Her name has the contour of a wisp of perfume

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by Franz Toussaint (1879 - 1955)

Translation © by Grant Hicks

Son nom a le contour d'une volute de...

Language: French (Français) after the Arabic (العربية)

Our translations: ENG

Son nom a le contour d'une volute de parfum. 
Il se déroule et enlace les âmes, 
comme un jasmin enlace un noisetier. 
C'est une danse et un chant. 
Il ondule puis s'éploie, semblable à une chevelure dans le vent, 
à une flamme sur une proue.
On se le rappelle ainsi qu'un visage, 
ainsi qu'un murmure de fontaine. 
Ce nom ?...
Daoulah.

About the headline (FAQ)

Confirmed with Franz Toussaint, Le Jardin des Caresses, 73e édition, Paris : L'édition d'art H. Piazza, 1921, p.104

Text Authorship:

by Franz Toussaint (1879 - 1955), "Écoute", written 1929?, appears in Le jardin des caresses, no. 106, Paris, Éd. Piazza [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Based on:

a text in Arabic (العربية) 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 Maurice Perez , "Daoulah", published 1925 [ high voice and piano ], from Dix Mélodies Arabes, no. 10, Éd. Rouart-Lerolle (Salabert) [sung text not yet checked]

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

ENG English (Grant Hicks) , copyright © 2026, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2025-02-17
Line count: 10
Word count: 60

Her name has the contour of a wisp of...

Language: English after the French (Français)

Her name has the contour of a wisp of perfume. 
It uncoils and entwines souls, 
as a jasmine entwines a hazel tree. 
It is a dance and a song. 
It billows and spreads, like tresses in the wind, 
like a flame on a prow. 
Its memory is like the memory of a face, 
of the murmur of a fountain. 
That name? ...
Daoulah.

About the headline (FAQ)

Translations of titles:
"Daoulah" = "Daoulah"
"Écoute" = "Listen"

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), "Écoute", written 1929?, appears in Le jardin des caresses, no. 106, Paris, Éd. Piazza
- Go to the text page.

Based on:

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

This text was added to the website: 2026-03-18
Line count: 10
Word count: 62