by Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962)
Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Berceuse
Language: German (Deutsch) 
Our translations:  CAT ENG
Sing mir dein liebes Wiegenlied!
Seit meine Jugend von mir schied,
Mag ich so gern die Weise hören.
Komm zu mir, süßer Wunderklang,
Nur du kannst noch die Nacht entlang
Mein ruheloses Herz betören.
 
Leg mir aufs Haar die schmale Hand
Und laß von unsrem Heimatland,
Von totem Ruhm und Glück uns träumen.
Gleich einem Stern, der einsam zieht,
Soll flackerhell dein Märchenlied
Die Nächte meiner Schwermut säumen.
 
Und stelle mir zu Häupten doch
Den Rosenstrauß! Er duftet noch
Und träumt sich heimwärts wehbeklommen.
Ich bin ja auch so welk und schwank,
Gebrochen und am Heimweh krank,
Und kann nicht mehr nach Hause kommen.

Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada, but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.

Confirmed with Hermann Hesse, Sämtliche Werke, herausgegeben von Volker Michels, Band 10 Die Gedichte, bearbeitet von Peter Huber, Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag, 2002, page 13.


Text 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 or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

  • CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "Cançó de bressol", copyright © 2023, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "Berceuse", copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2009-05-05
Line count: 18
Word count: 104

Berceuse
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch) 
Sing me your dear lullaby!
Ever since my youth has passed,
I love to hear that tune.
Come to me, sweet wondrous sound;
Through the nights, only you can still
Beguile my restless heart.
 
Place your slender hand upon my hair
And let us dream of our homeland,
Of departed renown and happiness.
Like a star that moves in solitude,
Your fairy-tale song, in flickering brightness,
Shall encircle the nights of my melancholy.
 
And place by my head yet
The rose-bouquet! It is still emitting scent
And, in anguish, dreams itself homeward.
For I, too, am so wilted and limp,
Broken and suffering from homesickness,
And can come home no more.

Text Authorship:

  • Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2016 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: 

Based on:

 

This text was added to the website: 2016-09-29
Line count: 18
Word count: 111