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by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872)
Translation © by Victoria de Menil
Au firmament sans étoile
Language: French (Français)
Our translations: ENG
Kadidja:
Au firmament sans étoile,
La lune éteint ses rayons ;
La nuit nous prête son voile.
Fuyons ! fuyons !
Ahmed:
Ne crains-tu pas la colère
De tes frères insolents,
Le désespoir de ton père,
De ton père aux sourcils blancs ?
Kadidja:
Que m'importent mépris, blâme,
Dangers, malédictions !
C'est dans toi que vit mon âme.
Fuyons ! fuyons !
Ahmed:
Le cœur me manque ; je tremble,
Et, dans mon sein traversé,
De leur kandjar il me semble
Sentir le contact glacé !
Kadidja:
Née au désert, ma cavale
Sur les blés, dans les sillons,
Volerait, des vents rivale.
Fuyons ! fuyons !
Ahmed:
Au désert infranchissable,
Sans parasol pour jeter
Un peu d'ombre sur le sable,
Sans tente pour m'abriter...
Kadidja:
Mes cils te feront de l'ombre ;
Et, la nuit, nous dormirons
Sous mes cheveux, tente sombre.
Fuyons ! fuyons !
Ahmed:
Si le mirage illusoire
Nous cachait le vrai chemin,
Sans vivres, sans eau pour boire,
Tous deux nous mourrions demain.
Kadidja:
Sous le bonheur mon cœur ploie ;
Si l'eau manque aux stations,
Bois les larmes de ma joie.
Fuyons ! fuyons !
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872), "La fuite", written 1845, appears in Poésies diverses, poésies nouvelles et inédites, poésies posthumes, in Poésies diverses 1838-1845 [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 François Emmanuel Joseph Bazin (1816 - 1878), "La fuite", published 1849, Paris, Richault [sung text not yet checked]
- by Georges Bizet (1838 - 1875), "La fuite", 1872, published 1872 [ vocal duet for soprano and tenor with piano ], Paris, Choudens [sung text not yet checked]
- by Martial Caillebotte (1853 - 1910), "La fuite", published 1884 [ vocal duet for soprano and tenor with piano ], from Scènes et Mélodies, no. 7, Paris, G. Hartmann [sung text not yet checked]
- by Paul-Charles-Marie Curet (1848 - 1917), as Paul Puget, "La fuite", 1870-79?, published 1881 [ vocal duet for soprano and tenor with piano ], from Vingt mélodies, Vol. 1, no. 9, Paris, Girod [sung text not yet checked]
- by Henri Duparc (1848 - 1933), "La Fuite", 1871, published c1900, first performed 1873 [ vocal duet for soprano and tenor with piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Alphonse Duvernoy (1842 - 1907), "La fuite", op. 7 no. 6 (1871), published 1872 [ vocal duet for soprano and baritone with piano ], from Six mélodies, no. 6, Paris, G. Hartmann [sung text not yet checked]
- by Felipe Pedrell (1841 - 1922), "La fuite", published 1877 [ high voice and piano ], from Consolations - 12 Mélodies sur des poésies de Théophile Gautier, no. 6, Milan: Francesco Lucca [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Jules Philipot (1824 - 1897), "La fuite - épisode dramatique", op. 124, published 1874 [ voice and piano (or vocal duet with piano) ], from Poèmes et Chants, Poésies de Théophile Gautier, no. 5, Paris, L. Grus [sung text not yet checked]
- by Edmond Viault (1834 - 1876), "La fuite", op. 9 no. 1, published 1862-6 [ tenor or soprano and piano ], from 22 Scènes, mélodies et couplets, no. 1, Paris, Richault [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CZE Czech (Čeština) (Jaroslav Vrchlický) , "Útěk"
- ENG English (Victoria de Menil) , "Flight", copyright ©, (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: 45
Word count: 173
Flight
Language: English after the French (Français)
Kadidja: In the starless firmament The moon extinguishes its rays. Night lends us its veil, Let us flee, let us flee! Ahmed: Don't you fear the anger Of your insolent brothers? Your father's despair? Your father with his white eyebrows? Kadidja: What do I care about scorn, blame, Dangers or curses? It is in you that my soul lives. Let us flee, let us flee! Ahmed: My heart is faltering, I tremble, And in my breast penetrated By their kandjar (an Oriental dagger) I seem To feel the icy touch . . . Kadidja: Born in the desert, my mare Over wheat, through the fields Would fly, rivalling the winds. Let us flee! Let us flee! Ahmed: To the boundless desert Without a parasol to cast A little shade on the sand, Without a tent to shelter me . . . Kadidja: My eyelashes will make you shade And at night we will sleep Under my hair, a dark tent. Let us flee, let us flee! Ahmed: If the illusory mirage Were to hide the real path, Without food, without water to drink, We would both of us die tomorrow. Kadidja: My heart bends under my happiness, If the stations lack water, Drink the tears of my joy. Let us flee! Let us flee!
Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © by Victoria de Menil, (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 Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872), "La fuite", written 1845, appears in Poésies diverses, poésies nouvelles et inédites, poésies posthumes, in Poésies diverses 1838-1845
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 45
Word count: 214