Learn Hardcore French: Je veux enregistrer cette chanson pour Marie.

In French, some verbs are followed directly by another verb in the infinitive form (the dictionary form, not conjugated). Vouloir is one of them.

Structure: vouloir + infinitive

Je veux enregistrer… = I want to record…
Je veux manger. = I want to eat.
Je veux partir. = I want to leave.

You do not say je veux j’enregistre (two conjugated verbs in a row is wrong here) and you do not add a preposition like à or de: it’s veux enregistrer, not veux de/à enregistrer.

Does enregistrer really mean “to record a song”? Can it mean other things?

Yes, enregistrer is the standard verb for recording sound or video, including songs:

enregistrer une chanson – to record a song
enregistrer un album – to record an album

It also has other meanings:

to register / to record officially:
- enregistrer un mariage – to register a marriage
- enregistrer un brevet – to register a patent
to check in (at a hotel, airport, etc.):
- enregistrer ses bagages – to check in your luggage
- enregistrer à l’hôtel – to check in at the hotel

In your sentence, context (a song) clearly gives the meaning to record.

Why is it cette chanson and not ce chanson?

Because chanson is a feminine noun in French.

Demonstrative adjectives for this/that are:

ce
- masculine singular noun starting with a consonant
  - ce livre – this book
cet
- masculine singular noun starting with a vowel or mute h
  - cet homme – this man
cette
- feminine singular noun
  - cette chanson – this song
ces
- any plural noun (masc. or fem.)
  - ces chansons – these songs

So you must say cette chanson, never ce chanson.

Why is it cette chanson (“this song”) and not la chanson (“the song”)?

Both are grammatically correct, but they don’t mean exactly the same thing.

cette chanson = this song / that song (you distinguish it from other songs)
la chanson = the song (refers to a specific song already known in context, but without pointing to it as “this one”)

Examples:

Je veux enregistrer cette chanson pour Marie.
I want to record this particular song for Marie (maybe you’re pointing at it on a list or you just mentioned it).
Je veux enregistrer la chanson pour Marie.
I want to record the song for Marie (you both already know which one you’re talking about).

In teaching sentences, cette chanson is chosen to clearly show the demonstrative adjective.

Why is there no article before Marie?

Proper names of people in French (Marie, Paul, Claire, etc.) are normally used without an article:

pour Marie – for Marie
avec Paul – with Paul
chez Claire – at Claire’s place

Using a definite article with a first name (la Marie, le Paul) exists but is regional, informal, or can sound slightly ironic or familiar. In standard, neutral French, you don’t add le / la before a person’s first name.

Why is it pour Marie and not à Marie?

Both pour and à can appear before a person, but they don’t express exactly the same relationship.

pour Marie – for Marie, showing benefit / purpose
- You’re doing the action to benefit her or as a gift to her.
- Je veux enregistrer cette chanson pour Marie.
  I want to record this song for Marie (as a gift or dedication).
à Marie – more like to Marie, often marking an indirect object of the verb itself.
- Works well with verbs like donner (to give), dire (to say), écrire (to write):
  - Je donne le livre à Marie. – I give the book to Marie.
  - Je parle à Marie. – I speak to Marie.

With enregistrer, the person isn’t an indirect grammatical object in the same way; she’s the beneficiary. So pour Marie is natural and idiomatic.

How do I replace cette chanson with a pronoun?

Chanson is feminine singular, so the direct object pronoun is la (and l’ before a vowel sound).

With a verb + infinitive structure, the pronoun goes before the infinitive, not before veux:

Je veux enregistrer cette chanson pour Marie.
Je veux l’enregistrer pour Marie. – I want to record it for Marie.

Note:

You do not say Je la veux enregistrer in this context.
General rule: when you have conjugated verb + infinitive, object pronouns usually go right before the infinitive.

How do I refer to Marie with a pronoun in this sentence?

Since pour is used, you keep pour and replace the noun with a stressed pronoun (also called disjunctive pronoun):

pour elle – for her
pour lui – for him

So:

Je veux enregistrer cette chanson pour Marie.
Je veux enregistrer cette chanson pour elle.

You do not replace pour Marie with lui alone; lui is normally used with verbs that directly take à + person (e.g. parler à Marie → lui parler). Here the preposition is pour, so you keep pour and say pour elle.

How would I make this sentence negative?

In standard French, ne… pas goes around the conjugated verb (veux), not around the infinitive:

Je ne veux pas enregistrer cette chanson pour Marie.
I don’t want to record this song for Marie.

If you add a pronoun for cette chanson, it stays in front of the infinitive:

Je ne veux pas l’enregistrer pour Marie.
I don’t want to record it for Marie.

In casual speech, many people drop ne when speaking, but in writing and careful speech you should keep it:

Spoken informal: Je veux pas enregistrer cette chanson pour Marie.

Is there a liaison between veux and enregistrer when speaking?

Yes, there is normally a liaison:

je veux alone → pronounced roughly [ʒə vø]
je veux enregistrer → pronounced with a linking z sound: [ʒə vø z ɑ̃ʁɛʒistʁe]

So you hear vøzɑ̃‑…, not vø ɑ̃‑….

This kind of liaison (linking the final consonant sound to the next word that begins with a vowel) is common and natural in French, especially with verbs + infinitives like:

je peux entrer → [ʒə pø z ɑ̃tʁe]
je vais écouter → [ʒə vɛ z ekute]

How would I say “I want to record Marie’s song” instead of “I want to record this song for Marie”?

That’s a different meaning, and French would normally express possession with de:

Je veux enregistrer la chanson de Marie.
I want to record Marie’s song.

Compare:

Je veux enregistrer cette chanson pour Marie.
I want to record this song for Marie (as a gift, for her benefit).

So:

la chanson de Marie = the song that belongs to Marie / that she wrote / that is associated with her
cette chanson pour Marie = this song, recorded for her.