Séguidille
French source:
Théophile Gautier
Un peigne énorme sur son chignon,
Jambe nerveuse et pied mignon,
Oeil de feu, teint pâle et dents blanches;
Alza! olà!
Voilà
La véritable Manola.
Gestes hardis, libre parole,
Sel et piment à pleine main,
Oubli parfait du lendemain,
Amour fantasque et grâce folle.
Chanter, danser au son des castagnettes,
Et, dans les courses de taureaux,
Juger les coups des toreros,
Tout en fumant des cigarettes;
Alza! olà!
Voilà
La véritable Manola.
Seguidilla
English translation ©
Richard Stokes
in her chignon a huge comb,
rippling legs and dainty feet,
eyes ablaze, pale complexion, white teeth;
Alza! Olà!
Behold
a true street-girl of Madrid.
Bold of gesture, free of speech,
almost too hot to handle,
utterly oblivious of the morrow,
explosive with love and wild grace.
She sings and dances to castanets
and, in the bull-ring,
judges the bullfighters’ blows,
while smoking her cigarettes;
Alza! Olà!
Behold
a true street-girl of Madrid.
Translation © Richard Stokes, author of A French Song Companion (Oxford, 2000)
Séguidille
French source:
Théophile Gautier
Seguidilla
English source:
Richard Stokes
Un jupon serré sur les hanches,
Her skirt clinging to her hips,
Un peigne énorme sur son chignon,
in her chignon a huge comb,
Jambe nerveuse et pied mignon,
rippling legs and dainty feet,
Oeil de feu, teint pâle et dents blanches;
eyes ablaze, pale complexion, white teeth;
Alza! olà!
Alza! Olà!
Voilà
Behold
La véritable Manola.
a true street-girl of Madrid.
Gestes hardis, libre parole,
Bold of gesture, free of speech,
Sel et piment à pleine main,
almost too hot to handle,
Oubli parfait du lendemain,
utterly oblivious of the morrow,
Amour fantasque et grâce folle.
explosive with love and wild grace.
Chanter, danser au son des castagnettes,
She sings and dances to castanets
Et, dans les courses de taureaux,
and, in the bull-ring,
Juger les coups des toreros,
judges the bullfighters’ blows,
Tout en fumant des cigarettes;
while smoking her cigarettes;
Alza! olà!
Alza! Olà!
Voilà
Behold
La véritable Manola.
a true street-girl of Madrid.
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
Théophile Gautier
Pierre Jules Théophile Gautier was a French poet, dramatist, novelist, journalist, and art and literary critic. While Gautier was an ardent defender of Romanticism, his work is difficult to classify and remains a point of reference for many…