Libretto
| Description/Analysis | French Lyrics | English Lyrics |
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PREMIER ACTE SCÈNE 3 |
ACT ONE SCENE 3 |
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| (Le théâtre représente un monument dressé pour les funérailles de Castor.) | (The scene takes place at a monument adorned for the funeral rites of Castor.) | |
| Télaire monologue [da capo aria] (in Eb major; she sings a lament for Castor’s death, cited by Rameau for its expressive use of chromatics in section A of the da capo. Rameau argues that the source of expression is not through the explicit use of a chromatic melodic line, but rather through the use of transitory expressive modulations, where chromatics are automatically implied through the signature changes required for each new key. The modulations, furthermore, are so brief or transitory that for Rameau, the new keys are only “sensed” as tonics, but without undermining the prevailing key. The very clear articulation of the Eb tonic provides a secure tonal anchor for the expressive modulations.) | TÉLAIRE | TÉLAIRE |
| (Section A) | (Section A) | |
| Tristes apprêts, pâles flambeaux, | Mournful apparitions, pale flames, | |
| Jour plus affreux que les ténèbres, | Day more frightening than darkness, | |
| Astres lugubres des tombeaux, | Dismal stars within tombs, | |
| Non, je ne verrai plus que vos clartés funèbres. | No, I shall no longer see anything other than your funereal beams. | |
| (Section B) | (Section B) | |
| Toi, qui vois mon cœur éperdu, | You who see my broken heart, | |
| Père du Jour! ô Soleil! ô mon Père! | Father of daylight! Oh Sun, Oh my father! | |
| Je ne veux plus d'un bien que Castor a perdu, | I no longer wish the gift [of life] that Castor has lost, | |
| Et je renonce à ta lumière. (da capo) | And I renounce the light. (da capo) |
Scores
Audio
 | 1-06_tristes_apprets.mp3 | 6.14 MB |