | Your gentle laughter was like an elusive fairytale

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by Konstantin Dmitrevich Bal'mont (1867 - 1942)

Translation © by Sergey Rybin

Ау

Language: Russian (Русский)

Our translations: ENG ENG FRE

Твой нежный смех был сказкою изменчивою,
Он звал как в сон зовёт свирельный звон.
И вот венком, стихом тебя увенчиваю.
Уйдём, бежим вдвоем на горный склон.

Но где же ты? 
Лишь звон вершин позванивает
Цветку цветок средь дня зажег свечу.
И чей-то смех все в глубь меня заманивает.

Пою, ищу,
Ау!
Ау!
кричу.

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Note on Transliterations

Text Authorship:

by Konstantin Dmitrevich Bal'mont (1867 - 1942), written 1909, first published 1909 [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 Sergei Vasil'yevich Rachmaninov (1873 - 1943), "Ау", op. 38 (Шесть романсов = Shest' romansov (Six songs)) no. 6 (1916) [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Laura Claycomb) (Peter Grunberg) , "A-oo!", copyright © 2007, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Sergey Rybin) , "Aoo!", copyright © 2026, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Hou ! hou !", copyright © 2012, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 53

Aoo!

Language: English after the Russian (Русский)

Your gentle laughter was like an elusive fairytale,
It called, like the flute’s ringing sound calls one into a dream.
And now with wreath, with verse I crown you.
Let us go, let us run together to the mountain slope.

But where are you?
Only the ringing of the peaks resounds,
A flower for a flower has lit a candle during the day.
And someone’s laughter lures me ever deeper in,

I sing, I seek,
“Aoo!”
“Aoo!”
I cry.

Text Authorship:

Translation from Russian (Русский) to English copyright © 2026 by Sergey Rybin, (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 Russian (Русский) by Konstantin Dmitrevich Bal'mont (1867 - 1942), written 1909, first published 1909
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2026-03-16
Line count: 12
Word count: 79