Marc Chagall | An ass or a cow, a rooster or a horse

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by Eugène Émile Paul Grindel (1895 - 1952), as Paul Éluard

Translation © by Peter Low

Âne ou vache coq ou cheval

Language: French (Français)

Our translations: ENG GER LIT

Âne ou vache coq ou cheval
Jusqu'à la peau d'un violon
Homme chanteur un seul oiseau
Danseur agile avec sa femme

Couple trempé dans son printemps

L'or de l'herbe le plomb du ciel
Séparés par les flammes bleues
De la santé de la rosée
Le sang s'irise le coeur tinte

Un couple le premier reflet

Et dans un souterrain de neige
La vigne opulente dessine
Un visage aux lèvres de lune
Qui n'a jamais dormi la nuit.

About the headline (FAQ)

Text Authorship:

by Eugène Émile Paul Grindel (1895 - 1952), as Paul Éluard, "À Marc Chagall", written 1946, appears in Le dur désir de durer, Paris, Éd. Arnold-Bordas, first published 1946 [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 Francis Poulenc (1899 - 1963), "Marc Chagall", FP 161 no. 2 (1956), published 1957 [ medium voice and piano ], from Le Travail du peintre, no. 2, Éd. Max Eschig [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Peter Low) , "Marc Chagall", copyright © 2000, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
GER German (Deutsch) (Julia Henning) , "Marc Chagall", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
LIT Lithuanian (Lietuvių kalba) (Giedrius Prunskus) , copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 14
Word count: 77

Marc Chagall

Language: English after the French (Français)

An ass or a cow, a rooster or a horse,
even the skin of a violin,
a man singing, a single bird,
an agile dancer with his wife,
 
a couple soaked in their springtime.
 
Golden grass and leaden sky
separated by the blue flames
of health and of dew.
Blood grows iridescent, hearts are ringing.
 
A couple, the first reflection.
 
And in a tunnel of snow
the abundant vine sketches
a moon-lipped face
that has never slept all night.

Text Authorship:

Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2000 by Peter Low, (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 Eugène Émile Paul Grindel (1895 - 1952), as Paul Éluard, "À Marc Chagall", written 1946, appears in Le dur désir de durer, Paris, Éd. Arnold-Bordas, first published 1946
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 14
Word count: 79