Singable translation by
Louis Pomey (1835 - 1901)
Dites, que faut‑il faire ?
Language: French (Français) after the Italian (Italiano)
Dites, que faut-il faire
Pour rendre un coeur constant?
Que de moyens de plaire!
Rien ne varie autant!
Comment s’y prendre et que dire?
Faut-il risquer un malin sourire?
Faut-il se taire et baisser les yeux?
Pour obtenir qu’on l’aime,
Chacune a son système,
N’aimer pas voilà le mieux.
Dites, que faut-il faire
Pour rendre un coeur constant?
Que de moyens de plaire!
Rien ne varie autant!
Point de mystère. Ce qu’il faut faire
Pour séduire et plaire,
ce qu’il faut faire pour charmer,
C’est de ne pas aimer.
Le seul moyen de plaire,
C’est de ne pas aimer,
Oui, lorsqu’on veut plaire,
Il ne faut pas aimer.
Par un malin sonrire,
Par un doux regard on peut séduire;
Mais pour plaire et pour charmer,
oui gardezvous d’aimer,
gardezvous d’aimer.
Text Authorship:
Based on:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Garrett Medlock) , copyright © 2020, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Garrett Medlock
[Guest Editor] This text was added to the website: 2020-06-30
Line count: 27
Word count: 130
Tell me, what should one do
Language: English after the French (Français)
Tell [me], what should one do
To make a heart constant,
So many ways to delight!
Nothing varies as much!
How to go about it and what to say?
Should one risk a shrewd smile?
Should one keep silent and lower [their] eyes?
To obtain the one whom one loves,
Each person to their system,
Do not love at all - see, [this is] best
Tell [me], what should one do
To make a heart constant,
So many ways to delight!
Nothing varies as much!
[It is] no mystery. What one must do
To seduce and delight,
What one must do to charm
Is to not love.
The only way to delight
Is to not love,
Yes, when one wishes to delight
They must not love.
With a shrewd smile,
With a sweet glance one can seduce;
But to delight and to charm,
yes, guard yourself [against] loving,
guard yourself [against] loving.
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Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2020 by Garrett Medlock, (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.
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Based on:
- a text in French (Français) by Louis Pomey (1835 - 1901)
Based on:
This text was added to the website: 2020-06-30
Line count: 27
Word count: 151