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from Act II of the French opera Carmen by Georges Bizet
Libretto: Henri Meilhac

Role: Don José, a corporal of the dragoons (soldiers)
Voice Part: tenor       Fach: spinto
Setting: The inn of Lillias Pastia
Synopsis: Carmen and José have just reunited after José's stay in prison for releasing Carmen when he was supposed to be guarding her. She has danced and played castanets for him but in the distance, he hears the call back to the barracks and he says he must go. She becomes angry at him for leaving her. Don Jose then responds by singing how the flower she threw to him kept him going throughout his stay at the prison.
Range: Tessitura:
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Translations/Aria Texts:
Translation into English by Robert Glaubitz (added 1998-01-16)
La fleur que tu m'avais jetée, Don José's aria from Carmen

Ou, tu m'entendras!			Yes, you will listen to me
Je le veux!				I want it!

La fleur que tu m'avais jetée,		The flower that you tossed to me
Dans ma prison m'était restée.		In my prison stayed with me.
Flétrie et sèche, cette fleur		Withered and dried, this flower
Gardait toujours sa douce odeur;	Kept always its sweet odor
Et pendant des heures entières,		And during all of the hours,
Sur mes yeux, fermant mes paupières,	Over my eyes closed my eyelids,
De cette odeur je m'enivrais		I became intoxicated with this odor
Et dans la nuit je te voyais!		And in the night I saw you!
Je me prenais à te maudire,		I became accustomed to cursing you,
À te détester, à me dire :		To detesting you, to saying to myself :
Pourquoi faut-il que le destin		Why is it necessary for destiny
L'ait mise là sur mon chemin?		To put herself there on my path?
Puis je m'accusais de blasphème,	Then I accused myself of blasphey
Et je ne sentais en moi-même,		And I didn't feel but in myself
Je ne sentais qu'un seul désir,		I didn't feel but one desire
Un seul désir, un seul espoir:		A sole desire, a sole hope
Te revoir, ô Carmen, ou, te revoir!	To see you again, oh Carmen, to see you again!
Car tu n'avais eu qu'à paraître,	For you had only to appear
Qu'à jeter un regard sur moi,		Only to toss a glance towards me
Pour t'emparer de tout mon être,	In order to take a hold of all my being
Ô ma Carmen!				Oh my Carmen
Et j'étais une chose à toi		And I was yours
Carmen, je t'aime!			Carmen, I love you!

Translation by Robert Glaubitz (ariaman@aria-database.com)
Sheet Music/Scores:
The Ultimate Tenor Aria Album (Version 2.0). Published by CD Sheet Music. Available at Amazon.com and Sheetmusicplus.com.
Cantolopera: Arias for Tenor - Volume 2. Published by Ricordi. Available at Amazon.com and Sheetmusicplus.com.
Adler, Kurt. Operatic Anthology, Volume 3 - Tenor. Published by G. Schirmer. Available at Amazon.com and Sheetmusicplus.com.
Franco Corelli - Voices of the Opera Series. Published by Ricordi. Available at Amazon.com and Sheetmusicplus.com.
Recordings:
none
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