Tristes apprêts, pâles flambeaux” from the the opera Castor et Pollux
by Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764)
Véronique Gens with Les Talens Lyriques under Christophe Rousset
Télaïre’s lament for the death of Castor
Tristes apprêts, pâles flambeaux,
Jour plus affreux que les ténèbres
Astres lugubres des tombeaux,
Non, je ne verrai plus que vos clartés funèbres.
Toi, qui vois mon cœur éperdu,
Père du jour, ô soleil, ô mon père!
Je ne veux p lus d’un bien que
Castor a perdu, Et je renonce à ta lumière.
~ Libretto by Pierre-Joseph Bernard (1708-1775)
Sad preparations, pales torches,
daylight more dreadful than darkness,
mournful stars of the tombs,
no - I shall see only your funeral glow.
You who see my overwrought heart,
father of the day, o Sun, O my father!
I have no with to enjoy what Castor has lost,
and so I renounce your light.
~ Translation by Paula Kennedy
CD available from Erato:
édiennes-1-Jean-Baptiste-Lully/dp/B000BU99CO
Photography by Alexia Sinclair:
*This video is a re-release of one I made in January, 2016 with a few modifications. The other video has been taken off my channel.