Je fais [souvent]1 ce rêve étrange et pénétrant D'une femme inconnue, et que j'aime, et qui m'aime, Et qui n'est, chaque fois, ni tout à fait la même Ni tout à fait une autre, et m'aime et me comprend. Car elle me comprend, et mon cœur, transparent Pour elle seule, hélas ! cesse d'être un problème Pour elle seule, et les moiteurs de mon front blême, Elle seule les sait rafraîchir, en pleurant. Est-elle [brune, blonde]2 ou rousse ? — Je l'ignore. Son nom ? Je me souviens qu'il est doux et sonore Comme ceux des aimés que la Vie exila. Son regard est pareil au regard des statues, Et, pour sa voix, lointaine, et calme, et grave, elle a L'inflexion des voix chères qui se sont tues.
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View original text (without footnotes)Confirmed with Paul Verlaine, Poëmes saturniens, Paris: Alphonse Lemerre, 1866, pages 23-24.
1 Bosmans: "parfois"2 Bosmans: "blonde, brune"
Text Authorship:
- by Paul Verlaine (1844 - 1896), "Mon rêve familier", appears in Poèmes saturniens, in 1. Melancholia, no. 6, Paris, Alphonse Lemerre, first published 1866 [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 Marcelle-Marguerite Aaron (1884 - 1956) and by Yvonne-Madeleine Aaron (1897 - 1987), "Mon rêve familier", published 1926 [ voice and piano ], Sénart [sung text not yet checked]
- by Henri Bordes d'Anzy (b. 1905), "Mon rêve familier" [ voice and piano ], J.-M. Champel [sung text not yet checked]
- by Henriëtte Bosmans (1895 - 1952), "Mon rêve familier", 1921, published 1954 [ medium voice and piano ], from 4 liederen op Franse tekst, no. 1, Amsterdam, Donemus [sung text checked 1 time]
- by P. Challot , "Mon rêve familier", published 1901 [ voice and piano ], from Huit mélodies, no. 5, Alleton [sung text not yet checked]
- by Louis Dumas (1877 - 1952), "Mon rêve familier", published 1912 [ voice and piano ], Sénart ; first published in Le Figaro, Supp. Litt., 25 mai [sung text not yet checked]
- by Léo Ferré (1916 - 1993), "Mon rêve familier", published 1970 [ voice and piano ], Nouvelles Éditions Méridian [sung text not yet checked]
- by Hector Michel Fraggi (1882 - 1944), "Mon rêve familier", 1919, published 1920 [ voice and piano ], from Poèmes en musique, no. 6, Salabert [sung text not yet checked]
- by Pierre Galan , "Mon rêve familier", 1918 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Bruno Gousset (b. 1958), "Un rêve", op. 52 (Quatre mélodies pour chant et piano) no. 1 (1990) [ medium voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Charles Koechlin (1867 - 1950), "Mon rêve familier", op. 22 (Quatre mélodies) no. 3 (1901) [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Daniel Lamotte , "Mon rêve familier", 1903 [ medium voice and piano ], Paris, Éd. E. Demets [sung text not yet checked]
- by Youssef Khan Nazare-Aga, dit Kyna (1870 - 1942), "Je fais souvent", published 1908 [ voice and piano ], from Deux sonnets, no. 1, Heugel [sung text not yet checked]
- by Max d'Ollone (1875 - 1959), "Mon rêve familier", published 1900 [ voice and piano ], Heugel [sung text not yet checked]
- by Robert Otlet , "Mon rêve familier", published 1935 [ voice and piano ], from Melancholia, no. 5, Bosworth et Cie [sung text not yet checked]
- by Héctor Panizza (1875 - 1967), "Mon rêve familier", op. 24 no. 6 (1899) [ medium-high voice and piano ], from Neuf poésies de Paul Verlaine, no. 6, Milan, Ricordi [sung text not yet checked]
- by Antonio Parera (1890 - ?), "Mon rêve familier", 1919 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Martha Helen Schmidt (b. 1956), "Mon rêve familier", copyright © 2008 [ high voice and piano ], from Trois mélodies for high voice and piano, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
- by René Téboul , "Mon rêve familier", published 1954 [ voice and piano ], from Est-elle brune ou blonde ?, Sté Stoebel [sung text not yet checked]
- by Jacques-F.G. Vallier , "Mon rêve familier", published 1949 [ voice and piano ], J. Vallier [sung text not yet checked]
- by Philip Wilby (b. 1949), "Mon rêve familier", copyright © 1988, first performed 1983 [ medium voice and piano ], from Ten songs of Paul Verlaine for medium voice and piano, Cycle I : Melancholia, no. 4, Chester Music [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962) , title 1: "Traum", title 2: "Mon rêve familier aus dem Französischen des Paul Verlaine", written 1901, first published <<1915 ; composed by Laci Boldemann, Richard Czelinski, Willy Czernik, Artur Immisch, Richard Trunk.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Peter Low) , "My familiar dream", copyright © 2000, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Bergen Weeks Applegate) , "My Familiar Dream", appears in Poems Saturnine, in 1. Melancholia, no. 6
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ignazio Giacona) , "Il mio sogno familiare", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Poom Andrew Pipatjarasgit [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 14
Word count: 127
Ich träume wieder von der Unbekannten, Die schon so oft im Traum vor mir gestanden. Wir lieben uns, sie streicht das wirre Haar Mir aus der Stirn mit Händen wunderbar. Und sie versteht mein rätselhaftes Wesen Und kann in meinem dunklen Herzen lesen. Du fragst mich: Ist sie blond? Ich weiß es nicht. Doch wie ein Märchen ist ihr Angesicht. Und wie sie heißt? Ich weiß nicht. Doch es klingt Ihr Name süß, wie wenn die Ferne singt- Wie Eines Name, den du Liebling heißt Und den du ferne und verloren weißt. Und ihrer Stimme Ton ist dunkelfarben Wie Stimmen von Geliebten, die uns starben.
About the headline (FAQ)
Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada and the U.S., but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.
Confirmed with Die Lyrik des Auslandes in neuerer Zeit, ed. Hans Bethge, Leipzig: Max Hesses Verlag, 1907, pages 194-195, under the title "Traum."
Confirmed with Hermann Hesse, Sämtliche Werke, herausgegeben von Volker Michels, Band 10 Die Gedichte, bearbeitet von Peter Huber, Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag, 2002, pages 71-72, under the title "Mon rêve familier aus dem Französischen des Paul Verlaine." Note that in this edition the poem is in two-line stanzas, not the sonnet form above.
Text Authorship:
- by Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962), title 1: "Traum", title 2: "Mon rêve familier aus dem Französischen des Paul Verlaine", written 1901, first published <<1915 [author's text checked 2 times against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in French (Français) by Paul Verlaine (1844 - 1896), "Mon rêve familier", appears in Poèmes saturniens, in 1. Melancholia, no. 6, Paris, Alphonse Lemerre, first published 1866
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Laci Boldemann (1921 - 1969), "Ich träume wieder von der Unbekannten", op. 3 (Vier Lieder für eine tiefe Stimme zu Gedichten von Hermann Hesse) no. 1, published c1950 [ low voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Richard Czelinski (1901 - 1969), "Mon rêve familier", 1949 [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Willy Czernik (1901 - 1996), "Mon rêve familier" [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Artur Immisch (1902 - 1949), "Mein Traum" [ high voice and piano ], from Lieder nach Texten von Paul Verlaine, no. 6 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Richard Trunk (1879 - 1968), "Mein Traum", op. 42 no. 2 (1920), published 1926 [ voice and piano ], from Zwölf Gesänge mit Klavier nach Gedichten von Paul Verlaine, no. 2 [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2009-04-30
Line count: 14
Word count: 105