La flûte enchantée
French source:
Tristan Klingsor
Coiffé d'un bonnet conique de soie
Et son long nez jaune en sa barbe blanche.
Mais moi, je suis éveillée encore
Et j'écoute au dehors
Une chanson de flûte où s'épanche
Tour à tour la tristesse ou la joie.
Un air tour à tour langoureux ou frivole
Que mon amoureux chéri joue,
Et quand je m'approche de la croisée
Il me semble que chaque note s'envole
De la flûte vers ma joue
Comme un mystérieux baiser.
The enchanted flute
English translation ©
Richard Stokes
A cone-shaped silken cap on his head,
And his long yellow nose in his white beard.
But I am still awake,
Listening to the song
Of a flute outside that pours forth
Sadness and joy in turn,
A tune now languorous now lively,
Which my dear lover plays.
And when I draw near the casement,
Each note seems to fly
From the flute to my cheek
Like a mysterious kiss.
La flûte enchantée
French source:
Tristan Klingsor
The enchanted flute
English source:
Richard Stokes
L'ombre est douce et mon maître dort
The shade is soft and my master sleeps,
Coiffé d'un bonnet conique de soie
A cone-shaped silken cap on his head,
Et son long nez jaune en sa barbe blanche.
And his long yellow nose in his white beard.
Mais moi, je suis éveillée encore
But I am still awake,
Et j'écoute au dehors
Listening to the song
Une chanson de flûte où s'épanche
Of a flute outside that pours forth
Tour à tour la tristesse ou la joie.
Sadness and joy in turn,
Un air tour à tour langoureux ou frivole
A tune now languorous now lively,
Que mon amoureux chéri joue,
Which my dear lover plays.
Et quand je m'approche de la croisée
And when I draw near the casement,
Il me semble que chaque note s'envole
Each note seems to fly
De la flûte vers ma joue
From the flute to my cheek
Comme un mystérieux baiser.
Like a mysterious kiss.
Composer
Maurice Ravel
Joseph Maurice Ravel was a French composer, pianist and conductor. In the 1920s and 1930s he was internationally regarded as France's greatest living composer. He was one of the first composers to acknowledge the potential of recording in making…
Poet
Tristan Klingsor
Tristan Klingsor, birth name (Arthur Justin) Léon Leclère was a French poet, musician, painter and art critic, best known for his artistic association with the composer Maurice Ravel.