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by Friedrich Hölderlin (1770 - 1843)
Translation © by Guy Laffaille

Die Liebe
Language: German (Deutsch) 
Our translations:  CAT ENG FRE
Wenn ihr Freunde vergeßt, wenn ihr die Euren all,
O ihr Dankbaren, sie, euere Dichter schmäht,
  Gott vergeb' es, doch ehret
  Nur die Seele der Liebenden.

Denn o saget, wo lebt menschliches Leben sonst,
Da die knechtische jetzt alles, die Sorge zwingt?
  Darum wandelt der Gott auch
  Sorglos über dem Haupt uns längst.

Doch, wie immer das Jahr kalt und gesanglos ist
Zur beschiedenen Zeit, aber aus weißem Feld
  Grüne Halme doch sprossen,
  Oft ein einsamer Vogel singt,

Wenn sich mählich der Wald dehnet, der Strom sich regt,
Schon die mildere Luft leise [von]1 Mittag weht
  Zur erlesenen Stunde,
  So ein Zeichen [der schönern]2 Zeit,

[Die wir glauben, erwächst]3 einzig genügsam noch,
Einzig edel und fromm über dem ehernen,
  Wilden Boden die Liebe,
  Gottes Tochter, von ihm allein.

Sei gesegnet, o sei, himmlische Pflanze, mir
Mit Gesange gepflegt, wenn des ätherischen
  Nektars Kräfte [dich nähren]4,
  Und der schöpf'rische Strahl dich [reift]5.

Wachs und werde zum Wald! eine beseeltere,
Vollentblühende Welt! Sprache der Liebenden
  Sei die Sprache des Landes,
  Ihre Seele der Laut des Volks!

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

•   R. Strauss 

View original text (without footnotes)
1 Strauss: "vom"
2 Strauss: "schönerer"
3 Strauss: "Erwächst"
4 Strauss: "sich regen"
5 Strauss: "weiht"

Text Authorship:

  • by Friedrich Hölderlin (1770 - 1843) [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 Josef Matthias Hauer (1883 - 1959), "Die Liebe", op. 21 no. 1, copyright © 1924 [ voice and piano ], from Hölderlin Lieder, no. 1, Berlin, Schlesinger [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Karl Michael Komma (1913 - 2012), "Die Liebe", 1954 [sung text checked 1 time]
  • by Richard Georg Strauss (1864 - 1949), "Die Liebe", op. 71 no. 3 (1921) [ voice and piano ], from Drei Hymnen von Friedrich Hölderlin, no. 3 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

  • CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "L'amor", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "Love", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "L'amour", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Michael Komma

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 28
Word count: 181

L'amour
Language: French (Français)  after the German (Deutsch) 
Si vous oubliez les amis, si vous, tous les vôtres,
Ô vous les obligés, injuriez vos poètes,
  Que Dieu pardonne, mais vous devriez honorer
  Seulement l'âme de ceux qui aiment.

Alors, dites où vit la vie humaine sinon,
Quand l'anxiété rampante contraint tout maintenant ?
  C'est pourquoi le dieu aussi marche
  Insouciant sur nos tête depuis longtemps

Pourtant, aussi froide et sans chant que soit l'année
Au temps imparti, pourtant du champ blanc
  De l'herbe verte jaillit malgré tout,
  Souvent un oiseau solitaire chante.

Quand la forêt s'étire lentement, la rivière bouge,
Déjà l'air doux souffle doucement de midi
  À l'heure choisie,
  Ainsi un signe d'un temps plus beau.

Ce que nous croyons, c'est que croît, seulement frugal,
Seulement pur et pieux sur le  noble
  Et sauvage terrain, l'amour,
  La fille de Dieu, de lui seul.

Sois bénie, oh, plante céleste, sois soignée, pour moi
Avec des chants quand de l'éther
  Le nectar puissant te nourrisse,
  Et le rayon de la création te fait mûrir.

Crois et deviens une forêt ! un monde inspiré
Plein de fleurs ! Que le langage des amants
  Soit le langage du pays,
  Son âme le son du peuple !

Text Authorship:

  • Translation from German (Deutsch) to French (Français) copyright © 2014 by Guy Laffaille, (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 Friedrich Hölderlin (1770 - 1843)
    • Go to the text page.

 

This text was added to the website: 2014-09-29
Line count: 28
Word count: 191

Gentle Reminder

This website began in 1995 as a personal project by Emily Ezust, who has been working on it full-time without a salary since 2008. Our research has never had any government or institutional funding, so if you found the information here useful, please consider making a donation. Your help is greatly appreciated!
–Emily Ezust, Founder

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