Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 29 Dec 17 - 12:28 PM

Great stuff, Monique! It might not make us all pronounce every word perfectly, but it's a good way of doing it.
We were also given a phonetic version when, as non-Gaelic speakers, we tried to learn Gaelic songs: very often the written word does easily match with the spoken word, and the phonetics help.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: Monique
Date: 29 Dec 17 - 02:17 AM

So...

Eel e nay, lu* diveen onfon,
Joo-ay obwa hrezonay myuzetta,
Eel e nay, lu diveen onfon,
Shonton touss son avenumon.

Dupui plyu du katru meel on
Noo lu prometay lay profetta
Dupui plyu du katre meel on
Noo-z-atondyon set huru ton

Ah keel e bo keel e sharmon
Ku say grassu son parfetta
Ah keel e bo keel e sharmon
Keel e doo lu diveen onfon

Yoon etabl e son lojumon**
En pu du pie-yu, sa kooshetta
Yoon etabl e son lojumon*
Poor en dyuh, kel abessumon

O Jezyu, o rwa too puisson
Too putit onfon ku voo-z-etta
O Jezyu, o rwa too puisson
Renye syur noo ontierumon


*"u" on its own (lu, du, dupui...) sounds somewhat like the English article "a" or the final "er" in British English
** French "j" sounds like the English "s" in "pleasure, leisure..."
- To my ears, the "e" in "le", "de"... sounds more or less like the English article "a" in a sentence or "er" at the end of words in British English. I think I also saw the "e" sound as "uh" like in "duh" the way I put it in "diuh" (Fr. Dieu).
- About the Fr. "u", it's really not difficult to pronounce, you just put your lips forward as if whistling and you say "ee" (bee, free....)
- There also should be a difference between "an/en" and "on".

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 27 Dec 17 - 06:36 PM

We also sang this at school in French classes: it would be difficult to do a phonetic version as the French vowel pronunciation is distinctively their own, but roughly speaking:

Eel e nay, lu diveen onfon,
Joo-ay aubwa hrezonay myuzetta,
Eel e nay, lu diveen onfon,
Shonton touss son avenumon.

I'll leave the verses to you!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: FreddyHeadey
Date: 26 Dec 17 - 11:57 AM

On a French YouTube site for children it sounds like
deeveen
and
z not pronounced in jouez



https://youtu.be/dXUN7Yo98Iw

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: Monique
Date: 26 Dec 17 - 11:39 AM

Indeed, the instrument is "le hautbois", not "l'hautbois", so no "liaison" so no "z" sound.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: Jackaroodave
Date: 26 Dec 17 - 08:44 AM

Encore une fois:

From Wikipedia:

In French spelling, aspirated "h" (French: "h" aspir?) is an initial silent letter that represents a hiatus at a word boundary, between the word's first vowel and the preceding word's last vowel. At the same time, the aspirated h stops the normal processes of contraction and liaison from occurring.[1]

Apologies to the posters who already knew this stuff.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: Jackaroodave
Date: 26 Dec 17 - 08:26 AM

Update: I just listened to about a dozen different versions of Il est ne, francophone-sounding artists, plus the Vienna Boys and Mormon Tabernacle choirs, and "divine" (deveen) was unanimous. I think only two pronounced the z in jouez.

Miss Heckler and I will discuss this when we meet again in la chorale celeste.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: Jackaroodave
Date: 26 Dec 17 - 07:08 AM

Miss Heckler, the Francophone 3rd grade teacher who taught our class the song, had us pronounce it "divin-enfant" avec la liason, so I was surprised to hear the McGarrigles' "divine." Quant a moi, je ne sais rien.

I THINK we pronounced the z in jouez.

But that was over 60 years ago, and we were probably singing it as Miss Heckler learned it. in HER childhood, 30 years earlier. My understanding is that in some speech groups French has undergone quite a few changes with respect to the liaison.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: GUEST,Guest
Date: 26 Dec 17 - 06:50 AM

More on pronunciation. Jouez hautbois - do you pronounce the z? Or not? I never have done but thinking probably should do.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: pismotality
Date: 24 Oct 10 - 08:57 AM

We had to sing it at school as part of a French lesson with M. Gillies - think it was in our regular book, Le Francais d'Aujourdhui, which chronicled the doings of the Bertillon family - and I recall the line as "Jouez, hautbois, resonnez, musettes."

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 23 Oct 10 - 05:20 PM

I have always hated this carol since our music master at school "Tosca" Hooke made the choir (including me) sing it.

However teh second line of the chorus as we had it (and it was printed so somewhat official text) was
"Tous chantez, resonnez musettes".

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: GUEST
Date: 23 Oct 10 - 04:04 PM

why don't you try google translate?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: GUEST,FRANCES
Date: 14 Dec 06 - 11:55 AM

I looked up this carol because we sang it at school and I could remember only some of the words, so thank you, all, for the words and the discussion about pronunciation.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: Dunkle
Date: 10 Dec 06 - 08:31 AM

You folks are right about a masculine noun that starts with a vowel (enfant), has the effect of changing the pronunciation of a preceding masculine adjective (divin) to a feminine pronunciation: "diveen enfant". Same is the case, for example, with 'bon appétit' (say 'bun appétit' and not, as I hear all the time, 'bone appétit') and 'bon anniversaire/happy birthday.

Joyeux noel à tous!

Dunkle

Subject: Chords for Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: GUEST,Guest, Rebecca
Date: 09 Dec 06 - 02:36 PM

http://www.ourwholeworld.com/I'll%20Est%20Nee%20Le%20Divine%20Enfant.htm

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: GUEST,Peter Taylor
Date: 07 Dec 06 - 06:49 PM

Words from Carols for Choirs 2, translation by Jacqueline Froom

Ch: Born on earth the divine Christ Child,
    Oboes rejoice, with bagpipes vying;
    Born on earth the divine Christ Child,
    Sing to welcome the Saviour mild.

1.'Tis four thousand years and more
   Men his birth have been prophesying;
'Tis four thousand years and more
   While we longed for the joys in store.

2. Ah! such beauty and charm adore!
   Ah! such perfection of grace undying!
   Ah! such beauty and charm adore!
   Promised us in days of yore.

3. In a stable here on earth,
   Jesus, in the manger lying,
   In a stable here on earth,
   O how lowly our Saviour's birth!

4. Jesus, Saviour, heaven's Lord,
   Tiny child in the manger crying,
   Jesus, Saviour, heaven's Lord,
   Christ our King for evermore.

A good attempt at producing a singable translation, but I've only ever sung it/heard it sung in French.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (Le Divin Enfant)
From: GUEST,Lynn
Date: 06 Dec 06 - 07:37 PM

Does anyone have the words in English?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (le divin Enfant)
From: Cathie
Date: 03 Dec 06 - 07:41 PM

A year ago, this was the first song that I ever sung in a folk club. (I only knew 2 verses). a capella - I couldn't play the guitar then.

I will never forget the amusing comment of the man beside me after that dreadful moment of silence when I had finished. 'That's easy for you to say'. Tension released.

It's good to have all the rest of the verses above.

I sing 'deeveen' enfant and have never heard any other pronunciation.

Does anyone know where I might find the chords though? I must try it again.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (le divin Enfant)
From: little tish
Date: 03 Dec 06 - 03:07 PM

A lot of French, and especially Breton music is played on bombarde (which is itself a type of oboe or hautbois) and bagpipes. I would certainly pronounce 'divin' as diveen in this context too.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (le divin Enfant)
From: GUEST,catlin
Date: 02 Dec 06 - 04:23 PM

Thank you, Oldhippie, for your help.

The person with whom I'll be singing is teaching me the correct pronunciation (if it were in Latin, Spanish or German I'd have no problem). I did tell her that if anyone said anything bad about MY pronunciation I would start singing loudly. In Cajun.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (le divin Enfant)
From: Tradsinger
Date: 02 Dec 06 - 01:29 PM

I have another question about pronunciation. I know French very well, but there is a pronunciation trap here in the word divin. Normally it should be pronounced, in the masculine form, something like deeva(n) (last syllable nasalised), but I think that the elision turns it into deeveen, even though it is followed by a masculine noun. SO we get here 'deeveen enfant'. Do other MCs agree? Can any French speakers confirm this?

Tradsinger

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (le divin Enfant)
From: asirovedout
Date: 02 Dec 06 - 09:50 AM

Yes, a joyful tune. In the Sheffield Folk Chorale we're singing it again this year in four-part harmony in churches and stately homes near Sheffield, finishing in the Cathedral on 21st.

Because 'Enfant' in the chorus starts with a vowel, 'divin' must be pronounced 'deeveen' - not similar to English 'divan'.

Our director Graham Pratt once typed 'Jouez, hautbois, resonnez, musettes' into an internet translation page and got back 'Play trumpet resound haversack!'
(Probably requires more wind to play than your ordinary bagpipe.)

@

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (le divin Enfant)
From: Darowyn
Date: 02 Dec 06 - 05:09 AM

A little reminder for non French speakers that in song and poetry, an "e" at the end of a word is pronounced, evem when it is not pronounced in prose, and even when there is an "s" after it.
So the word at the end of the second line always has three syllables, not two,
"Musettes" (accordions or possibly bagpipes depending on the century) would have the final "e" pronounced. In speech you would say "musett"   in the song you sing "musetta"- ignore the "s".
It's a great tune!
Cheers
Dave

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (le divin Enfant)
From: Noreen
Date: 01 Dec 06 - 08:34 AM

Il est né = He is born

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne (le divin Enfant)
From: Paul Burke
Date: 01 Dec 06 - 04:39 AM

I thought it was "Il est lé, le divin enfant".

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne
From: Malcolm Douglas
Date: 30 Nov 06 - 10:17 PM

See thread  Lyr Req: Le Divine Enfante (1999)

Although the thread title was mis-spelled, the search engine ("Lyrics and Knowledge Search", which you will find at the top of every page here) will easily find it if you ask for, for instance, il est ne.

Subject: Lyr Add: IL EST NE, LE DIVIN ENFANT
From: oldhippie
Date: 30 Nov 06 - 10:10 PM

IL EST NE, LE DIVIN ENFANT

Chorus:
Il est ne, le divin Enfant,
Jouez, hautbois, resonnez, musettes;
Il est ne, le divin Enfant;
Chantons tous son avenement!

1. Depuis plus de quatre mille ans,
Nous le promettaient les Prophetes;
Depuis plus de quatre mille ans,
Nous attendions cet heureux temps. Chorus

2. Ah! qu'il est beau, qu'il est charmant,
Que ses graces sont parfaites!
Ah! qu'il est beau, qu'il est charmant,
Qu'il est doux le divin Enfant! Chorus

3. Une etable est son logement,
Un peu de paille, sa couchette,
Une etable est son logement,
Pour un Dieu, quel abaissement! Chorus

4. O Jesus! O Roi tout puissant!
Tout petit enfant que vous etes,
O Jesus! O Roi tout puissant!
Regnez sur nous entierement! Chorus

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne
From: oldhippie
Date: 30 Nov 06 - 09:59 PM

It's McGarrigle.

Subject: Lyr Req: Il Est Ne
From: GUEST,catlin
Date: 30 Nov 06 - 09:54 PM

I need the words to Il Est Ne, a French Christmas Carol. Kate and Anna Magarigal(?) sing it on the Chieftans album, "Bells of Dublin". I have the first verse in a song book but that cut has at least 2 verses more.

Thanks a bunch!