Pronunciation for Flower Duet

by Ali

Is there any chance you could provide a pronunciation guide to the song? I don't know French, but am planning on teaching this as a duet in the upcoming months. Thanks for the help!

Dana:

Ho ho, Ali. I have a feeling I'm stepping into a tar pit, but here goes with JUST AN APPROXIMATION (and only the 3 pages of the short version).

Of all the vowel sounds, the "u" in "une" and the "e" in "le" and at the end of words that end in "te" are tricky to catch ahold of.

"E" at the end of a word is generally not pronounced at all, but in singing it is traditional to sound the "e" at the ends of some words.

Try saying an "e" as in the first syllable of "serene." "U" is (here goes!) like rounding the lips to say "oh" but then saying "ee" instead! And the "m"s and "n"s inside of parantheses must not really be sounded, but turn the vowel before them nasal in sound..

"A" by itself is like the "a" of apple. Yes, the singers in the video I show DON'T sing it like that, but all the French books say that "in, im, ain, aim, ein, yn, ym, un, um, eun," are nasal and pronounced like the "a" in "thank."

Soprano:

Doh - me - pay... l(e) zhahz - ma... ah lah roh - zah - sah - (m)bl(e)

Ree - vah(n) fl(oo)r.. fray mah - ta... noo - zah - peh - lahn - tah(n) - sah - (m)bl(e).

Ah! Glee - sohn... ah(n)... swee - vahn... L(e) coo - rahn... foo - yahn..

Dahn loh...nde fray - mee - sah... ahn - te,

D(oo) - ne meh noh(n) - shah - lah - nte

Gah - nyohn le bor - doo lwah - zoh shah - nte, lwah - zoh, lwah - zoh shah - nte... and so on.


Mezzo Soprano:

Soo le doh - me pay... Oo le blahnk zhah -zma

ah lah roh - ze zah - sah - ah - (m)bl(e),

S(oo)r lah ree - vah(n) fl(oo)r, ree - ahn - toh mah - ta,

Vyehn, de - sen - dohn - zahn - sah (m)bl(e).

D(oo) - s(e) - mahn glee - sohn

D(e) soh(n) floh shahr - mahn,

Swee - vohn l(e) coo - rahn foo - yahn.

Dahn loh...nde fray - mee - sah... ahn - te,

D(oo) - ne meh noh(n) - shah - lah - nte

Vyehn, gah - nyohn le bor
Oo lah soor - se dohr
Ay lwah - zoh, lwah - zoh shah - nte...

Soo le doh - me pay... Soo le blahnk zhah -zma
Ah! de - s(e).......... -(n)doh - oh(n) ah(n) - sah - (m)bl(e).


Okay! Now I'm in trouble. The best route is really to listen to a native French (classical) singer and compare her pronunciation to what I've given you here.

If anyone out there feels they have better information, I am ready to be corrected!