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Wer hat das erste Lied erdacht, Das in die Lüfte scholl? Der Frühling fand's in lauer Nacht, Das Herz von Wonne voll; Er sang es früh im Fliederbaum Und schlug den Tact dazu: "O Maienzeit, o Liebestraum, Was ist so süß wie Du?" Da kamen Mück' und Käferlein, Waldvöglein sonder Zahl; Die übten sich die Weise ein, Wohl an die tausend Mal. Sie trugen's durch den Himmelsraum Und durch die Waldesruh: "O Maienzeit, o Liebestraum, Was ist so süß wie Du?" Mir sang's am Bach die Nachtigall, Da ward mir wonnig weh; Nun folgt das Lied mir überall Durch Duft und Blütenschnee. Ich pflück' den Zweig vom Fliederbaum Und sing' es immerzu: "O Maienzeit, o Liebestraum, Was ist so süß wie Du?"
About the headline (FAQ)
View text with all available footnotesConfirmed with Die Gartenlaube. Illustrirtes Familienblatt, Band XXVII, Nr. 23 (1879), page 386.
Text Authorship:
- by Victor August Eberhard Blüthgen (1844 - 1920), "Das erste Lied" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
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Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , John H. Campbell , Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor], Johann Winkler
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 24
Word count: 128
Who devised the first song That rang out into the breezes? 'Twas springtime that found it in the balmy night, Its heart full of bliss; Early on Spring sang it to the lilac tree And beat time to it: "Oh May-time, oh Love’s dream, What is as sweet as you are?" Along came mosquitos and little beetles, Forest birds without number; They practised the melody until they knew it, Well nigh a thousand times. They carried it through the expanses of the sky And through the peace of the forest: "Oh May-time, oh Love’s dream, What is as sweet as you are?" A nightingale sang it to me by the brook, Thereupon I felt so blissfully heartsore; Now the song follows me everywhere Through scent and blossom-snow. I pick a branch from the lilac tree And I sing it incessantly: "Oh May-time, oh Love’s dream, What is as sweet as you are?"
About the headline (FAQ)
View text with all available footnotesTranslations of title(s):
"Wer hat das erste Lied erdacht" = "Who devised the first song"
"O Maienzeit, o Liebestraum" = "Oh May-time, oh Love’s dream"
"Das erste Lied" = "The first song"
"Maienzeit und Liebestraum" = "May-time and Love’s dream"
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2019 by Sharon Krebs, (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:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Victor August Eberhard Blüthgen (1844 - 1920), "Das erste Lied"
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This text was added to the website: 2019-12-10
Line count: 24
Word count: 153