Its getting a bit OT, but I think in the context 'mouche' on the ladies' dressing tables refers to something other than 'flies'. I've found another possible meaning: patch or ornament related to taffeta.
Miles Dempster On Feb 25, 2014, at 12:44 PM, Jean-Marie Poirier <jmpoiri...@wanadoo.fr> wrote: > Thank you Howard but Google is not completely up to point. Here is my > translation, not very far from Google's but... > > There was at court (of Charles II of England) a certain Italianwho was famous > for the guitar. He had genius for music, and he wa the only one who could do > something with the guitar; but his composition was so gracious and so tender > that he would have given harmony to the most ungrateful of all instruments. > The truth is that nothing was more difficult than playing after his manner. > The taste of the king for his compositions had made this instrument so > fashionable that everybody would play it, good or bad, and on the ladies' > dressing tables you would find a guitar as certainly as rouge and flies. > > The Duke of York could play it fairly well, and the count of Arran as well as > Francisco himself. This Francisque had just composed a Saraband which charmed > or afflicted everybody : because all guitar rakers at Court had started to > learn it and God knows what a universal scraping that was ! > > At first sight but a bit more accurate than Google I hope ;-) ! > > Best, > > Jean-Marie > Ps : Thank you for the precisions you gave me Ralf ! I feel reassured ;-) > > > -------------- > >> >> On Feb 25, 2014, at 8:44 AM, Jean-Marie Poirier <jmpoiri...@wanadoo.fr> >> wrote: >> >>> Here is the passage in question (I am confident that you can read French) : >> >> For those who canât, I will helpfully offer a translation from Google >> Language Tools. I think it speaks for itself. >> >> "He had some Italian in the Court, famous for the guitar. He had a genius >> for music, and this is the only guitar could do something;., But its >> composition was so gracious and so tender that it would have given the >> harmony most ungrateful of all instruments. the truth is that nothing was >> more difficult than playing his way. taste the king for his compositions had >> made ââthe instrument so fashionable that all played upon the world good >> or bad, and the toilet was beautiful also sure to see a guitar to find the >> red and flies. >> >> The Duke of York played upon fairly, and the Earl of Arran as Francisco >> itself. This Frantz had just made a sarabande or désoloit that charmed >> everyone: for all guitarerie Court began to learn, and God knows the >> Universal raclerie it was! " >> -- >> >> To get on or off this list see list information at >> http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html > > --
