220 Cosl Fan Tutte, Act II

NO. 26 ARIA GUGLIELMO 'd::m:ne 'mie 'la 'fate

mio, la fate Donne Women mine, you do it

a a to

'ke 'se 'il 'ver 'vi 'ded:d30

cho, so il vor vi doggio

that, if the truth I must you

'se 'si 'la1111ano ',(i a'manti

so si lagnano gli antanti,

if they complain, the lovers,

'Ii ko'mintJ::> a kompa'tir

Ii comincio a compatir. them I begin to feel sorry for.

'tan ti tan ti so many

'dir dir, tell,

(Dear ladies you cheat on so many men that, to tell you the truth, if your lovers complain I begin to

sympathize with them.)

'io 'v::> 'bene 'al 'ses:s::>

Io vo' bono15 al sosso I am fond of the sex (I am fond of the fair sex)

'lo sa'pete 0'1111un 'b 'sa

'v::>str::> vostro, yours,

lo sapoto, ognun you know it, everyone

lo sa: knows it.

00J1J1i Ogni Every

'vi 'd::> vi do

'd3omo giomo day

I give you

'ma

've 'b 'm::>str::>

vo lo mostro, I prove it to you,

'se11110 damis'ta; sogno d'amista; proofs of friendship;

'farla farla

'tan ti

tan ti e

Ma But

'kw el

quol this doing it

a a to so many

0

and

mav:vi'liJ J e m'avvilisco, mortifies me,

'mil:le Mille A thousand

'per per to

sa'var salvar save

'in] in in

'v::>lte 'ii

volte il times my

'ii 'v::>stro ii vostro your

veri'ta vorita. truth.

'brando brando weapon

o'nor onor, honor,

'prezi prosi I've drawn

'tan ti tan ti so many (men)

15Voler bene in Italian means "to love", "to be fond of'. The vo' is a contraction of voglio. Without the contraction, the

line would be lo voglio bene al sesso vostro.

Casi Fan Tutte, Act II

'mil:le mille a thousand

'kol:la co Ila with my

'v::l!te volte times

'vi di'fezi vi difesi I've defended you

'bok:ka e hocca e mouth and

'pju piu even more,

Ma quel farla a tanti e tanti

e 'ml) vi'ttsjet:to 9 un vizietto is a little vice (is an annoying little vice.)

'sjete 'vage 'sjete a'mabili Siete vaghe, siete amahili,

sek:ka'tor seccator. annoying.

You're lovely, you're pleasant,

'pju te'z::lri 'ii 'tJel 'vi 'dje piu tesori ii ciel vi die,

'kol col with my

'br cor; heart;

many treasures heaven has bestowed upon you,

e 'le 'grattsje 'vi tJir'kondan::l e le gra.zie vi circondano and graces surround you

'dal:la 'testa 'sin::l 'ai 'pje dalla testa sino ai pie'; from your head down to your feet; (from head to toe;)

'n1a 'la 'fate a 'tan ti e 'tanti Ma la fate a tan ti e tan ti, But you do it to so many and so many,

'ke kre'dibile 'non e che credihile non 9. that believable not it is. (that it is unbelievable.)

'ke 'se 'gridano ',\i a'manti Che, se grid a.no gli a.man ti, That, if scream the lovers,

'an:n::l 'tJerto 'un 'gran per'ke hanno certo un gran percha. they have for sure a great reason.16

(If the lovers scream, they surely have good reason to.)

221

(He exits leaving Ferrando alone. Don Alfonso and Guglielmo sneak in later and talk in the background.)

16Perche in Italian can mean "why?" and also "because". In English when one answers "because" one is giving a reason for something that has been asked. Therefore in this sense , perche signifies "reason". Because of the repetition of the phrase un gmn perche at slower and faster tempi, it is a great help for the baritone to use assimilation in the faster passages to facilitate the delivery of this line . thus: ['an:n~ 'tJcrt~ 'u!L'gra!_!! perke]. In the slower tempo , the phonetic transcription above stands.

Hamlet, Act II 403

DRINKING SONG 0 ve di'sipre la tris'tesce ki 'pezre syr mo kcer 0 vin, dissipe la tristesse qui pese sur mon coeur! Oh wine, dispel the sadness that weighs on my heart!

amwa Amoi Give me

le les the

'revre dre li'vresre e reves de l'ivresse et dreams of intoxication and

lee le the

'rirce rire laughter

m::>'kcer moqueur! mocking!

o li'kre~ 0 liqueur Oh elixir

_so J otre'n:sre enchanteresse, enchanting,

lu'bli l'oubli oblivion

do dans into

mo mon my

kcer 'dusre li'kcer 'versre li'vrs verse l'ivresse pour drunkenness

coeur! Douce liqueur! heart! Sweet elixir!

PLAYERS (bringing the cups to their lips) 0 liqueur encbanteresse, etc.

'versre nu Verse-nous Pour into us

li'vresre l'ivresse! drunkenness!

MARCELLUS, HORATIO (aside) il 'JerJre lu'bli 11 cherche l' oubli He is seeking oblivion

HAMLET la vi e 'sobrce ls La vie est sombre, les Life lS dismal, the

do li'vresce dans l'ivresse. in drunkenness.

..z;o so kur ans sont courts; years are short;

dre no bo 3ur dj<t> se lre De nos beaux jours Dieu sait le Of our joyous days (on earth) God knows the (Only God knows the number of joyous days left in our life.)

'nobrre nombre. number.

Ja'kce II e'los Chacun helas! Each one, alas,

P:JL Ji'si bo po rte ici bas bears on earth

sa sa his

'lurdre 'J e:nre lourde chaine! heavy chain!

kry'el dre'vwar lo Cruels devoirs, longs Cruel duties, long

MARCELLUS, HORATIO ka til do Qu'a-t-il done? What is wrong with him?

dezes'pwar desespoirs despair

dre de of

lQ, l'ame the soul

.JilY'menre humaine! human!

I

, I~

404 Hamlet, Act II

HAMLET lwe dre nu nwar pre'za3re Loin de nous, noirs presages! Away from us, black omens!

le ply 'sa3re so le f u Les plus sages soot les fous! ... The wisest ones are the madmen! ... 0 vin, dissipe la tristesse, etc.

(The players follow Marcellus and Horatio out.)

Scene Two (The Great Hall of the castle is festively illuminated. There is a throne, a dais for the courtiers and a Players' theater at the back, its curtains closed. The King and Queen enter followed by Polonius, Hamlet, Ophelie, Horatio and the whole court. Hamlet sits at Ophelie's feet, his eyes fixed on the King and Queen.)

DANISH MARCH

HAMLET (to Ophelie) 'belre pe:rme'te nu Belle, permettez-nous (My) lovely one, will you permit me

OPHELIE 'presre 'v:Jtrre rre'gar Prince, votre regard Prince, your expression

mepu'vQ._ m'epouvante frightens me

dre 'pradrre de prendre to take my

plas place place

Je et and

mre 'glasre me glace! chills me!

a vo 3re'nu a VOS genoux? at your knees?

(At a signal.from the King, everybody takes his place on the dais. The curtains of the little theater are opened.)

HAMLET (in a low voice, to Marcellus) vwa'si le'sta fik'se V:J rre'gar Voici l'instant! Fixez vos regards Here's the moment! Fix your gaze

e si vu Ire vwa'je po'lir et, si vous le voyez palir, and if you see him turn pale,

PANTOMIME

syr Ire sur le upon the

'ditre lee mwa dites-le moi! tell me!

rwa Roi, King,

(An aged king, wearing a crown, slowly enters upon the arm of a queen, whose features and costume resemble those of Queen Gertrude. Hamlet, whose eyes never leave the King's face, begins a commentary upon the movements of the actors, matching his words to the action on stage.)

HAMLET SE: Ire vj~ rwa go'zagre e la 're:nre 3re'nje:vrre C'est le vieux Roi Gonzague et la Reine Genievre! It is the old King Gonzaga and (the) Queen Guinevere.

484 Don Pasquale, Act I

MALATESTA 'tsitto kom pru'dentsa Zitto, con prudenza. Hush, with prudence.

(easy does it now.)

PASQUALE io mi 'struggo Io mi struggo I am consumed

MALATESTA si tr:J'V:J Si trovo. She's been found.

PASQUALE bene'detto Benedetto! Blessed!

dimpa'ttsjentsa d'impazienza. with impatience.

(May you be blessed for this!) (Wonderful! Oh how marvellous!)

MALATESTA ke ba'bbjone (Che babbione!) (What a foolish old man!)

'pr:Jprjo 'kwella ke . tJi 'vw:Jle Proprio quella che ci vuole. Just the one that we want.

asbl'tate in due pa'r:Jle il ri'tratt:J Ascoltate, in due parole ii ritratto Listen, in two words her portrait

(I'll describe her to you in two words.)

PASQUALE son tu'tt:Jkki Son tutt' occhi ... I am all eyes ...

MALATESTA u'dite Udite. Listen.

ARIA 'bella Bella Lovely

si'kkome siccome like

un 'and3eb un angelo an angel

(She's lovely as an angel on a pilgrimage here on earth,)

la La My

spo'zina . ? sposma ....

little bride? ...

ve ne fo ve ne fo. I will paint for you.

lil 'terra pelle'grino in terra pellegrino, on earth a pilgrim,

Don Pasquale, Act I

'freska si'kkome il 'd3L\i\o ke 'sapre sul ma'ttino fresca siccome ii giglio che s'apre sul mattino, fresh as a lily that opens in the morning,

'::>kkj::> ke 'parla e 'ride occhio che par la e ride, eye(s) that speak and laugh,

'zgwardo ke 1 br koIJ'kwide sguardo che i cor conquide, a glance that the hearts conquers,

'kj::>ma ke 'vintfe 'le ban::> so'rrizo iI]kanta'tor chioma che vince l'ebano, sorriso incantator. hair that shames ebony,2 a smile enchanting.

PASQUALE 'sp::>za 'simile ;) 'd3ubilo n::>IJ 'kape im 'pett::> il br Sposa simile! Oh giubilo! non cape in petto ii cor. Bride such! Oh joy! It doesn't fit in my chest the heart. (Such a bride! Oh joy! My heart is about to jump out of my chest!)

MALATESTA 'alma inn::>'tfente in'd3enua ke se me'dezma Alma innocente, ingenua, che se medesma A soul innocent, ingenuous, who about herself (An innocent, simple soul, and quite self-effacing,)

m::>'destja modestia modesty

impare'dd3abile impareggiabile, beyond compare,

b::>n'ta hon ta kindness

ke che that

ai 'mizeri pje'toza d3en'til 'doltf e ai miseri pietosa, gentil, dolce, to unfortunate people full of pity, gentle, sweet,

il tfd · la 'fatta 'naff ere II ciel l'ha fatta nascere Heaven has made her be born

per far be'at::> UIJ br per far beato un cor. to make blissful a heart. (Heaven created her to make the heart [of one man] blissful.)

PASQUALE Oh giubilo!

fa'milia Famiglia? Family? (What sort of family does she come from?)

2 In other words, the lady has jet-black hair.

ijlp::>ra ignora, doesn't care,

vinna'mora v'innamora, makes you fall in love,

amo'roza a amorosa,ah! loving, ah!

485

276 L'Elisir d'Amore, Act I

(There is a sound of drums. Everyone stands up. Belcore, the leader of a platoon of singularly un­military troops, enters. He eyes Adina and immediately begins his amorous assault by offering her a nosegay of flowers.)

BELCO RE 'kome 'paride ve't:tsozo 'porse 'il 'p:>m:> 'al:la 'pju 'bbel:la Come Paride · vezzoso porse ii porno all a piu bella, As Paris1 handsome gave an apple to the fairest,

'mia di'let:ta vil:la'nel:la 'io 'ti 'p:>rgo 'kwesti 'fjor mia diletta villanella, io ti porgo questi fior. my lovely village maid, I bring you these flowers. (My lovely village maid, I bring these flowers to you just as Paris offered an apple to the fairest Aphrodite.)

'ma Ma But

'di 'lui 'pju gbri'ozo di lui piu glorioso, than him more glorious,

'pju 'di 'lui fe'litf e 'io 'sono piu di lui felice io sono, more than him happy I am, (But I am more glorious and happier than he,)

p:>i'ke 'im 'premjo 'del poiche in premio del since as reward for

'ne ri'p:>rto 'il 'tu:> no riporto ii tuo I will obtain your

ADINA (to the women) e m:>'desto 'il (E modesto ii (He is modest, the

GIANNETTA,CHORUS 'si (Si, (Yes,

da'v:vero davvero!) indeed!)

NEMORINO :> 'mio dis'pet:t:> (Oh mio dispetto!) (Oh my annoyance!) (How annoyed I am!)

'mio 'dono mio dono my gift

'bel bel beautiful

si1111o'rino signorina!) young lad!)

'k:>r cor. heart.2

1Belcore is comparing himself with Paris, the extravagantly handsome mythological youth who, having been promised the

lovely Helen for a wife, went to Mount Ida to offer an apple to the beautiful Aphrodite.

2The pompous sergeant seems to know his Greek mythology. The only reward Paris got by abducting the fair Helen was

to start the Trojan wars.

L'Elisir d'Amore, Act I

BELCO RE 'veg:g:> 'kjaro V eggo chiaro I see clearly

'ii]

in in

'kwel quel that

vi'zino visino little face

'kb 'fo 'bret:tf a 'nel 'tu:> ch'io fo breccia nel tuo that I have breached through your (that I have breached the wall of your heart.)3

n:>'ne 'k:>za None cosa It isn't something

'SOI] ga'lante e Son galante, e I am a gallant, and

'noII) 'va Non v'ha There isn't a

'bel:la 'ke bella che beauty who

sorpren'dente sorprendente; surprising;

'son sar'd3ente son sargente. I am a sergeant.

re'zista resista can resist

'al:la all a the

'pet:t:> petto. breast.

'vista vista sight

'dun d'un of a

'tfede a 'marte i'd:db gwe'r:rjer:> 'fin 'la Cede a Marle, Iddio guerriero, fin la Yields to Mars, the god of war, even the (Even the mother of love [Venus] yields to Mars the god of war.)

ADINA (E modesto!)

CHORUS, GIANNETTA (SJ., davvero!)

NEMORINO 0 'mio do'lor (Oh, mio dolor!) (Oh, my grief!)

BELCO RE 'or 'se 'mmami Or se m'ami Now, if you love me

'kome come as

'ke 'pju 'tardi a che piu tardi a why more do you delay in (why delay your surrender to me?)

'idol 'mb kapit:>'ljam:> 'ii) Idol mio, capitoliamo: in Idol mine, capitulate; on (My beloved, sign a truce;)

'b io I

'tam:> t'amo, love you,

'render render surrendering

'kw al 'di qual dJ. what day

'larmi l'anni? your weapons?

'vw:>i 'tu vuoi tu do you wish

tfi'mjer:> cimiero; helmet;

'madre mad re mother

sp:>'zarmi sposanni? to marry me?

3Belcore is using military terms, as in "breaching" the wall of a fortress (Adina's heart.)

del:la'mor dell'amor. of love.

277

NO. 26 RECITATIVE AND ARIA FIGARO 'tut:t:) Tutto Everything

lora L'ora The hour

'io Io I

'ed

'sent:) sen to hear

'io io

e 0 is

dis'p:)St:) disposto: ready,

do'vreb:be dovrebe should

'd3ente gente ... people ...

ko'mintJ:) comincio

'es:ser esser be

e 0 it's

:)'mai omai

Le Nozze di Figaro, Act W

vi'tJina vicina; at hand;

'des:sa 'non e al'kun 'buja e dessa ... non o alcun... buia o her ... it's no one... dark is

Ed And I begin already

a a to

iq'grata Ingra ta!

'fare 'il fare ii play the

Ungrateful girl! (Ungrateful Susanna!

'ei ei he

go'deva godeva enjoyed

JJimu'nit:) scimunito foolish

mes'tjere mestiem part

'di di of

mma'rito marito ... husband ...

'nel mo'mento 'del:la 'mia tJeri'm:)nja Nel momenta della mia cerimonia .. . In the moment of my ceremony .. .

At the very moment of our wedding ... )

le'd:d3end:) leggendo: reading,

e 9

and

'nel nel in

ve'derlo vederlo seeing him

'io ri'deva 'di 'me 'sentsa sa'perlo io rideva di me senza saperlo. I laughed about myself without knowing it.

'la la the

427

'n:)t:te notte ... night. ..

(the Count enjoyed reading that note she passed on to him, and in seeing him act surreptitiously and pricking his finger and all that, I was laughing at myself without realizing it.)

:)

Oh, Oh,

su'zan:na Susanna! Susanna,

'kwanta quanta how much

'pena pena pain

'koq Con With

kwel:lin'd3enwa quell'ingenua that ingenuous

'fat:tJa 'koq faccia, con face, with

'ki kre'dut:) la'vria chi cmduto l'avria! ... who believed it could have!. .. (who would ever have believed it! ... )

a 'ke 'il fi'darsi a 'd:)n:na Ah, cha ii fidarsi a donna Ah, (for) trusting a woman (Ah, it's sheer madness to trust in a woman!)

'mi 'bsti mi costi! you caused me!

'kwelli ':)k:ki quegli occhi those eyes

e 0 is

in:n:)'tJ en ti innocenti ... innocent...

o)lpor fo'l:lia ognor follia! always folly!

428 Le Nozze di Figaro, Act IV

a'prite Aprite Open up

'um 'po 'kwe,\Ai 'ok:ki un po' quegli occhi a bit those eyes,

'womini iq'kauti e 'JJok:ki uomini incauti e sciocchi, men rash and foolish, (Open up your eyes, you rash and foolish men,)

gwar'date 'kweste 'fem:mine gwar'date 'bza 'son

guardate queste fenunine, guardate cosa

look at these women, look at what son. they are.

(Just look at these women and see them as they really are.)

'kweste Queste These

kja'mate chiamate so-called

'dde: Dee goddesses

'da,\Ai dagli by the

iqga'n:nati ingannati deceived

'sensi sensi, senses,

a 'kui tri'buta in'tfensi 'la 'debole ra'd3on

a cui tributa incensi la debole ragion,

to which offers tribute (of) incense our feeble reason,

(These "goddesses", as they are called by our misguided senses, and to whom feeble reason offers

tribute of incense,)

'son 'strege 'ke iq'kantano 'per 'fart Ji pe'nar

son streghe che incantano per farci penar,

are witches who cast their spells to make us suffer,

'si'rene 'ke 'kantano 'per 'fart Ji af:fo'gar

sirene che cantano per farci affogar,

sirens that sing to make us drown,

'per 'trartfi 'le 'pjume per trarci le piume,

tfi'vet:te civette screech-owls

'ke che that

a'l:let:tano allettano lure us to pluck out our feathers,

ko'mete comete cornets

'son Son They're

'ke che that

'roze rose roses

'bril:lano brillano dazzle

spi'noze spinose, thorny,

'per 'to,\Aertfi 'il per toglierci ii to deprive us of

'SOil) _'volpi ve't:tsoze son volpi vezzose, they're vixens cunning,

'son 'orse be'nippe ko'lombe ma'lippe

son orse benigne, colombe maligne,

they're she-bears gentle, doves malignant,

'lume lume; light;

(They're thorny roses, cunning vixens, gentle she-bears, malignant doves,)

ma'estre maestro masters

diq'gan:ni d'inganni, of deceit,

a'mike amiche friends

'ke che who

'fiqgono fingono, feign,

'men to no mentono, lie,

da'f:fan:ni d'affanni, of distress,

a'more 'non 'senton amore non senton, love do not feel,

Le Nozze di Figaro, Act W

'non 'senton non senton they don't feel (any)

pje'ta 'no pieta. No, pity. No,

'no no! no!

'il 'resto 'nol 'diko 'd3a o'ppuno 11 rusto nol dico, gia ognuno The rest I won't say, already everyone (I won't even say the rest, because everyone already knows.)4

'b 'ssa lo sa. knows it.

429

(He hides himself off to the side. Marcellina enters with the Countess and Susanna dressed in each other's clothes.5

}

Scene Nine

Recitative

SUSANNA (ref erring to Marcellina) si'ppora 'el:la 'mi 'dis:se 'ke 'figaro ve'r:rav:vi

Signora, ella mi disse che Figaro verravvi. My lady, she told me that Figaro will come here.

MARCELLINA 'antsi e ve'nuto a'b:bas:sa 'um 'po 'la 'votJe

Anzi, e venuto: abbassa unpo' la voce. Better yet, he's already come; lower a little your voice.

SUSANNA 'dul)kwe 'un 'tJi as'kolta e 'laltro Dunque, un ci ascolta, e l'altro Then one is listening, and the other one

'de ve'nir a tfer'karmi il)komin'tJam dee venir a cercarmi. lncominciam. must come to look for me. Let us begin. (So, while one of them is listening, the other is due to meet me any moment. I might as well begin.)

MARCELLINA 'io 'vol..l..o ;kwi tf e'larmi Io voglio qui celarmi. I want to here hide myself.

(She goes into the pavillion where Barbarino is hidden.)

4The "rest", of course, is the fact that women cuckold their husbands: The ubiquitous horns. Mozart allows himself a

little musical joke between the phrases gia ognuno lo sa, by having the horns in the orchestra play a little three note flourish!

5 Nowhere in the libretto is it explained how, at their entrance, Figaro recognizes Susanna as herself in spite of her

"disguise" aµd how later on he is fooled like everyone else and believes her to be the Countess. This detail is often taken care of by stage directors who have Susanna and the Countess enter this scene in cloaks, to hide their "disguises", until the scenes following Susanna's aria, rendering Figaro's confusion much more believable.