Poor child
(Poet's title: Misero pargoletto)
Set by Schubert:
D 42
[probably 1813]
Misero pargoletto,
Il tuo destin non sai.
Ah! non gli dite mai
Qual era il genitor.
Come in un punto, oh Dio,
Tutto cangiò d’aspetto!
Voi foste il mio diletto,
Voi siete il mio terror.
Wretched child,
You do not know your fate.
Oh! never tell him
Who his father was.
Oh God, how in an instant
Everthing appears different!
You who were my delight,
You are now my terror.
All translations into English that appear on this website, unless otherwise stated, are by Malcolm Wren. You are free to use them on condition that you acknowledge Malcolm Wren as the translator and schubertsong.uk as the source. Unless otherwise stated, the comments and essays that appear after the texts and translations are by Malcolm Wren and are © Copyright.
☙
Confirmed by Peter Rastl with Tutte le opere di Pietro Metastasio, Firenze, Tipografia Borghi e compagni 1832, page 246.
The text appears in “Demofoonte”, atto III, scena V (Timante’s aria).
To see an early edition of the text, go to page 250 [260 von 450] here: http://digital.onb.ac.at/OnbViewer/viewer.faces?doc=ABO_%2BZ176741202