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Bilingual Bedtime/French songs
Chanson à raconterStory song

Il était une bergère.

The melody of Il était une bergère on a staff, as engraved in the book
Download the tune

The melody as written on the staff, so you can learn the tune before you sing.

Verse 1

  1. Il était une bergère,eel ay-teh ewn behr-zheh-ruh,There once was a shepherdess,
  2. Qui gardait ses moutons,kee gahr-deh say moo-tohn,Who tended her sheep,

Refrain

  1. Et ron ron ron, petit patapon,ay rohn rohn rohn, puh-tee pah-tah-pohn,And ron ron ron, little patapon,
  2. Ron ron,rohn rohn,Ron ron,

Verse 2

  1. Elle fit un fromage,ehl fee uhn froh-mah-zhuh,She made a cheese,
  2. Du lait de ses moutons,dew leh duh say moo-tohn,From the milk of her sheep,
  3. Le chat qui la regarde,luh shah kee lah ruh-gahr-duh,The cat who watches her,
  4. D’un petit air fripon,duhn puh-tee-tehr free-pohn,With a sly little look,

Verse 3

  1. Si tu y mets la patte,see tew ee meh lah pah-tuh,If you put your paw there,
  2. Tu auras du bâton,tew oh-rah dew bah-tohn,You will get the stick,

Verse 4

  1. Il n’y mit pas la patte,eel nee mee pah lah pah-tuh,He did not put his paw there,
  2. Il y mit le menton,eel ee mee luh mahn-tohn,He put his chin in instead,

Verse 5

  1. La bergère en colère,lah behr-zheh-rahn koh-leh-ruh,The shepherdess, angry,
  2. Tua son p’tit chaton,tew-ah sohn ptee shah-tohn,Killed her little kitten,

Verse 6

  1. Elle fut à son père,ehl few ah sohn peh-ruh,She went to her father,
  2. Lui demander pardon,lwee duh-mahn-day pahr-dohn,To ask him for forgiveness,

Verse 7

  1. Mon père je m’accuse,mohn peh-ruh zhuh mah-kewz,Father, I confess,
  2. D’avoir tué mon chaton,dah-vwahr tew-ay mohn shah-tohn,To having killed my kitten,

Verse 8

  1. Ma fill’, pour pénitence,mah feey, poor pay-nee-tahn-suh,My child, for penance,
  2. Nous nous embrasserons,noo noo ahn-brah-suh-rohn,We shall kiss each other,

Verse 9

  1. La pénitence est douce,lah pay-nee-tahns eh doos,The penance is sweet,
  2. Nous recommencerons,noo ruh-koh-mahn-suh-rohn,We shall begin again,

About this song

A ronde danced for well over a century. A shepherdess makes a cheese, the cat eyes it, and then, as old songs will, the tale turns dark: she kills the kitten and goes to her père, father or priest, to beg pardon. Many families stop after the chin verse. Ron ron is a cat purring; patapon is nonsense.

Where it comes from

The words: Jean-Baptiste Weckerlin, Chansons et rondes enfantines (Garnier, 1870).

From the book

Bilingual Bedtime

Thirty-Five French Songs for Children

Buy paperbackBuy KindleBuy hardcoverAbout this edition
C'est la mère MichelAll 35 songsCompère Guilleri
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