Je compare vos yeux à ces claires fontaines, 
où les astres d'argent et les étoiles d’or 
font miroiter, la nuit, des flammes incertaines. 

Vienne à passer le vent sur leur onde qui dort, 
Il faut que l’astre émigre et que l’étoile meure, 
Pour renaître, passer, luire et s’éteindre encor! 

Si cruels maintenant, si tendres tout à l’heure, 
Vos beaux yeux sont pareils à ces flots décevants, 
Et l’amour ne s’y mire, et l’amour n’y demeure 

Que le temps d’un reflet sous le frisson des vents.

Score from Brussels Conservatoire Library, call number CBD-B-0965-17170. On the fourth line the printed score replaces the original word 'glisser', with 'passer'. I feel this is probably a typesetters error - his distracted eye skipping ahead from 'glisser' to similar word 'passer' two lines below. I absolve Jongen of this error since I am sure his artistic sense would not have tolerated the uncomfortable effect of using 'passer' twice in the same stanza

Text Authorship:

• by Charles Le Goffic (1863 - 1932), "Vos yeux", first published 1889 [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):

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Researcher for this page: Mark Pearse [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2026-01-07
Line count: 10
Word count: 85