The Pavilion of Perfumes | If I were to open this vial containing a celebrated perfume

Attention! Some of this material is not in the public domain.

It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. It is also illegal to reprint copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator.

To inquire about permissions and rates, contact Emily Ezust at licenses@email.lieder.example.net

If you wish to reprint translations, please make sure you include the names of the translators in your email. They are below each translation.

Note: You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.

by Franz Toussaint (1879 - 1955)

Translation © by Grant Hicks

Le Pavillon des Parfums

Language: French (Français) after the Chinese (中文)

Our translations: ENG

Si j'ouvrais ce flacon dans lequel repose un parfum illustre, 
son violent arome t'incommoderait.
Quand je te caresse, ô ma buire d'ambre, 
n'exhale pas tes pensées d'amour.

Confirmed with Franz Toussaint, La flûte de jade, Paris: H. Piazza, 1922, page 26.

Text Authorship:

by Franz Toussaint (1879 - 1955), "Le pavillon des parfums", appears in La flûte de jade [author's text checked 2 times against a primary source]

Based on:

a text in Chinese (中文) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist [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 Karel Goeyvaerts (1923 - 1993), "Le Pavillon des Parfums", 1949 [ voice and piano ], from La flûte de Jade, no. 6 [sung text not yet checked]

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

ENG English (Grant Hicks) , "The Pavilion of Perfumes", copyright © 2026, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Grant Hicks [Guest Editor] , Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2025-02-19
Line count: 4
Word count: 27

The Pavilion of Perfumes

Language: English after the French (Français)

If I were to open this vial containing a celebrated perfume, 
its strong odor would overwhelm you. 
When I caress you, O my jar of amber,
do not breathe forth your thoughts of love.

Text Authorship:

Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2026 by Grant Hicks, (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 French (Français) by Franz Toussaint (1879 - 1955), "Le pavillon des parfums", appears in La flûte de jade
- Go to the text page.

Based on:

a text in Chinese (中文) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist [text unavailable]
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2026-04-30
Line count: 4
Word count: 34