Songs of youth II | When the evening wind caresses the elder tree

Attention! Some of this material is not in the public domain.

It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. It is also illegal to reprint copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator.

If you wish to reprint translations, please use the Reprint Basket (upper right hand corner).

Reminder: You must always use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.

by Felix Schumann (1854 - 1879)

Translation © by Emily Ezust

Wenn um den Holunder der Abendwind kost

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: CAT DUT ENG FRE

Wenn um den Holunder der Abendwind kost
Und der Falter um den Jasminenstrauch,
Dann kos' ich mit meinem Liebchen auch
Auf der Steinbank schattig und weich bemoost.

Und wenn vom Dorfe die Glocke erschallt
Und der Lerche jubelndes Abendgebet,
Dann schweigen wir auch, und die Seele zergeht
Vor der Liebe heiliger Gottesgewalt.

Und blickt dann vom Himmel der Sterne Schar
Und das Glühwürmchen in der Lilie Schoß,
Dann lasse ich sie aus den Armen los
Und küsse ihr scheidend das Augenpaar.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

• J. Brahms

About the headline (FAQ)

Text Authorship:

by Felix Schumann (1854 - 1879) [author's text not yet checked 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 Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), "Junge Lieder II", op. 63 (Neun Lieder und Gesänge) no. 6 (1874), published 1875 [ voice and piano ], Leipzig, Peters
Score: IMSLP [external link] [sung text checked 1 time]
by Martin Roeder (1851 - 1895), "Abendfrieden", op. 49 (Drei Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 1, published 1888 [ voice and piano ], Breslau, Hainauer [sung text not yet checked]

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

CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "Cançons novelles II", copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Emily Ezust) , "Songs of youth II", copyright ©
FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Chants de jeunesse II", copyright © 2010, (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: 12
Word count: 81

Songs of youth II

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

Add this translation to your Reprint Basket

 When the evening wind caresses the elder tree
 And the moth the jasmine branch,
 Then I caress my sweetheart as well,
 On the stone bench, shadowy and soft with moss.

 And when from the village comes the sound of bells,
 And the lark's jubilant evening prayer,
 Then we fall silent and our souls dissolve
 From Love's sacred, divine power.

 And then from the heavens gaze a host of stars,
 And the glow-worms appear in the lily's lap;
 Then I let my arms fall,
 And kiss her two eyes as we part.

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © by Emily Ezust, (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.

Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) by Felix Schumann (1854 - 1879)
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 92