Songs

O, dolgo budu ja, v molchan'i nochi tajnoj, 'In the silence of the secret night'

by Sergei Rachmaninov From Six Romances (1894) Op. 4

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O, dolgo budu ja, v molchan'i nochi tajnoj, 'In the silence of the secret night'
Russian source: Afanasy Afanasyevich Fet

O, dolgo budu ja, v molchan'i nochi tajnoj,
Kovarnyj lepet tvoj, ulybku, vzor sluchajnyj,
Perstam poslushnuju volos gustuju prjad',
Iz myslej izgonjat', i snova prizyvat';
Dysha poryvisto, odin, nikem ne zrimyj,
Dosady i styda rumjanami palimyj,
Iskat' khotja odnoj zagadochnoj cherty
V slovakh, kotorye proiznosila ty;
Sheptat' i popravljat' bylye vyrazhen'ja
Rechej moikh s toboj, ispolnennykh smushchen'ja,
I v op'janenii, naperekor umu,
Zavetnym imenem budit' nochnuju mglu.

In the silence of the secret night
English translation © Philip Ross Bullock

Oh, long will I, in the silence of the mysterious night,
Chase from my thoughts and then call up again
Your artful chatter, your smile, your casual glance,
The thick tresses of your hair, so pliant in my fingers;
Breathing fitfully, alone, unseen by anybody else,
Burning with the glow of vexation and of shame,
I shall seek out the slightest hint of mystery
In the words you uttered;
I shall whisper and improve upon the past expressions
Of things I once said to you, things full of bashfulness,
And intoxicated, against all reason,
I shall wake night’s darkness with your cherished name.

O, dolgo budu ja, v molchan'i nochi tajnoj, 'In the silence of the secret night'
Russian source: Afanasy Afanasyevich Fet

In the silence of the secret night
English source: Philip Ross Bullock

O, dolgo budu ja, v molchan'i nochi tajnoj,
Oh, long will I, in the silence of the mysterious night,
Kovarnyj lepet tvoj, ulybku, vzor sluchajnyj,
Chase from my thoughts and then call up again
Perstam poslushnuju volos gustuju prjad',
Your artful chatter, your smile, your casual glance,
Iz myslej izgonjat', i snova prizyvat';
The thick tresses of your hair, so pliant in my fingers;
Dysha poryvisto, odin, nikem ne zrimyj,
Breathing fitfully, alone, unseen by anybody else,
Dosady i styda rumjanami palimyj,
Burning with the glow of vexation and of shame,
Iskat' khotja odnoj zagadochnoj cherty
I shall seek out the slightest hint of mystery
V slovakh, kotorye proiznosila ty;
In the words you uttered;
Sheptat' i popravljat' bylye vyrazhen'ja
I shall whisper and improve upon the past expressions
Rechej moikh s toboj, ispolnennykh smushchen'ja,
Of things I once said to you, things full of bashfulness,
I v op'janenii, naperekor umu,
And intoxicated, against all reason,
Zavetnym imenem budit' nochnuju mglu.
I shall wake night’s darkness with your cherished name.