by
Gottfried Keller (1819 - 1890)
Wie herrlich wär's
Language: German (Deutsch)
Available translation(s): ENG FRE
Wie herrlich wär's, zerschnittner Tannenbaum,
Du ragtest als ein schlanker Mast empor,
Bewimpelt, in den blauen Himmelsraum,
Vor einem sonnig heitern Hafentor!
Da, müssen wir einmal beisammen sein,
Lehnt ich an dir im schwanken Segelhaus:
Du aus dem Schwarzwald, drüben ich vom Rhein,
Kamraden, reisten wir aufs Meer hinaus.
Und bräch das Schiff zu Splittern auseinand,
Geborsten du und über Bord gefällt,
Umfaßt ich dich mit eisenfester Hand:
So schwämmen beide wir ans End der Welt.
Am besten wär's, du stündest hoch und frei
Im Tannenwald, das Haupt voll Vogelsang,
Ich aber schlenderte an dir vorbei,
Wohin ich wollt, den grünen Berg entlang!
Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Martin Stock) , title 1: "How splendid it would be if you, felled fir tree", copyright © 2004, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , title 1: "Comme ce serait magnifique, sapin abattu", 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: 16
Word count: 103
How splendid it would be if you, felled fir tree
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch)
How splendid it would be if you, felled fir tree,
were a ship's mast, high and slim
With flying flags in blue skies,
Before a sunlit harbour gate!
If, after all, we are meant to be together,
I'd lean against you in the bobbing house of sails.
You from the Black Forest, and I from the Rhine river,
As mates we would sail out to sea.
And if the ship broke, a splintered wreck,
And you, broken apart, went overboard,
I'd cling to you with hands as strong as iron:
Together we would swim toward the world's end.
It would be best if you stood tall and free
in a wood of firs, with bird song in your head,
And I would stroll along and pass you by,
Wherever I wanted, following the green mountain path!
Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2004 by Martin Stock, (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.
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Based on:
This text was added to the website: 2004-04-10
Line count: 16
Word count: 136