Solveig's song | Both winter and spring may pass me by

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by Henrik Ibsen (1828 - 1906)

Translation © by Laura Prichard

Kanske vil der gå både vinter og vår

Language: Norwegian (Bokmål)

Our translations: ENG FRE ITA

Kanske vil der gå både vinter og vår,
og næste sommer med, og det hele år; --
men engang vil du komme, det ved jeg vist;
og jeg skal nok vente, for det lovte jeg sidst.

Gud styrke dig hvor du i verden går!
Gud glæde dig, hvis du for hans fodskammel står!
Her skal jeg vente til du kommer igen;
og venter du hist oppe, vi træffes der, min ven!

About the headline (FAQ)

Confirmed with Romancer, ballader og sange: af norske, svenske, danske og finske forfattere, Kristiania, Forlagt af Alb. Cammermeyer, 1876, page 104.

Text Authorship:

by Henrik Ibsen (1828 - 1906), "Fortrøstning", appears in Peer Gynt [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 Edvard Grieg (1843 - 1907), "Solveigs sang", op. 23 (Tre sanger fra "Peer Gynt") no. 19 (1874-1875), also set in German (Deutsch) [sung text checked 1 time]
by Peter Arnold Heise (1830 - 1879), "Kanske vil der gaae baade Vinter og Vaar", published 1870 [ voice and piano ], from Bergmanden og Solveigs Sange, no. 2 [sung text checked 1 time]

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Christian Morgenstern (1871 - 1914) ; composed by Edvard Grieg, Bruno Walter.

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

ENG English (Laura Prichard) , "Solveig's song", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Chanson de Solveig", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ITA Italian (Italiano) (Anna Maria Norberg-Schulz) , "Il canto di Solveig", copyright © 2006, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 8
Word count: 70

Solveig's song

Language: English after the Norwegian (Bokmål)

Both winter and spring may pass me by,
And next summer with them, and the whole year,
But someday you will return, that much I know, 
And I shall wait for you, for it was my last promise to you. 

May God give you strength, as you move through the world, 
May God give you joy, if you stand before Him.
Here will I wait until you come back;
Waiting for you to arrive home, my dear friend!

Translator's note for line 2-2, "Him" : literally, "before his footstool"

Text Authorship:

Translation from Norwegian (Bokmål) to English copyright © 2019 by Laura Prichard, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in Norwegian (Bokmål) by Henrik Ibsen (1828 - 1906), "Fortrøstning", appears in Peer Gynt
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2019-04-10
Line count: 8
Word count: 78