En l'amoureux vergier vis une flour
ballade by Solage
Sources
Chantilly: Bibliothèque du Musèe Condè 564, fol. 20 (3/1).
Editions
1. French Secular Music of the Late Fourteenth Century, edited by Willi Apel, Cambridge/Massachusetts: Medieval Academy of America, 1950, no. 31.
2. French Secular Compositions of the Fourteenth Century, music edited by Willi Apel, texts
edited by Samuel N. Rosenberg, Rome: American Institute of Musicology, 1970. Corpus Mensurabilis Musicae 53/I, p. 185.
3. French Secular Music. Manuscript Chantilly, Musèe Condè 564, First Part, edited by Gordon K. Greene,
Monaco: Editions de L'Oiseau-Lyre, 1981. Polyphonic Music of the Fourteenth Century XVIII, p. 44.
Literature
SWARTZ, Anne. 'A new chronology of the ballades of Machaut', Acta Musicologica, XLVI (1974), pp. 197, 203, 204.
Recordings
French Chansons of the Fourteenth Century, Instrumental Ensemble, directed by Guillaume de Van (1953): Anthologie Sonore AS 110.
Text
En l'amoureux vergier vis une flour
espanuie par le cours de Nature,
droite, eslevee, de vermeille colour,
belle et plaisant et de gente fayture.
A ceste flour me mis en aventure
de l'aprouchier et son oudour sentir
mais
quant je fus dedens ce noble clos,
Amors me fist si doucement ravir
tant que mon cuer la prent tout son repos.
En ce vergier sont tuit li gay sejour
qu'onques Amours douna a creature.
La me dreschay remirant la valour
de
celle flour qu'en ly maynt par droiture.
Et apres luy m'assis sus la verdure
afin qu'Amours de li mi fiest jouir.
Quar il n'est riens vivant, bien dire l'os,
que j'aime tant, ne rien plus ne desir
tant que mon cuer la prent tout son
repos.
Et se au jor d'uy trestout li cointe atour
de Europe ou d'Almene tres pure,
ou des belles qui maint amoureus tour
firent si bieng es nuepces de Mercure
revenoient pour mi mettre en leur cure,
tout me seroyt nient contre le
pleisir
que j'ay de li ou tout bien sont renclos,
quar c'est la flour qu'onques ne puet flaitrir
tant que mon cuer la prent tout son repos.
TranslationIn the orchard of love I saw a flower
in full bloom, in accordance with Nature,
standing tall and straight, red of colour,
beautiful and pleasing and lovely of form.
I ventured
to approach this flower and to smell its
perfume,
but when I was inside this noble enclosure,
Love ravished my spirit so sweetly
that my heart takes there all its repose.
In this orchard is all the happy release
that Love ever gave to created beings.
There I lifted
myself up, admiring the worth
of this flower which rightly resides in Her.
I sat down beside her on the grassy sward,
so that Love could teach me to enjoy it.
For there is nothing living, truly I dare say it,
that I love so much, nor do I
desire anything more,
such that my heart takes there all its repose.
And if today all the gracious throng
of Europe or of very pure Germany,
or of the beauties who turned about so blithely
and so prettily at the wedding of
Mercury,
returned to take me there in their care,
all would be to me as nothing in the face of the pleasure
which I have from Her in whom all good qualities are enclosed,
for this is the flower which can never fade,
such that my heart
takes there all its repose.Text revision and translation © Robyn Smith