Songs

Pierrot

by Claude Debussy

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Text & Translation

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Pierrot
French source: Théodore de Banville

Le bon Pierrot, que la foule contemple,
Ayant fini les noces d’Arlequin,
Suit en songeant le boulevard du Temple.
Une fillette au souple casaquin
En vain l’agace de son œil coquin;
Et cependant mystérieuse et lisse
Faisant de lui sa plus chère délice,
La blanche lune aux cornes de taureau
Jette un regard de son œil en coulisse
À son ami Jean Gaspard Deburau.

Pierrot
English translation © Richard Stokes

Good old Pierrot, watched by the crowd,
Having done with Harlequin’s wedding,
Drifts dreamily along the boulevard of the Temple.
A girl in a flowing blouse
Vainly leads him on with her teasing eyes;
And meanwhile, mysterious and sleek,
Cherishing him above all else,
The white moon with horns like a bull
Ogles her friend
Jean Gaspard Deburau.

Translations by Richard Stokes, from A French Song Companion (Oxford, 2000)

Pierrot
French source: Théodore de Banville

Pierrot
English source: Richard Stokes

Le bon Pierrot, que la foule contemple,
Good old Pierrot, watched by the crowd,
Ayant fini les noces d’Arlequin,
Having done with Harlequin’s wedding,
Suit en songeant le boulevard du Temple.
Drifts dreamily along the boulevard of the Temple.
Une fillette au souple casaquin
A girl in a flowing blouse
En vain l’agace de son œil coquin;
Vainly leads him on with her teasing eyes;
Et cependant mystérieuse et lisse
And meanwhile, mysterious and sleek,
Faisant de lui sa plus chère délice,
Cherishing him above all else,
La blanche lune aux cornes de taureau
The white moon with horns like a bull
Jette un regard de son œil en coulisse
Ogles her friend
À son ami Jean Gaspard Deburau.
Jean Gaspard Deburau.

Composer

Claude Debussy

(Achille) Claude Debussy was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influential composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Please click…

Poet

Théodore de Banville

Théodore Faullain de Banville was a French poet and writer.

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