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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

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

by Arthur Rimbaud (1854 - 1891)
Translation © by Ahmed E. Ismail

Parade
Language: French (Français) 
Our translations:  CHI ENG JPN SPA
Des drôles très solides. Plusieurs ont exploité
vos mondes. Sans besoins, et peu pressés de mettre en
œuvre leurs brillantes facultés et leur expérience
de vos consciences. Quels hommes mûrs ! Des yeux
hébétés à la façon de la nuit d'été, rouges et noirs, 
tricolores, d'acier piqué d'étoiles d'or ; des faciès 
déformés, plombés, blêmis, incendiés ; des enrouements
folâtres ! La démarche cruelle des oripeaux ! -- 
Il y a quelques jeunes, [-- comment regarderaient-ils 
Chérubin ? -- pourvus de voix effrayantes et de quelques 
ressources dangereuses. On les envoie prendre du dos 
en ville, affublés d'un luxe dégoûtant.]1

Ô le plus violent Paradis de la grimace enragée !  [Pas
de comparaison avec vos Fakirs et les autres bouffonneries
scéniques. Dans des costumes improvisés avec le
goût du mauvais rêve ils jouent des complaintes, des
tragédies de malandrins et de demi-dieux spirituels comme
l'histoire ou les religions ne l'ont jamais été.]1 
Chinois, Hottentots, bohémiens, niais, hyènes, Molochs,
vieilles démences, démons sinistres, ils mêlent
les tours populaires, maternels, avec les poses et 
les tendresses bestiales. Ils interpréteraient des pièces 
nouvelles et des chansons « bonnes filles ». 
Maîtres jongleurs, ils transforment le lieu et les 
personnes, et usent de la comédie magnétique. 
[Les yeux flambent, le sang chante, les os s'élargissent,
les larmes et des filets rouges ruissellent. Leur 
raillerie ou leur terreur dure une minute, ou des 
mois entiers.]1

J'ai seul la clef de cette parade sauvage.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

•   B. Britten 

View original text (without footnotes)
1 omitted by Britten.

Text Authorship:

  • by Arthur Rimbaud (1854 - 1891), "Parade", appears in Les Illuminations [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 (Edward) Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976), "Parade", op. 18 no. 8 (1939), published 1940 [ high voice and strings ], from Les Illuminations, no. 8 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

  • CHI Chinese (中文) (Yen-Chiang Che) , "遊行", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Ahmed E. Ismail) , "Parade", copyright © 2004, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • JPN Japanese (日本語) (Naoyuki Okada) , "パレード", copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • SPA Spanish (Español) (José Miguel Llata) , "Parada", copyright © 2014, (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: 30
Word count: 232

Parade
Language: English  after the French (Français) 
What sturdy odd fellows. Several have exploited 
your worlds. Without needs, and little concerned with 
putting their brilliant minds and their experience of
your consciences to work. What mature men! Dazed eyes
like a summer night, red and black, tri-colored, 
steel dotted with golden stars; 
deformed features, leaden, made pale, made to burn; 
their foolish cries! The cruel walk 
of rags! There are some young ones. . . .




O the most violent Paradise of the fanatical grimace! . . . 





Chinese, Hottentots, Bohemians, deniers, hyenas, 
Molochs, old demented ones, sinister demons, they
mix popular and maternal tricks 
with bestial poses and tenderness. They interpreted 
new plays and - nice girl - songs. 
Master jugglers, they transform
the place and the people and use 
magnetic comedy. . . .





I alone hold the key to this wild parade.

Text Authorship:

  • Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2004 by Ahmed E. Ismail, (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 Arthur Rimbaud (1854 - 1891), "Parade", appears in Les Illuminations
    • Go to the text page.

 

This text was added to the website: 2004-07-04
Line count: 19
Word count: 136

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This website began in 1995 as a personal project by Emily Ezust, who has been working on it full-time without a salary since 2008. Our research has never had any government or institutional funding, so if you found the information here useful, please consider making a donation. Your help is greatly appreciated!
–Emily Ezust, Founder

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