The flowers | How I love to see you, beautiful flowers

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by J. P. (José María Vicente Ferrer Francisco de Paola Patricio Manuel) Contamine de Latour

Translation © by Faith J. Cormier

Les fleurs

Language: French (Français)

Our translations: ENG ENG

Que j'aime à vous voir, belles fleurs
À l'aube entr'ouvrir vos corolles
Quand Iris vous fait de ses pleurs
De transparentes auréoles
vous savez seules dans nos coeurs
évoquer une tendre image
Et par vos suaves couleurs
Vous nous parlez un doux langage
Aussi messagères d'amour 
Je vous demande avec tristesse
Pourquoi le sort en un seul jour
Vous arrache à notre tendresse.

Typo noticed by Edwin Braakhuis.

Text Authorship:

by J. P. (José María Vicente Ferrer Francisco de Paola Patricio Manuel) Contamine de Latour [author's text not yet checked 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 Alfred Erik Leslie Satie (1866 - 1925), "Les fleurs", 1886 [ high voice and piano ], from Trois autres mélodies, no. 3 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Faith J. Cormier) , "The flowers", copyright © 2001, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Chelsea Green) , "The flowers", copyright © 2006, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 63

The flowers

Language: English after the French (Français)

 How I love to see you, beautiful flowers, 
 when your corollas begin to peep open in the dawning, 
 when Iris' tears become 
 your transparent halos. 
 You are the only creatures
 who know how to call up a gentle image in our hearts.
 Your colours speak to us
 in a sweet language.
 Messengers of love,
 I sadly beg you
 to tell me why the fate of just one day
 tears you from our tender care.

Text Authorship:

Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2001 by Faith J. Cormier, (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 J. P. (José María Vicente Ferrer Francisco de Paola Patricio Manuel) Contamine de Latour
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 75