
Au clair de la lune
Under the Moonlight
Chanson enfantine
(French)
Au clair de la lune
Mon ami Pierrot
Prête-moi ta plume*
Pour écrire un mot
Ma chandelle est morte
Je n'ai plus de feu
Ouvre-moi ta porte
Pour l'amour de Dieu
Au clair de la lune
Pierrot répondit
Je n'ai pas de plume
Je suis dans mon lit
Va chez la voisine
Je crois qu'elle y est
Car dans sa cuisine
On bat le briquet
Au clair de la lune
L'aimable Lubin
Frappe chez la brune
Qui répond soudain
Qui frapp' de la sorte
Il dit à son tour
Ouvrez votre porte
Au dieu de l'amour
Au clair de la lune
On n'y voit qu'un peu
On chercha la plume
On chercha du feu
En cherchant d' la sorte
Je n' sais c' qu'on trouva
Mais je sais qu' la porte
Sur eux se ferma.
Children's Song
(English)
Under the moonlight,
My friend Pierrot
Lend me your pen*,
So I could write a word
My candle is out,
I've no more light
Open your door for me,
For God's sake.
Under the moonlight,
Pierrot replied,
I've no pen,
I'm in my bed.
Go next door,
I believe they're in,
For in the kitchen,
Someone lit a matchstick.
Under the moonlight
Nice Lubin
Knocks at the brunette's door
She suddenly replies
Who's knocking this way
He says in his turn
Open your door
To the god of love.
Under the moonlight
Little can be seen
The pen was looked for
Fire was looked for
Searching this way
I don't know what was found
But I do know that the door
On them was shut down.

*Pen: the original version went "Prête-moi ta lume", i.e. "your light" in Old French; as the years went by, "light" became" pen". Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632-1687) is usually said to be the musical composer.
Many thanks to Elena for contributing and translating the two first two verses of this song and to Monique Palomares for contributing and translating the missing verses and creating the midi music.
Illustration by Louis-Maurice Boutet de Monvel (1851-1913) from Vieilles Chansons pour les Petits Enfants: Avec Accompagnements / de Ch. M. Widor (1844 - 1937); Illustrations Par M.B. de Monvel. Paris: E. Plon, Nourrit et Cie, [1883]. The image was graphically edited by Lisa Yannucci.
The 2nd illustration is from Chansons et rondes enfantines (1871) with a little graphical editing by Lisa Yannucci.
Illustration by Louis-Maurice Boutet de Monvel (1851-1913) from Vieilles Chansons pour les Petits Enfants: Avec Accompagnements / de Ch. M. Widor (1844 - 1937); Illustrations Par M.B. de Monvel. Paris: E. Plon, Nourrit et Cie, [1883]. The image was graphically edited by Lisa Yannucci.
The 2nd illustration is from Chansons et rondes enfantines (1871) with a little graphical editing by Lisa Yannucci.
Many thanks to Tiphaine Woerth for recording this song for Mama Lisa's World!
Merci beaucoup !
If you'd like to hear a more old-fashioned version, here you can hear a 1931 recording of Au clair de la lune by Yvonne Printemps.

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