canasg choral music publishing - Soun, soun, béni, béni

WT2021

Soun, soun, béni, béni

words and tune traditional French

arranged by Sheena Phillips
for soprano, alto, tenor and bass chorus

SATB performance time approx 2m 00s

Arranger's note

This lullaby is from the Massif Central region of France. The key word is 'soun' (sleep) which, pronounced as a nasal 'soo' creates a wonderful effect, over many repetitions, of some patient mum, dad or granny trying to hush a reluctant child to sleep. A few dynamics have been marked, but feel free to try other ideas too. The piece should flow simply and gently throughout.

Music

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Hear a MIDI file of the song

Words

Soun, soun, béni, béni

Soun, soun, béni, béni, soun, soun, béni, béni, doun!
Soun, soun, béni, béni, soun, soun, béni, d'en docon.
Lou soun, soun bouol pas béni:
Pêcairé!
L'éfontou s'en bouol pas durmi.
Soun, soun, béni O l'éfon.

Traditional song

The words and tune of this lullaby were collected by Sir Henry Walford Davies and published in French Songs (1938). They are used by permission of the Trustees of Sir Henry Walford Davies.

Translation

Sleep, come now!
Sleep, come here.

Sleep doesn't want to come:
What a nuisance!
The baby doesn't want to sleep.

Sleep, come to this child.

Full pronunciation guide provided

Price per copy £1.30 ($3.00)

Note: This price is for the first 20 licensed copies of the song, further copies cost only 25% of this price.

Companion pieces

Browse the 'World folk and traditional' section of the Canasg catalogue for more songs like this one. To go there now, click on the 'catalogue' box to the right.

Canasg Music