Little trick | Maiden, you are slender and pure

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.

To inquire about permissions and rates, contact Emily Ezust at licenses@email.lieder.example.net

If you wish to reprint translations, please make sure you include the names of the translators in your email. They are below each translation.

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

by Julius Wolff (1834 - 1910)

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Kleine List

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: CAT ENG

Mädel, du bist schlank und schier
Und gesund gewachsen,
Deiner Zöpfe Wünschelzier
Dünkt mich eitel flachsen.

Deines weißen Nackens Bug
Und den stolzen Rücken
Staun' ich an schon lang' genug
Und das mit Entzücken.

Aber könnt'st dich umzudrehn
Dich nicht bald entschließen?
Möchte dich von vorn zu sehn
Auch einmal genießen.

Wer mir stets den Rücken kehrt,
Läßt mich übel trauen,
Ob es wohl der Mühe werth,
Sein Gesicht zu schauen.

Hui! gelungen ist die List,
Die dich wenden machte,
Sieh mal an, wie schön du bist!
Schöner, als ich dachte.

Ja, man muß es nur verstehn,
Zweifeln hilft und Schelten,
Mädchen wollen unbesehn
Nie für häßlich gelten.

Text Authorship:

by Julius Wolff (1834 - 1910), "Kleine List", appears in Singuf: Rattenfängerlieder, first published 1881 [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 Johannes Doebber (1866 - 1921), "Kleine List", op. 17 (Vier Lieder für 1 tiefe Stimme mit Pianoforte) no. 4, published 1890 [ low voice and piano ], Berlin, Simon [sung text not yet checked]
by Hans August Friedrich Zincke genannt Sommer (1837 - 1922), "Kleine List", op. 4 no. 8 (1882/83), published 1884 [ voice and piano ], from Hunold Singuf. Rattenfängerlieder nach Julius Wolff's Dichtungen, no. 8, Braunschweig, H. Litolff [sung text not yet checked]

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

CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "Petit truc", copyright © 2024, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "Little trick", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2010-02-25
Line count: 24
Word count: 108

Little trick

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

Maiden, you are slender and pure
And well-grown,
The divine strands of your braids
Seem to me to be pure flax.

The white nape of your neck
And the proud back
I have marvelled at long enough already,
And have done so with rapture.

But could you not soon decide
To turn around?
I would like once to enjoy
Seeing you from the front as well.

Someone who constantly turns her back on me
Makes me begin to doubt
Whether it would be worth the bother
Of seeing her face.

Ha!  The little trick has succeeded,
[The trick] that made you turn around,
And look at that, how beautiful you are!
More lovely than I imagined.

Yes, one only has to know how to go about things;
Doubts help and admonishments,
Before they have been seen,
Maidens do not wish to be reckoned ugly.

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2014 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.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) by Julius Wolff (1834 - 1910), "Kleine List", appears in Singuf: Rattenfängerlieder, first published 1881
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2014-04-30
Line count: 24
Word count: 144