by Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus) (65 BCE - 8 BCE)
Translation by Charles-Marie-René Leconte de Lisle (1818 - 1894)
Donec gratus eram tibi
Language: Latin
HORATIUS
Donec gratus eram tibi
nec quisquam potior bracchia candidae
cervici iuvenis dabat,
Persarum vigui rege beatior.
LYDIA
Donec non alia magis
arsisti neque erat Lydia post Chloën,
multi Lydia nominis,
Romana vigui clarior Ilia.
HORATIUS
Me nunc Thressa Chloë regit,
dulcis docta modos et citharae sciens,
pro qua non metuam mori,
si parcent animae fata superstiti.
LYDIA
Me torret face mutua
Thurini Calais filius Ornyti,
pro quo bis patiar mori,
si parcent puero fata superstiti.
HORATIUS
Quid si prisca redit Venus
diductosque iugo cogit aëneo,
si flava excutitur Chloë?
Reiectaeque patet ianua Lydiae?
LYDIA
Quamquam sidere pulchrior
ille est, tu levior cortice et inprobo
iracundior Hadria,
tecum vivere amem, tecum obeam libens.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus) (65 BCE - 8 BCE), no title, appears in Carmina (Odes), in 3. Liber III (Book III), no. 9 [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 Ella Georgiyevna Adayevskaya (1846 - 1926), "Horazische Ode", subtitle: "Wechselgesang", 1896, published 1918 [ vocal duet for soprano and baritone with piano ], also set in German (Deutsch) [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Cipriano de Rore (1516 - 1565), "Donec gratus eram tibi" [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in French (Français), a translation by Louis Charles Alfred de Musset (1810 - 1857) , "À Lydie", subtitle: "Imitation", written 1837, appears in Poésies nouvelles ; composed by Martial Caillebotte, Jules Massenet.
- Also set in French (Français), a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist [an adaptation] ; composed by Augusta Mary Anne Holmès.
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Wilhelm Binder (1810 - 1876) , "Wechselgespräch", subtitle: "Versmaß 2." ; composed by Ella Georgiyevna Adayevskaya.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Charles-Marie-René Leconte de Lisle) , "À Lydia"
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Mario Rapisardi) , no title, written 1883, appears in Le odi di Orazio, in 3. Libro terzo, no. 9
- POL Polish (Polski) (Lucjan Hipolit Siemieński) , "Rozmowa", first published 1916
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2011-08-19
Line count: 30
Word count: 107
À Lydia
Language: French (Français) after the Latin
HORATIUS Tant que je t’ai plu, et qu’aucun autre, plus aimé, n’a entouré de ses bras ton cou blanc, j’ai vécu plus heureux que le roi des Perses. LYDIA Tant que tu n’as brûlé pour une autre plus que pour moi, et que Lydia ne passait point après Chloé, la renommée de Lydia a été grande, et j’ai vécu plus illustre que la Romaine Ilia. HORATIUS Maintenant Chloé de Thrace règne sur moi, habile aux doux chants et à jouer de la cithare. Je ne craindrais point de mourir pour elle, si, épargnée par les destins, elle devait me survivre. LYDIA Il me consume d’un amour qu’il partage, Calaïs, fils d’Ornytus de Thurium. Je consentirais à mourir deux fois pour lui, si, épargné par les destins, le jeune homme devait me survivre. HORATIUS Quoi ! si l’ancienne Vénus revenait et nous réunissait encore sous son joug d’airain ? Si la blonde Chloé était rejetée, et si ma porte s’ouvrait à Lydia repoussée ? LYDIA Bien qu’il soit plus beau qu’un astre, et toi plus léger que le liège et plus irritable que l’orageuse Hadria, c’est avec toi que j’aimerais vivre, avec toi que je voudrais mourir !
Confirmed with Œuvres de Horace Traduction par Leconte de Lisle. Alphonse Lemerre, éditeur, s. d. (Tome premier)
Text Authorship:
- by Charles-Marie-René Leconte de Lisle (1818 - 1894), "À Lydia" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Latin by Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus) (65 BCE - 8 BCE), no title, appears in Carmina (Odes), in 3. Liber III (Book III), no. 9
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- [ None yet in the database ]
Researcher for this page: Guy Laffaille [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2019-05-31
Line count: 30
Word count: 188