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Original lyrics
Sweet bird
Sweet bird, that shun ‘st the noise of folly,
Most musical, most melancholy!
Thee, chauntress, oft the woods among,
I woo to hear thy even-song.
Or, missing thee, I walk unseen,
On the dry smooth-shaven green,
To behold the wand ‘ring moon
Riding near her highest noon.
Sweet bird. . . da capo
Submitted by 
guest-guest on 2023-04-24
guest-guest on 2023-04-24Translation
Doux oiseau
Doux oiseau, qui fuit le bruit de la folie,
Si musical, si mélancolique !
Toi, enchanteur, dont souvent parmi les bois,
Je cherche à entendre le chant du soir.
Ou, toi, manquant, je marche invisible,
Sur l’herbe sèche, lisse et rase,
Pour contempler la lune vagabonde
Chevauchant près de son zénith.
Doux oiseau….au sommet
La IsabelGeorg Friedrich Händel: Top 3
| 1. | Lascia ch'io pianga |
| 2. | Ombra mai fu |
| 3. | Hallelujah |
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About translator
“Sweet bird” is an air from Händel’s pastoral ode (its 13th part) named “L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato” - HWV 55 (The Cheerful man, the Thoughtful man and the Moderate man).
The air is sung by a soprano (il Penseroso character)
The whole work is based on the poetry of John Milton on a libretto that was arranged by Charles Jennens and James Harris.
It premiered in London (1740)
Beneath you can find the whole pastoral ode
in an execution by John Eliot Gardiner (conductor) his English Baroque Soloists and his Monteverdi Choir.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PL_4VQphfQg