Ex. 4-8: O ma belle rebelle

A mélodie by Charles Gounod, first published as a single song in 1851, then collected in the "6 Mélodies" by Brandus in 1855. Dedicated to Mr. Aymès. The poem is by Jean-Antoine de Baïf (1532–1589), a French Renaissance poet and a member of La Pléiade, a group of 16th-century French poets. Gounod set a poem that was nearly 300 years old.

A man begs his "belle rebelle" (beautiful rebel) — a beautiful woman who will not accept his love. He asks for a single kiss to cool the fire in his heart, and promises that one day, with Cupid's help, he will get his revenge. The title "belle rebelle" is a wordplay typical of Renaissance poetry. The song repeats the same melody for each verse.

From the album Gounod: Mélodies by Isabelle Vernet and Laurent Martin (1993)
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