Repertoire

Il bianco e dolce cigno – J. Arcadelt
Translation:
The white and sweet swan dies singing,
and I, weeping, reach the end of my life.
Strange and different fate, that he dies disconsolate
and I die a blessed death,
which in dying fills me full of joy and desire.
If in dying, were I to feel no other pain,
I would be content to die a thousand deaths a day.

 
La la la, je ne l’ose dire – Pierre Certon
This French madrigal is a gossip song which tells of a man who is jealous of his wife. He is not jealous without reason however, because she is cheating on him.

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Now is the month of maying – Thomas Morley
Now is the month of Maying, when merry lads are playing! Fa la la la la!
Each with his bonny lass, a-dancing on the grass, fa la la la la! The Spring, clad all in gladness, doth laugh at Winter’s sadness! Fa la la la la!
And to the bagpipes’ sound, the nymphs tread out the ground! Fa la la la la!Fie! Then why sit we musing, youth’s sweet delight refusing? Fa la la la la!
Say, dainty nymphs and speak! Shall we play barley break? Fa la la la la!

 
Dieu! qu’il la fait bon regarder – Claude Debussy
This piece is the first of the Trois Chansons written by Claude Debussy (1862 – 1918). The text is by Charles d’Orléans, prince and poet, who was imprisoned in England after the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. It is a shimmering love song.
Translation:
God, what a vision she is;
one imbued with grace, true and beautiful!
For all the virtues that are hers
everyone is quick to praise her.
Who could tire of her?
Her beauty constantly renews itself;
On neither side of the ocean
do I know any girl or woman
who is in all virtues so perfect;
it’s a dream even to think of her;
God, what a vision she is.

 
El Grillo (The Cricket) – Josquin des Pres
Translation:
The cricket is a good singer
Who sings for a long time
The cricket sings just for fun
The cricket is a good singerBut unlike the birds
who fly off when they’ve sung a bit,
The cricket just stays where he is. When the weather is really hot,
he sings solely for love.

 
Il est bel et bon – Passereau
Il est bel et bon is one of the most popular Renaissance chansons, the French equivalent of the madrigal. It combines, in music, the gossiping of the village women and the clucking of chickens.
Translation:
HE IS A PRETTY CUCKOO! My husband’s so handsome and such a good fellow, dear. So good, so good, so good, so good, so good indeed. There were two country women, and one said tothe other:”You have a good husband.” My husband’s so handsome and such a good fellow, dear. He doesn’t annoy me, he doesn’t beat me either. He does the cleaning, he feeds the chickens, and I take my pleasure. You will surely laugh, dear, When you hear the chooks cluck: “Oh! what a little flirt”! And crow Cock-a-doodle-doo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oooo-oo…, Cock-a-doodle-doo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo… My husband’s so handsome and such a good fellow, dear.