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by Bai Juyi (772 - 846)
Translation by Arthur Waley (1889 - 1969)

Sent as a present from Annam
Language: English  after the Chinese (中文) 
Sent as a present from Annam --
A red cockatoo. 
Coloured like the peach-tree blossom, 
Speaking with the speech of men. 
And they did to it what is always done 
To the learned and eloquent. 
They took a cage with stout bars 
And shut it up inside.

About the headline (FAQ)

Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada and the U.S., but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.

Confirmed with Arthur Waley, Chinese Poems, Dover Publications, 2000, page 167, an unabridged republication of the work published in 1946 in London by George Allen and Unwin.


Text Authorship:

  • by Arthur Waley (1889 - 1969), "The Red Cockatoo", first published 1919 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Based on:

  • a text in Chinese (中文) by Bai Juyi (772 - 846), first published 820 [text unavailable]
    • Go to the text page.

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

  • by (Edward) Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976), "The red cockatoo", 1938, published 1994 [ high voice, piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
  • by Blair Fairchild (1877 - 1933), "The Red Cockatoo", published 1922 [ medium voice and piano ], from Songs from the Chinese, no. 2, Éd. Durand, also set in French (Français) [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Kenneth Hesketh (b. 1968), "Three Commentaries: The Red Cockatoo", first performed 2007 [ voice and piano ], from Shimmerwords and Idle Songs, no. 3c, confirmed with a concert programme booklet [sung text checked 1 time]

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

  • Also set in French (Français), a translation by L. Lemierre ; composed by Blair Fairchild.
      • Go to the text. [Note: the text is not in the database yet.]

Researcher for this page: David K. Smythe

This text was added to the website: 2003-11-04
Line count: 8
Word count: 46

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