À la claire fontaine
At the Clear Fountain
Chanson enfantine
(French)
À la claire fontaine,
M'en allant promener
J'ai trouvé l'eau si belle
Que je m'y suis baigné
Refrain :
Il y a longtemps que je t'aime
Jamais je ne t'oublierai
Sous les feuilles d'un chêne,
Je me suis fait sécher
Sur la plus haute branche,
Un rossignol chantait
Refrain
Chante rossignol, chante,
Toi qui as le cœur gai
Tu as le cœur à rire,
Moi je l'ai à pleurer
Refrain
J'ai perdu mon amie,
Sans l'avoir mérité
Pour un bouquet de roses,
Que je lui refusai
Refrain
Je voudrais que la rose,
Fût encore au rosier
Et que ma douce amie
Fût encore à m'aimer
(autre version:
Et que le rosier même
À la mer fût jeté.)
Refrain
Children's Song
(English)
At the clear fountain,
While I was strolling by,
I found the water so nice
That I went in to bathe.
Chorus
So long I've been loving you,
I will never forget you.
Under an oak tree,
I dried myself.
On the highest branch,
A nightingale was singing.
Chorus
Sing, nightingale, sing,
Your heart is so happy.
Your heart feels like laughing,
Mine feels like weeping.
Chorus
I lost my beloved,
Without deserving it,
For a bunch of roses,
That I denied her.
Chorus
I wanted the rose
To be still on the bush,
And my sweet beloved
To be still loving me.
(other version:
And even the rosebush
To be thrown in the sea.)
Chorus
| MP3 Recording of À la claire fontaine (Click to listen) | ![]() |
| MIDI Tune of À la claire fontaine (Click to listen) | ![]() |

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Copyright ©2009 by Lisa Yannucci. All rights reserved.













Many thanks to Jade Kite for contributing this song and to Monique Palomares for the midi music!
Thanks also to Tiphaine Woerth for recording this song for Mama Lisa's World.
Merci!
There's a Quebequese and a Creole version of this song.