TEXTS:

The Damnation of Faust

BY HECTOR BERLIOZ

Supertitles by Hugh Macdonald

 

Part I

 

Faust

Winter now gives way to spring

Nature is refreshed

From the sky’s infinite horizons

a thousand stars shine out

I feel the caress of the breeze

I breathe the purest air

I hear the birds’ awakening

and the plants and streams murmuring

How sweet it is to be alone...

... far from human struggles!

... far from the throngs!

 

Chorus of Peasants

The shepherds have left their flocks

Decked with flowers and ribbons

they gather beneath the linden trees

They dance and make merry

All together now!

 

Faust

What cries are these?

They are villagers, up early

singing and dancing on the green

My misery is jealous of their pleasure

 

Chorus

They whirl around like lightning

Soon they slow down,

flushed from their exertions...

... and tumble on one another

Still holding the circle

“Don’t touch me!”

“Sh! My wife’s not here...”

“Now’s our chance!”

He led her quickly away

Still the fun went on

Music and dancing!

 

Faust

The landscape is suddenly alive

with the glitter of armor

The sons of the Danube

make ready for war!

How proudly they bear their arms!

What fire in their eyes!

All tremble at their victory hymn

But my heart is cold,

untouched by dreams of glory

 

Part II

 

Faust

Without regret I left

the woods and fields

These proud mountains

give me no pleasure

My troubles pursue me

to this ancient city

How I suffer!

The silent, starless night

deepens my misery

Earth! For me alone

you bring forth no flowers

Where will I find

what my life lacks?

Wherever I search,

my quest is in vain

It’s time to end it all...

Why do I hesitate

as the abyss opens before me?

Cup, so long beyond my reach

Come, noble crystal,

pour the poison that will bring me...

... either enlightenment or death

 

Chorus

Christ is risen!

Leaving the darkness of the grave

He is risen to celestial bliss

His name goeth forth

To glory everlasting

His disciples languish here below

Alas! He leaves us here

in oppression and misery

O divine master! Thy joy

 is the cause of our distress

O Lord! You have left us here

 in oppression and misery

 

Faust

O memories!

My soul, will that hymn ever

carry you up to heaven?

My feeble faith returns

recalling my days of piety...

... my happy childhood prayers

I recall the joy of wandering

in the fields in spring

O heavenly kiss of love...

... filling my heart with comfort,

driving away all dark desires

Why did that hymn waken me

from the dust?

Why did that prayer

break my resolve?

Those tender harmonies

refresh my soul

Let the hymn sound again,

sweeter than the dawn!

My tears are shed,

heaven has won me back

 

Méphistophélès

O pure emotion!

Child of piety!

I admire you, doctor

Those silver bells have charmed

your troubled ears

 

Faust

Who are you, with that piercing gaze?

Why do you consume my soul like fire?

 

Méphistophélès

What foolish questions you ask!

I am the spirit of life, consoler of men

I shall give you everything:

happiness, pleasure!

Everything your heart could desire

 

Faust

So show me these miracles!

 

Méphistophélès

I’ll gladly delight your eyes and ears

Don’t lock yourself away

like a bookworm ... come with me!

 

Faust

I will!

 

Méphistophélès

Let us see life

and leave philosophy behind!

Here’s some lively company!

Here’s wine, music, and good cheer!

 

Chorus

How good it is, come rain or shine,

to stay close to the foaming bowl

To swill like a barrel

in a smoky cellar!

I love wine and the fair liquor

that drowns our cares

When my mother bore me

my godfather was a drunkard

How good it is, come rain or shine,

to stay close to the foaming bowl

To swill like a barrel

in a smoky cellar!

Who knows a good story?

Wine goes well with laughter

--Tell one, Brander!

--He’s too far gone!

 

Brander

I know one, I wrote it myself

Since you ask me, I’ll sing it

There once was a rat

who lived in a kitchen

He fed so well

even Luther would envy him

But one day the poor devil

got poisoned

He was miserable,

just like being in love

He ran around,

scratching like mad,

from one end of the house to the other

So enraged was he, they joked:

“That rat’s in love!”

He took refuge in the oven,

but there alas he became a roast

The servant laughed at his misfortune

“He’s cooked! He’s truly in love!”

 

Chorus

May he rest in peace. Amen.

 

Brander

Let’s have a fugue for the Amen!

We’ll improvise a masterpiece

 

Méphistophélès

Mark well, doctor; this will be

a real abomination

 

Your fugue was so good

we might have been in church

The style was ... truly religious

You caught the pious sentiments

which that word conveys

Now it’s my turn to sing;

my subject is as touching as yours     

 

Chorus

Is he mocking us? Who is this?

How pale he is! How red his hair!

Let’s have another song anyway!

 

Méphistophélès

A flea once lived with a prince

who loved him like his own child

He even had his tailor

fit him a costume for court

When the flea saw what gold and silk

he was to wear...

... his family all arrived

and were made lords and ladies

But the trouble was that

 everyone started to scratch

Fate is harsh: if a flea bites you,

 you crush it!

 

Faust

Enough! Let’s leave this vile place

Have you no gentler pleasures

to offer me?

 

Méphistophélès

You don’t like this? Follow me!

Here, on this fragrant bed of roses...

... take your rest, my beloved Faust

Golden kisses will fill your dreams

Flowers will open their petals

Divine words will caress your ears

Listen... listen...

The spirits of earth and air

begin their concert

 

Chorus

Sleep, blessed Faust!

Your eyes will close

beneath a veil of gold

Your star will shine forth

Dreams of love will entrance you

Beauty adorns the landscape,

flowers and fields greet the eye

Dense foliage offers a refuge

for tender lovers

 

Faust

A veil clouds my eyes

 

Chorus

See the lovers in the valley

Time passes them by

 

Méphistophélès

A beautiful girl follows you;

Faust, she will love you

 

Méphistophélès and Chorus

The lake skirts the mountain

meandering through the fields

 

Chorus

Hark, the sound of merrymaking,

of singing and dancing!

Some stay on the bank,

others plunge into the lake

The lake skirts the mountin

meandering through the fields

Birds make for shelter

 

Méphistophélès

The spell is working, he is ours!

 

Chorus

Those who seek the treasures

of life must find their star

 

Méphistophélès

Well done, spirits, I am pleased with you

Lull his enchanted sleep!

 

Faust

Margarita! I saw her heavenly

angelic image

Where can I find her?

 

Méphistophélès

You must follow me again...

... to the fragrant bower

where your beloved awaits you

She will be yours alone

Here comes a group of students

heading past her door

We’ll join them and find her

Restrain your joy and do as I say

 

Chorus of Soldiers

Cities girt with walls and towers

Sugary girls with wicked eyes

Conquest is certain

However hard the struggle,

sweeter yet is the prize!

Trumpets sound as brave soldiers

go off to battle

Young girls and cities put up a fight

but soon give in

 

Chorus of Students

The starry night spreads its veil

Now’s the time

for drinking and loving

Life is short and pleasure fleeting

So let us make merry!

Let’s go through the town

and hunt for girls!

Tomorrow we’ll say:

Veni, vidi, vici!           

 

Part III

 

Faust

Gentle twilight, how I bless you

Show me this secret sanctuary...

... where I relive my dreams

like the fresh kiss of dawn

This is love, I hope

Here all cares are left behind

How lovely the silence!

How pure the air!

O beloved of my dreams,

what feelings overwhelm me!

How sweet the sight

of your innocent bed!

What pure air I breathe!

Lord, what happiness

after years of suffering!

 

Méphistophélès

I can hear her...

--Hide in the garden

 

Faust

--My heart will burst

 

Méphistophélès

This is your moment,

be careful not to lose her

My will-o’-the-wisps and I

will sing your wedding song

 

Faust

O my soul, be still!

 

Marguerite

How heavy the air is!

I tremble like a child

I am troubled by my dream

In a vision I saw him... my future lover

How fine he looked!

How he loved me...

and how I loved him!

Will we ever meet?

There was once a king of Thule

faithful unto death

When his beloved died

he received a golden cup

The cup was always with him

however merry the feast

A tear was always to be seen

in the corner of his eye

The prince, close to death,

bequeathes his cities and his gold

Except for his favorite cup

which he keeps for himself

He invites his lords to his table

They dine in the ancient hall

of his sea-girt castle

He rises and steps towards

the golden balcony

He drinks and casts the sacred vessel

into the waves

The cup sinks, the waters swirl,

then calm returns

The old man grows pale,

he never drinks again

There was once a king of Thule

faithful unto death

 

Méphistophélès

Spirits of flickering fire...

Come to me, I need you!

Gather here!

Capricious spirits, use your magic

to charm a child and win her for me

In the devil’s name, dance!

Mark well the measure or you are lost!

Now a morality song to seal her doom

 

Méphistophélès and Chorus

What are you doing there, my little one...

... outside the house of your adorer?

You may enter his room a maiden...

... but not a maiden emerge!

You run to his arms

Goodnight, my little one!

But put up a fight...

... unless he promises you a ring

 

Méphistophélès

Be off now!

Let’s listen to their cooing

 

Marguerite

Is it him? Can I believe my eyes?

 

Faust

Beloved angel, whose image

I have always known

I see you before me at last

I love you, Marguerite!

 

Marguerite

You know my name!

I have often spoken yours

 

Faust

Use any other name if you wish

 

Marguerite

I see you as you were in my dreams

I recognize your voice, your looks

 

Faust

Did you always love me?

--Beloved Marguerite!

 

Marguerite

--My heart was already yours!

 

Faust

Beloved angel, whose image

I have always known

I see you before me at last

--Marguerite, sweet tenderness!

 

Marguerite    

--Ecstasy in your arms!

 

Faust

This feeling overwhelms me

Find true happiness in my arms!

 

Marguerite    

My eyes are full of tears...

I faint... I die...

 

Méphistophélès

--Come, it’s too late

 

Marguerite

--Who is this man?

--His eyes cut me to the quick

 

Méphistophélès

--Forgive me if I’m disturbing...

 

Faust

--Who let you in?

 

Méphistophélès

--We must save her

The neighbors are all around

They’ve called her mother

You must leave: you’ll meet again tomorrow

Draw comfort from your distress

 

Marguerite

Till tomorrow, my beloved...

 

Faust

Farewell, sweet night of love

scarcely begun...

 

Marguerite

Will I ever again

enjoy such happiness?

 

Chorus

Look what your daughter’s up to

A young man in your house!

An increasing family...

 

Marguerite

Don’t let them find you here

 

Méphistophélès

They’re knocking...

 

Marguerite

Leave by the garden gate

 

Faust

Now I know the price of life

Love captured my soul

Passion led me astray

 

Méphistophélès

I have to seize you now

 

Faust and Marguerite

Love captured my soul

My very life is yours!

 

Part IV

 

Marguerite

The flames of love consume me

My soul knows no peace

His going was like the grave

Without him all is grief

My head reels, my heart stops

His gallant step, his fine looks...

The smile in his eyes...

The fire of his voice...

The caress of his hand...

... and his kisses consume me

My soul knows no peace

I wait at my window for his return

My heart beats at his approach

Can my affection win him back?

Burning caresses!

I long to die in the ecstasy of his kisses!

The town will soon be asleep

Trumpets and drums mingle

with their songs...

... as they did when love

brought Faust to me

He will not come back...

 

Faust

O grand immensity of nature!

You alone can assuage my pain

On your breast I can endure my misery

and feel alive again

And believe in life once more

Blow, tempests! Forests, cry out!

Fall down, rocks and cascades!

My voice longs to mingle

with your mighty roar

Forests, rocks, torrents,

I adore you!

My desires reach out to you

My soul burns in search

of an unattainable bliss

 

Méphistophélès

Do you see up there

the star of constant love?

You will need its help, my friend

While you dream, Marguerite is...

Shall I tell you? You don’t love her

She is in prison, condemned to death

The huntsmen in the forest!

The potion you gave her

to send her mother to sleep...

... is the cause of all her ills

Hoping for your return,

she dispensed it every night

... so often that her mother died

She was led astray by her love

 

Faust

Save her, for heaven’s sake!

 

Méphistophélès

So you blame me? Such is humanity

I still have the power to open the door...

What have you ever done for me?

Just sign this old parchment

I will save her if you swear

to serve me tomorrow

 

Faust

Why wait till tomorrow

when I’m suffering now?

There is my name: now take me to her

What futile suffering! Marguerite, I come!

 

Méphistophélès

Swiftly on these two horses:

justice will not wait

 

Faust

I still hear her desperate cry

Poor abandoned soul!

 

Chorus of Peasants

Sancta Maria, ora pro nobis

Sancta Magdalena, ora pro nobis

 

Faust

Look at those women praying

 

Méphistophélès

Never mind! Keep on!

 

Faust

A hideous monster is behind us!

Flocks of night birds...

They’re beating me with their wings

 

Méphistophélès

A bell is tolling for her. Shall we turn back?

 

Faust

No, let’s go on!

Look, a long line of skeletons...

... jeering at us as they pass

 

Méphistophélès

Remember her: laugh at the dead!

 

Faust

The horses are tearing at the bit

The earth shakes and the thunder roars

 

Méphistophélès

Sound, O trumpets of hell!

He is ours!

 

Chorus of Demons

Has! Irimiru Karabrao!

 

Princes of Darkness

Have you won this soul, Mephisto?

 

Méphistophélès

I am his master for ever

 

Princes of Darkness

Did Faust freely sign the pact?

 

Méphistophélès

He signed freely

 

Demons

Tradioun marexil

fir tru dinxé burrudixé

 

A Voice

Hell is silent at last

Its flaming lakes are still

Its tormentors stay their hand

Its dread mystery is done

 

Chorus of Celestial Spirits

Laus! hosanna!

Her love was great, O lord

Rise up to heaven, sweet soul,

led astray by love

Return to that ideal of beauty

from which you fell

 

Chorus of Celestial Spirits and Chorus of Children

The holy virgins, your sisters...

... will dry the tears of earthly suffering

Cling to hope...

... and smile at joy

Margarita, come!