by
Victor Hugo (1802 - 1885)
L'enfant chantait; la mère au lit,...
Language: French (Français)
Our translations: CAT ENG
L'enfant chantait; la mère au lit, exténuée,
Agonisait, beau front dans l'ombre se penchant ;
La mort au-dessus d'elle errait dans la nuée ;
Et j'écoutais ce râle, et j'entendais ce chant.
L'enfant avait cinq ans, et près de la fenêtre
Ses rires et ses jeux faisaient un charmant bruit ;
Et la mère, à côté de ce pauvre doux être
Qui chantait tout le jour, toussait toute la nuit.
La mère alla dormir sous les dalles du cloître ;
Et le petit enfant se remit à chanter...
La douleur est un fruit ; Dieu ne le fait pas croître
Sur la branche trop faible encor pour le porter.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by (Edward) Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976), "L'Enfance", 1928, published 1982 [ voice and piano ], from Quatre chansons françaises, no. 3, London, Faber music [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Benjamin Louis Paul Godard (1849 - 1895), "L'Enfance", op. 97 [ medium voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887 - 1959), "Les mères", op. 45 (1914), published 1987, first performed 1917 [ voice and piano ], Rio de Janeiro: Arthur Napoleão [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2024, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (David K. Smythe) , "Childhood", 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: 12
Word count: 104
Childhood
Language: English after the French (Français)
The child was singing, the mother, stretched out on the bed,
Was dying, her beautiful forehead looking into the shadow;
Above her Death roamed about in the dense cloud;
And I listened to that groan, and I heard that song.
The child was five years old, and near the window
Her laughter and her games made an enchanting noise;
And the mother, beside the sweet little being
Who sang all day, coughed all night.
The mother was laid to rest beneath the flagstones of the cloister;
And the little child returned to singing ...
Sorrow is a fruit; God does not let it grow
On a branch too weak to bear it.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © by David K. Smythe, (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:
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 111