Ah! vous dirai-je, maman

Did You Know?

• According to Henri-Irénée Marrou, the origin of the melody is an anonymous pastoral song dating from 1740.
• The melody was first published in 1761.
• In 1774, the earliest known printed publication of the lyrics together with the music was in volume two of Recueil de Romances by M.D.L. (Charles de Lusse) published in Brussels.

Appearances of the melody

The melody known as "Ah! vous dirai-je, maman" has been borrowed for countless songs across the globe. English speakers will recognize it as the tune for "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," the "Alphabet Song," and "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep." In Germany, it appears as the Christmas carol "Morgen kommt der Weihnachtsmann," with lyrics by Hoffmann von Fallersleben. Other versions include the Hungarian "Hull a pelyhes fehér hó," the Dutch "Altijd is Kortjakje ziek," the Spanish "Campanita del lugar," the Greek "Φεγγαράκι μου λαμπρό," the Turkish "Daha Dün Annemizin," and the Swedish "Blinka lilla stjärna."

Classical composers have also drawn heavily on this simple theme. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote his Twelve Variations on "Ah vous dirai-je, Maman" (K. 265 / K. 300e) around 1781 or 1782. Georg Joseph Vogler composed his own set of variations on the tune, as did Michel Corrette in his 1783 work La Belle Vielleuse. Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach created Variations on "Ah vous dirai-je maman" in G major, composed around 1785/90 and first published around 1880. Jean-Baptiste Cardon wrote variations for harp on the melody, and Ferdinando Carulli included it as the third piece in his Three Solos with Variations for Guitar, Op. 60, from about 1812. Theodor von Schacht used it for the third movement (Allegretto con variazioni) of his clarinet concerto in B flat major. Franz Liszt produced an Album Leaf titled "Ah! vous dirai-je, maman" in 1833. Christian Heinrich Rinck published Variations and finale for organ on the tune as his op. 90 in 1828. Adolphe Adam incorporated it into his Bravura Variations from the opera Le toréador in 1849. Camille Saint-Saëns quoted the melody in the twelfth movement (Fossiles) of The Carnival of the Animals from 1886. Ernst von Dohnányi used it for his Variations on a Nursery Tune, Op. 25, in 1914, the same year Erwin Schulhoff wrote Ten Variations on "Ah! vous dirai-je, maman" and Fugue, Op. 16. Harl McDonald featured a variant of "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep" as the second theme of the first movement in his Children's Symphony of 1948. Xavier Montsalvatge included it in the third movement (Allegretto) of his Sonatine pour Yvette from 1962. Vashti Bunyan used the melody for her song "Lily Pond" on the 1970 album Just Another Diamond Day.