The Flower Duet

The Flower Duet (Sous le dôme épais) is a famous duet for sopranos from Léo Delibes' opera Lakmé, first performed in Paris in 1883. The duet takes place in Act 1 of the three act opera, between characters Lakmé, the daughter of a Brahmin priest, and her servant Mallika, as they go to gather flowers by a river. Its ubiquitous presence in films and popular music since the mid-1980s was inaugurated by its usage in the 1983 horror film The Hunger.

Puccini's Madama Butterfly also contains a number (Il Cannone Del Porto) often known as the Flower Duet.

Translation of Mallika part

English	French
Under the dense canopy Where the white jasmine Blends with the rose On the flowering bank Laughing at the morning Come, let us drift down together	Sous le dôme épais Où le blanc jasmin À la rose s’assemble Sur la rive en fleurs, Riant au matin Viens, descendons ensemble.
Let us gently glide along With the enchanting flow Of the fleeing current On the rippling surface With a lazy hand Let us reach the shore Where the source sleeps And the bird sings	Doucement glissons de son flot charmant Suivons le courant fuyant Dans l’onde frémissante D’une main nonchalante Viens, gagnons le bord, Où la source dort et L’oiseau, l’oiseau chante.
Under the dense canopy Under the white jasmine Let us drift down together	Sous le dôme épais Où le blanc jasmin, Ah! descendons ensemble!

Translation of Lakmé part

English	French
Thick dome of jasmine Blends with the rose Bank of fresh morning flowers We call together Ah! Glide along The fleeing current On the rippling surface With a lazy hand Reach the shore The bird sings, the bird, the bird sings Thick dome, white jasmine We call together	Dôme épais le jasmin A la rose s'assemble Rive en fleurs frais matin Nous appellent ensemble Ah! glissons en suivant Le courant fuyant Dans l'on de frémissante D'une main nonchalante Gagnons le bord, Où l'oiseau chante, l'oiseau, l'oiseau chante Dôme épais, blanc jasmin Nous appellent ensemble!

External links

• Léo Delibes at the Internet Movie Database
• Lakmé score (Flower Duet is No. 2, pages 20–30)