Childhood | What lightly walketh under trees in autumn

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by Georg Trakl (1887 - 1914)

Translation © by Bertram Kottmann

Was leise gehet unter Herbstesbäumen

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG FRE

Was leise gehet unter Herbstesbäumen
Am grünen Fluß, darüber Möven gleiten --
Es fällt das Laub; Einfalt dunkeler Zeiten.
's ist Gottes Ruh. Die Abendschatten säumen
Ein schwarzer Vogel singt in Herbstesbäumen.

Ein Händefalten müde und einträchtig
Am Abend folgen ihren Vogelzeichen
Die Augen, ehe sie dem Schlummer weichen --
Erinnerung des Knaben sanft und schmächtig.

Ein schwarzer Vogel singt in Herbstesbäumen
Den Frieden dieser Tage süß und mächtig
Auch will die Seele stille sich bereiten.

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Text Authorship:

by Georg Trakl (1887 - 1914), "Kindheit", appears in Sebastian im Traum, in Sebastian im Traum [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

by Thomas F. Schubert (b. 1961), "Kindheit (Fragment)" [ high voice and instrumental ensemble or piano ], from Auch will die Seele stille sich bereiten - Gesänge nach Gedichten von Georg Trakl, no. 2 [sung text checked 1 time]

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

ENG English (Bertram Kottmann) , "Childhood", copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Bertram Kottmann , Maria Nimmerfall

This text was added to the website: 2010-11-05
Line count: 12
Word count: 74

Childhood

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

What lightly walketh under trees in autumn
by the green stream, o’er which seagulls are gliding - 
the leaves, they fall; pureness of darker ages. 
’Tis  godly peace. The evening shadows tarry
a black-backed bird sings in the trees of autumn. 

A folding of the hands, peaceful and tired;  
at night the eyes follow their bird sign omens,
ere they subside, give way to tranquil slumber - 
memory of the boy child, soft and slender.

A black-backed bird sings in the trees of autumn
the peace of these old days, so sweet and potent,
the soul, too, wants to be prepared in silence.

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2016 by Bertram Kottmann, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you must ask the copyright-holder(s) directly for permission. If you receive no response, you must consider it a refusal.
Bertram Kottmann. Contact: BKottmann (AT) t-online.de
If you wish to commission a new translation, please contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) by Georg Trakl (1887 - 1914), "Kindheit", appears in Sebastian im Traum, in Sebastian im Traum
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2016-06-07
Line count: 12
Word count: 101