by Ernest Christopher Dowson (1867 - 1900)
Translation by Stefan George (1868 - 1933)
Seraphita
Language: English
Come not before me now, O visionary face! Me tempest-tost, and borne along life's passionate sea; Troublous and dark and stormy though my passage be; Not here and now may we commingle or embrace, Lest the loud anguish of the waters should efface The bright illumination of thy memory, Which dominates the night; rest, far away from me, In the serenity of thine abiding-place! But when the storm is highest, and the thunders blare, And sea and sky are riven, O moon of all my night! Stoop down but once in pity of my great despair, And let thine hand, though over late to help, alight But once upon my pale eyes and my drowning hair, Before the great waves conquer in the last vain fight.
Authorship:
- by Ernest Christopher Dowson (1867 - 1900), "Seraphita", from Verses, first published 1896 [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 Grigory Smirnov (b. 1985), "Seraphita", 2013, published 2013, first performed 2014 [ tenor and piano ], from Dowson Songs, no. 7 [sung text checked 1 time]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Stefan George (1868 - 1933) , no title, appears in Zeitgenössische Dichter, first published 1905 ; composed by Arnold Franz Walter Schoenberg.
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2003-11-15
Line count: 14
Word count: 126
Erscheine jetzt nicht, traumverlornes...
Language: German (Deutsch)  after the English
Erscheine jetzt nicht, traumverlornes Angesicht, Mir windverschlagen auf des Lebens wilder See - Sei meine Fahrt auch voll von finster Sturm und Weh: Hier - jetzt - vereinen oder küssen wir uns nicht! Sonst löscht die laute Angst der Wasser vor der Zeit Das helle Leuchten, deines Angedenkens Stern, Der durch die Nächte herrscht - bleib von mir fern In deines Ruheortes Heiterkeit! Doch wenn der Sturm am höchsten geht und kracht Zerrissen See und Himmel. Mond in meiner Nacht! Dann neige einmal dem Verzweifelten dich dar. Lass deine Hand (wenn auch zu spät nun) hilfbereit Noch gleiten auf mein fahles Aug und sinkend Haar Eh grosse Woge siegt im letzten leeren Streit!
About the headline (FAQ)
Authorship:
- by Stefan George (1868 - 1933), no title, appears in Zeitgenössische Dichter, first published 1905 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English by Ernest Christopher Dowson (1867 - 1900), "Seraphita", from Verses, first published 1896
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Arnold Franz Walter Schoenberg (1874 - 1951), "Seraphita", op. 22 (4 Lieder) no. 1 (1913), published 1917 [ voice, orchestra ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Alberto Pedrotti
This text was added to the website: 2003-11-15
Line count: 14
Word count: 114