"" (, "Pleasure of love") is a classical French love song written in 1784 by Jean-Paul-Égide Martini (1741–1816); it took its text from a poem by

Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian (6 March 1755, near Sauve, Gard, France – 13 September 1794, Sceaux, Hauts-de-Seine, Sceaux, France) was a French poet, novelist and fabulist. Life Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian was born on 6 March 1755 in t ...

(1755–1794), which appears in his novel ''Célestine''. The song was greatly successful in Martini's version. For example, a young woman, Madame Julie Charles, sang it to the poet Alphonse de Lamartine during his cure at

Aix-les-Bains Aix-les-Bains (, ; ; ), known locally and simply as Aix, is a Communes of France, commune in the southeastern French Departments of France, department of Savoie.Hector Berlioz Louis-Hector Berlioz (11 December 1803 – 8 March 1869) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer and conductor. His output includes orchestral works such as the ''Symphonie fantastique'' and ''Harold en Italie, Harold in Italy'' ...

arranged it for orchestra (H134) in 1859. Louis van Waefelghem arranged the tune for viola d'amore or

viola The viola ( , () ) is a string instrument of the violin family, and is usually bowed when played. Violas are slightly larger than violins, and have a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of the ...

and piano in the 1880s. It has been arranged and performed in various pop music settings.

Recordings

Rina Ketty Rina Ketty (1 March 1911 – 23 December 1996), whose real name was Cesarina Picchetto, was an Italian singer. She is best known for singing the legendary song "J'attendrai," which became a huge hit during World War II and was appreciated by Al ...

in 1939 (with extended lyrics) *

Paul Robeson Paul Leroy Robeson ( ; April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was an American bass-baritone concert artist, actor, professional American football, football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for h ...

in 1940 *

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (, ; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing mo ...

in 1961 *

The Seekers The Seekers were an Australian folk music, folk-influenced pop music, pop group originally formed in Melbourne in 1962. They were the first Australian pop music group to achieve major chart and sales success in the United Kingdom and the Unit ...

and Judith Durham in 1964 or 1993 concert *

Marianne Faithfull Marianne Evelyn Gabriel Faithfull (29 December 1946 – 30 January 2025) was an English singer and actress who achieved popularity in the 1960s with the release of her UK top 10 single " As Tears Go By". She became one of the leading female art ...

on her debut-album ''

'' in 1965 * Mary Hopkin in Welsh as "Pleserau Serch", 1971 *

Mireille Mathieu Mireille Mathieu (; born July 22, 1946) is a French singer. She has recorded over 1,200 songs in eleven languages, with more than 122 million records sold worldwide. Biography and career Early years Mireille Mathieu was born on July 22, 1946, ...

on her album ' (1985) * Gabriel Yacoub on disc 9 ''Chansons d'Amore'' of the multi-volume ''Anthologie de la chanson française'' recorded in 1992–1994 *The Kings Singers in 1993, on their album ''Chansons D'amour'' *

Judy Collins Judith Marjorie Collins (born May 1, 1939) is an American singer-songwriter and musician with a career spanning nearly seven decades. An Academy Awards, Academy Award-nominated documentary director and a Grammy Awards, Grammy Award-winning rec ...

on her 2000 album ''Classic Folk'' * Jacky Terrasson on his 2000 album '' A Paris...'' * Charlotte Church Live in Jerusalem 2001 *

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, ...

and

Charles Aznavour Charles Aznavour ( ; ; ; born Shahnur Vaghinak Aznavourian; 22 May 1924 – 1 October 2018) was a Armenians in France, French singer and songwriter of Armenian descent. Aznavour was known for his distinctive vibrato tenor voice: clear and ringi ...

on the album ''Nana & Friends – Rendez-vous'' (2012) * Nick Drake in 2012 (recorded 1971)

In popular culture

The tune is heavily featured as a theme to the

1939 This year also marks the start of the World War II, Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Events related to World War II have a "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Coming into effect in Nazi Ger ...

feature film '' Love Affair'' starring

Charles Boyer Charles Boyer (; 28 August 1899 – 26 August 1978) was a French-American actor who appeared in more than 80 films between 1920 and 1976. After receiving an education in drama, Boyer started on the stage, but he found his success in American fi ...

and

Irene Dunne Irene Dunne (born Irene Marie Dunn; December 20, 1898 – September 4, 1990) was an American actress who appeared in films during Classical Hollywood cinema, the Golden Age of Hollywood. She is best known for her comedic roles, though she perf ...

, with Dunne also performing the song within her role as a singer The song served as the main theme of, and was sung by

Montgomery Clift Edward Montgomery Clift (October 17, 1920 – July 23, 1966) was an American actor. A four-time Academy Award nominee, he was known for his portrayal of "moody, sensitive young men", according to ''The New York Times''. He is best remembered f ...

in, the 1949 movie '' The Heiress''. The opening sequence of the Christmas comedy film '' We're No Angels'' (1955), directed by

Michael Curtiz Michael Curtiz (; born Manó Kaminer; from 1905 Mihály Kertész; ; December 24, 1886 April 10, 1962) was a Hungarian-American film director, recognized as one of the most prolific directors in history. He directed classic films from the silen ...

and starring

Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart ( ; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American actor. His performances in classic Hollywood cinema made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film Institute selected Bogart ...

, contains the song "Ma France Bien-Aimée" which borrows the music of "Plaisir d'amour". The melodies for Elvis Presley's "

Can't Help Falling in Love "Can't Help Falling in Love" is a song written by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, and George David Weiss and published by Gladys Music, Inc. The melody is based on " Plaisir d'amour", a popular French love song composed in 1784 by Jean-Paul-� ...

" (1961) and the 20th century Christian hymn "My God Loves Me" are based on "Plaisir d'amour". Mado Robin's version of the song plays in Djibril Diop Mambéty's 1973 film '' Touki Bouki'' when Nori and Anta go to visit a rich patron's estate in order to convince him to fund their trip to Paris. It is repeated a few times more throughout the remainder of the film. A church choir performs this song for exhausted members of Easy Company in the episode entitled "The Breaking Point" in HBO's acclaimed miniseries Band of Brothers. In the 1966 movie ''

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

'', the song was being performed by an on-stage singer ( Julie Gregg) in a romantic restaurant that Bruce Wayne (

Adam West William West Anderson (September 19, 1928 – June 9, 2017), known professionally as Adam West, was an American actor. He portrayed Batman in the 1960s ABC series of the same name and its 1966 theatrical feature film, reprising the role in ...

) had unwittingly taken Catwoman ( Lee Meriwether) to on a date, thinking she was the Russian journalist "Kitayna Ireyna Tatanya Kerenska Alisoff".

References

External links

*
Plaisir d' amour
hundreds of renditions by hundreds of artists, MusicMe.com *, sung by

(1939)
"Plaisir d'amour" ou petite histoire d'une romance de plus de 200 ans
history, sheet music and MIDI file, by Denis Havard de la Montagne {{Authority control, state=collapsed Mélodies 1784 songs Songs based on poems