"À la claire fontaine" (; ) is a traditional French song, which has also become very popular in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, particularly in

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

and the

Maritime provinces The Maritimes, also called the Maritime provinces, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The Maritimes had a population of 1,899,324 in 2021, which makes up 5.1% of ...

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

, and

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...

History

The song may have appeared as early as 1604 when the first permanent French settlement was established in the

Maritimes The Maritimes, also called the Maritime provinces, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The Maritimes had a population of 1,899,324 in 2021, which makes up 5.1% of ...

. As with all traditional songs, numerous versions of both music and lyrics can be found, and versions known in France and Belgium vary from those known in Canada.

Musicality

The melody is

pentatonic A pentatonic scale is a Scale (music), musical scale with five Musical note, notes per octave, in contrast to heptatonic scales, which have seven notes per octave (such as the major scale and minor scale). Pentatonic scales were developed inde ...

, and uses only four notes of the scale. The verse employs an alternating 7- and 6-

syllable A syllable is a basic unit of organization within a sequence of speech sounds, such as within a word, typically defined by linguists as a ''nucleus'' (most often a vowel) with optional sounds before or after that nucleus (''margins'', which are ...

, with the

refrain A refrain (from Vulgar Latin ''refringere'', "to repeat", and later from Old French ''refraindre'') is the Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeated in poetry or in music">poetry.html" ;"title="Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeat ...

adding an extra syllable to each line.

Meaning

Like another famous children's song, "

Au clair de la lune "" (, ) is a French Folk music, folk song of the 18th century. Its composer and lyricist are unknown. Its simple melody () is commonly taught to beginners learning an instrument. Lyrics The song appears as early as 1820 i''Les Voitures Verse� ...

", it has an adult theme - in this case, one of lost love. The song speaks of a lover bathing in a fountain, hearing a nightingale singing, and thinking about her lover whom she lost long ago after refusing a bouquet of roses he was offering her, most likely symbolizing him proposing to her. The nightingale's heart laughs but hers weeps. The refrain is repeated at the end of each verse: :"Il y a longtemps que je t'aime, Jamais je ne t'oublierai." :"I've loved you for a long time, I will never forget you." The song also has a hidden political meaning of resistance against British invasion of Quebec, and it was sung by the Québécois as a sign of resistance: the Rose representing the British, the clear fountain representing the

St. Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawren ...

, and the sentence "I've loved you for a long time, I will never forget you" is intended for France and the French land of Quebec. (Or so it is commonly said, but it is not clear how the rose can both represent the British and be something the Québécois refused to give to France, thereby losing its love.)

Complete lyrics

The lyrics are:

Modern usage

The song can be heard at the end of the 2006 film '' The Painted Veil'', sung by a children's choir. It inspired the title of the 2008 French film ''

Il y a longtemps que je t'aime ''I've Loved You So Long'' () is a 2008 Tragedy, tragedy film written and directed by Philippe Claudel in his directorial debut. It stars Kristin Scott Thomas as a woman who struggles to interact with her family and find her place in society af ...

'' and appears as a recurring theme. It has been performed by Dame

Emma Albani Dame Emma Albani, DBE (born Marie-Louise-Emma-Cécile Lajeunesse; 1 November 18473 April 1930) was a Canadian-British operatic coloratura soprano, later spinto soprano and dramatic soprano of the 19th and early 20th century, the first Canadian ...

and

Nana Mouskouri Ioanna "Nana" Mouskouri ( ; born 13 October 1934) is a Greek singer and politician. Over the span of her career, she has released an estimated 450 albums in at least thirteen languages, including Greek language, Greek, French language, French, ...

, among others.

Kate & Anna McGarrigle Kate McGarrigle (February 6, 1946 – January 18, 2010) and Anna McGarrigle (born December 4, 1944) were a duo of folk rock and country folk Canadian singer-songwriters (and sisters) from Quebec, who performed together until Kate's death in 2010 ...

regularly sang it as an encore in their live performances and released a recording of it on their compilation album '' ODDiTTiES''. It has been adapted and arranged, notably a choral arrangement by the French composer

Jean Langlais Jean François-Hyacinthe Langlais III (15 February 1907 – 8 May 1991) was a French composer of modern classical music, organist, and improviser. He described himself as "" ("Breton, of Catholic faith"). Biography Langlais was born in La ...

, and a jazz version by the English arranger

Bob Chilcott Robert Chilcott (born 9 April 1955) is a British choir, choral composer, conducting, conductor, and singing, singer, based in Oxfordshire, England. He was a member of the King's Singers from 1985 to 1997, singing tenor. He has been a composer ...

. It was sung by Henri (Andrew Moodie), Thomas Durant's butler, in " Jamais Je Ne T'oublierai - Episode 4", Season 1 of AMC's ''

Hell On Wheels Hell on Wheels was the itinerant collection of flimsily assembled gambling houses, dance halls, saloons, and brothels that followed the army of Union Pacific Railroad workers westward as they constructed the first transcontinental railroad in 18 ...

''.

Michael Tippett Sir Michael Kemp Tippett (2 January 1905 – 8 January 1998) was an English composer who rose to prominence during and immediately after the Second World War. In his lifetime he was sometimes ranked with his contemporary Benjamin Britten as o ...

inscribed his String Quartet No. 5 (1990-1) with a verse from the folk song. It lends the quartet a symbolic significance and adds a strong conceptual dimension to the composition. In a poignant moment at the end of the French film ''Things to Come'' (''L'Avenir'') by

Mia Hansen-Løve Mia Hansen-Løve (born 5 February 1981) is a French film director, screenwriter, and former actress. She has won several accolades for her work. Her first feature film, '' All Is Forgiven'', won the Louis Delluc Prize for Best First Film in 2007 ...

, 2016, the character Nathalie, played by

Isabelle Huppert Isabelle Anne Madeleine Huppert (; born 16 March 1953) is a French actress. Known for her portrayals of cold, austere women devoid of morality, she is considered one of the greatest actresses of her generation. With 16 nominations and two win ...

, sings the song to her granddaughter to comfort her. Before being approached by a bounty hunter, Rivard can be seen humming the tune in the first episode of ''Frontier'' (Netflix) Season 2. During the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

documentary film ''

Icarus In Greek mythology, Icarus (; , ) was the son of the master craftsman Daedalus, the architect of the labyrinth of Crete. After Theseus, king of Athens and enemy of King Minos, escaped from the labyrinth, Minos suspected that Icarus and Daedalu ...

'', that tells the story of the Russian athletics doping scandal, a rendition of the song sung by artist Genevoise is used to illustrate the heartache felt by

Grigory Rodchenkov Grigory Mikhailovich Rodchenkov (; born 24 October 1958) is the former head of Russia's national anti-doping laboratory, the ''Anti-Doping Center''. Rodchenkov is known for his involvement in the state-run doping program in Russia. In Novemb ...

after he says goodbye to his wife and prepares to enter the

United States Federal Witness Protection Program The United States Federal Witness Protection Program (WPP), also known as the Witness Security Program or WITSEC, is a witness protection program codified through 18 U.S. Code § 3521 and administered by the United States Department of Justic ...

. In Louis Malle's 1987 film ''

Au Revoir Les Enfants ''Au revoir les enfants'' (, meaning "Goodbye, Children") is an autobiographical 1987 film written, produced, and directed by Louis Malle. It is based on the actions of Père Jacques, a French priest and headmaster who attempted to shelter Jewish ...

'', on their way to the public baths, the main character's group sings the song. In ''

Sid Meier's Civilization VI ''Sid Meier's Civilization VI'' is a 2016 4X turn-based strategy video game developed by Firaxis Games and published by 2K. The mobile and Nintendo Switch ports were published by Aspyr Media. It is the sequel to '' Civilization V'' (2010), a ...

'', the song is used as an ambient theme for the Canadian civilization in the expansion pack, Sid Meier's Civilization VI: Gathering Storm. A version of the song is used in Episode 4 of the

Docuseries, ''

The Devil Next Door ''The Devil Next Door'' is a documentary series about John Demjanjuk, accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity carried out while serving as a guard at Nazi extermination camps during World War II, who spent years living in Cleveland. Th ...

''. An excerpt of the song is used in Season 3 Ep. 8 of the

show, '' Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments''. There is a recording by Eva Gauthier available through the United States Library of Congress. The song was used during the Québec ceremony for the Day of national remembrance of the victims of COVID-19, on March 11, 2021. It was sung by the choral group Les Petits Chanteurs de Beauport.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:A la claire fontaine Canadian folk songs French folk songs Year of song unknown Songs with unknown songwriters