by Meng Haoran (689 - 740)
Translation by Launcelot Alfred Cranmer-Byng (1872 - 1945)
The lost one
Language: English  after the Chinese (中文)
The red gleam o'er the mountains Goes wavering from sight, And the quiet moon enhances The loveliness of night. I open wide my casement To breathe the rain-cooled air. And mingle with the moonlight The dark waves of my hair. The night wind tells me secrets Of lotus lilies blue; And hour by hour the willows Shake down the chiming dew. I fain would take the zither, By some stray fancy led; But there are none to hear me, And who can charm the dead? So all my day-dreams follow The bird that leaves the nest; And in the night I gather The lost one to my breast.
Authorship:
- by Launcelot Alfred Cranmer-Byng (1872 - 1945), "The lost one", appears in A Lute of Jade, being selections from the classical poets of China, first published 1909 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Chinese (中文) by Meng Haoran (689 - 740) [text unavailable]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Granville Ransome Bantock, Sir (1868 - 1946), "The lost one", published 1934 [ voice and piano ], from Songs from the Chinese Poets: Set V, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-02-26
Line count: 20
Word count: 108