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by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872)

Sultan Mahmoud
Language: French (Français) 
Dans mon harem se groupe,
  Comme un bouquet
Débordant d'une coupe
  Sur un banquet,
Tout ce que cherche ou rêve,
  D'opium usé,
En son ennui sans trève,
  Un coeur blasé ;

[Mais tous ces corps sans âmes
  Plaisent un jour...
Hélas ! j'ai six cents femmes,
  Et pas d'amour!]1

La biche ou l'antilope,
  J'ai tout ici,
Asie, Afrique, Europe,
  En raccourci ;
Teint vermeil, teint d'orange,
  &Oelig;il noir ou bleu,
Le charmant et l'étrange,
  De tout un peu;

[Mais tous ces corps sans âmes
  Plaisent un jour...
Hélas ! j'ai six cents femmes,
  Et pas d'amour!]1

Ni la vierge de Grèce, 
  Marbre vivant ;
Ni la [sombre]2 négresse,
  Toujours rêvant;
Ni la [vive]3 Française
  À l'air [vainqueur]4;
Ni la plaintive Anglaise,
  N'ont pris mon coeur !

[Tous ces beaux corps sans âmes
  Plaisent un jour...
Hélas ! j'ai six cents femmes,
  Et pas d'amour!]1

Available sung texts:   ← What is this?

•   F. David •   F. Pedrell 

F. Pedrell sets stanzas 1-2, 5-6

View original text (without footnotes)
1 David:
Que ne suis-je esclave;
Un pâtre obscur,
Savourant sans entrave
Un amour pur!
2 Pedrell: "fauve"
3 David: "blonde"
4 David: "moqueur"

Text Authorship:

  • by Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier (1811 - 1872), "Sultan Mahmoud", 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 Félicien César David (1810 - 1876), "Sultan Mahmoud", 1845, published 1866 [ low voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
  • by Felipe Pedrell (1841 - 1922), "Sultan Mahmoud", published 1877, stanzas 1-2,5-6 [ high voice and piano ], from Consolations - 12 Mélodies sur des poésies de Théophile Gautier, no. 3, Milan: Francesco Lucca [sung text checked 1 time]
  • by Charles-Émile Poisot (1822 - 1904), "Sultan Mahmoud" [sung text not yet checked]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 36
Word count: 143

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