Songs
Ronda 'Round Dance'
by Dmitri Shostakovich From Ispanskije Pesni, 'Spanish Songs' (1956) Op. 100
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Translation
Round Dance
English translation ©
Philip Ross Bullock
Outside is the sound of a round dance,
The time for gaiety is come.
Come and dance with me at once,
My lovely crimson carnation!
The rustling brook can be heard in the moonlit silence…
Give me your hand, my dear girl,
My lovely crimson carnation!
The street is like a radiant garden.
Jokes ring out, eyes gleam.
The dancers turn and sing,
The silvery stars shine in the sky above.
Merry couples rush by….
This is the joyful festival of the first flowers of spring,
This is the festival of our love!
On the windows, in the light of the moon,
Play the shadows of the almond trees….
So when will you come out to meet me,
My tender spring blossom?
Tear a branch from the almond tree,
And give it to me as a sign of your love,
My tender spring blossom!
The time for gaiety is come.
Come and dance with me at once,
My lovely crimson carnation!
The rustling brook can be heard in the moonlit silence…
Give me your hand, my dear girl,
My lovely crimson carnation!
The street is like a radiant garden.
Jokes ring out, eyes gleam.
The dancers turn and sing,
The silvery stars shine in the sky above.
Merry couples rush by….
This is the joyful festival of the first flowers of spring,
This is the festival of our love!
On the windows, in the light of the moon,
Play the shadows of the almond trees….
So when will you come out to meet me,
My tender spring blossom?
Tear a branch from the almond tree,
And give it to me as a sign of your love,
My tender spring blossom!
Composer
Dmitri Shostakovich
Dmitri Shostakovich was a Russian composer and pianist. He achieved fame in the Soviet Union, although later developed a more complex and difficult relationship with the government. As a composer, he combined a variety of different musical…