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La quaglia, sonetto burlesco
Original Language: Italian
Lascia di Libia il ciel l’ardita quaglia
E rivarcato il procelloso Egeo,
Invan cercando il suo crudel marmeo,
Qui nel foco d’amor tutta si squaglia.
Mentre sonora più la voce scaglia
Contro l’amante fuggitivo e reo,
Par che mi desti un impeto Febeo,
E a dir contro di voi l’ira m’assaglia.
Ecco vanno del pari i nostri affanni:
S’ella il capo dibatte, il mio piè trotta;
Si pasce ella di migli, io di mal'anni.
Squaqquera spesso, ed io sospiro a ogn’hotta;
Le penne ha sconcie, ed io squarciati i panni;
Ella adora un marmeo, io una marmotta.
Poet:
English
The Quail, a comic sonnet
As the brave quail leaves the Libyan sky,
and crosses the stormy Aegean,
searching in vain for her cruel deceiver,
everything melts here in the fire of love.
As she [the quail] hurls her voice
at the fleeing falsehearted lover,
it gives me an Apollonian inspiration,
and anger incites me to disparage you.
Our vexations are alike:
if she shakes her head, I come running;
she feeds on millet, I feed on continual trouble.*
She vents unceasingly, and I sigh constantly;
her feathers are ruffled, and I tear my clothes;
She loves a dolt, I love a demon.
Translated by:
Richard Kolb
* "mal'anno" = a bad year
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La Qualglia: Sonnetto Burlesco
Published by Cor Donato Editions in historically correct modern transcription, including critical introductory notes on the work, editorial procedures, original texts with new English translations, and other contextual information about the piece.
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