À la claire fontaine
(Fendez le bois)
"À la claire fontaine" was sung by French Canadian trappers on long canoe trips. It was also the 1st national anthem of Quebec. It's very popular in France too.
À la claire fontaine
(Fendez le bois)
At the Clear Fountain
(Chop the Wood)
Chanson enfantine
Children's Song
(French)
(English)
À la claire fontaine m'en allant promener
J'ai trouvé l'eau si belle que je m'y suis baigné
Refrain
Fendez le bois, chauffez le four
Dormez la belle, il n'est point jour
Sous les feuilles d'un chêne, je me suis fait sécher
Sur la plus haute branche, le 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 ma maîtresse sans l'avoir mérité
Pour un bouquet de roses que je lui refusai
Refrain
Je voudrais que la rose fût encore au rosier
Et moi et ma maîtresse dans les mêmes amitiés
Refrain
At the clear fountain, while I was strolling by,
I found the water so nice that I went to bathe inside.
(Chorus)
Chop the wood, heat the oven,
Sleep, pretty one, it's not daytime yet.
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 I denied her a bunch of roses.
(Chorus)
I'd like the rose to be still on the bush
And me and my beloved to still be loving each other.
(Chorus)
 - Canadian Children's Songs - Canada - Mama Lisa's World: Children's Songs and Rhymes from Around the World
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Notes
There's a French and a Creole version of this song. In fact, there have been more than 500 versions of "À la Claire fontaine".
Thanks and Acknowledgements
Many thanks to Monique Palomares for creating the midi music, for translating this song into English with Lisa, and for the illustration.
Merci beaucoup!
