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Au clair de la lune, Mon ami Pierrot, Prête-moi ta plume, Pour écrire un mot; Ma chandelle est morte, Je n'ai plus de feu Ouvre-moi ta porte Pour l'amour de Dieu. Au clair de la lune, Pierrot répondit: Je n'ai pas de plume, Je suis dans mon lit. Va chez la voisine, Je crois qu'elle y est; Car dans sa cuisine On bat le briquet. Au clair de la lune, L'aimable Lubin, Frappe chez la brune Ell' répond soudain: Qui frapp' de la sorte? Il dit à son tour: Ouvre-moi ta porte Pour le dieu d'amour. Au clair de la lune, On n'y voit qu'un peu, On cherche la plume, On cherche du feu. En cherchant d'la sorte Je n'saisc'qu'on trouva: Mais j'sais que la porte Sur eux se ferma.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Anonymous / Unidentified Author [author's text not yet checked 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 Theodor W. Adorno (1903 - 1969), "Au clair de la lune mon ami Pierrot" [ voice and piano ], from Sept chansons populaires françaises, no. 1 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Samuel Barber (1910 - 1981), "Au clair de la lune", 1926, published 2010 [ voice and piano ], confirmed with a CD booklet [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Denys Bouliane (b. 1955), "Au clair de la lune", subtitle: "Volkstext", 2011 [sung text checked 1 time]
- possibly by Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632 - 1687), "Au clair de la lune" [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Thomas Pasatieri (b. 1945), "Pierrot", 1980?, published [1980] [ high voice and piano ], from Album Leaves, volume 2 for Voice and Piano, no. 6, Theodore Presser [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in Spanish (Español), a translation by Margarita Abella Caprile (1901 - 1960) [an adaptation] ; composed by Carlos López Buchardo.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Garrett Medlock) , copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) (Ingrid Schmithüsen) , "Bei Mondenschein", copyright © 2013, (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: 32
Word count: 130
By the light of the moon, My friend Pierrot, Lend me your pen To write a word; My candle is out, I have no more fire, Open your door for me For the love of God. By the light of the moon, Pierrot replied: “I do not have a pen, I am in my bed. Go to the neighbor's, I think that she is there; For in her kitchen She is [making a fire]." By the light of the moon Friendly Lubin Knocked at the brunette's [house], She answered suddenly: “Who is knocking?" He said in turn: “Open your door for me For the love of God.” By the light of the moon, One could not see but a little, One looks for a pen, One looks for a flame. In searching for them I do not know what [they] found But I know that the door [Was] closed in front of them.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translations of title(s):
"Au clair de la lune" = "By the light of the moon"
"Pierrot" = "Pierrot"
Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2019 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.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net
Based on:
- a text in French (Français) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist
This text was added to the website: 2019-05-10
Line count: 32
Word count: 153