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by Edmond Haraucourt (1856 - 1941)
Translation © by Bertram Kottmann

Le nénuphar
Language: French (Français) 
Our translations:  ENG GER
L’air s’embrume : les joncs, roux comme de vieux os,
Encadrent l'étang noir qui dort sous le silence.
L’eau plate luit dans une opaque somnolence
Où le ciel renversé fait glisser des oiseaux.

Et là-bas, loin des bords gluants, loin des roseaux,
Seul, bercé dans sa fière et souple nonchalance,
Un Nénuphar, splendeur nageante, se balance,
Tout blanc sur la noirceur immobile des eaux.

— Ainsi, tu t’ouvriras peut-être, un soir d’automne,
Ô mon suprême amour, espoir d’un cœur atone,
Fleur triste et froide éclose au lac de mes ennuis.

Et le chaste parfum de ta corolle pâle
Montera dans le calme insondable des nuits,
Avec le dernier cri de ma douleur qui râle.

Text Authorship:

  • by Edmond Haraucourt (1856 - 1941), "Le nénuphar", written 1885, appears in L'Âme nue, in 2. La Vie intérieure, in 3. Le Soir, no. 25, Éd. Fasquelle, first published 1885 [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 François Berthet (1873 - 1956), "Le nénuphar", op. 7 no. 3 [ medium voice and piano ], Paris, Éd. Rouart-Lerolle [sung text not yet checked]
  • by Charles Koechlin (1867 - 1950), "Le nénuphar", op. 13 no. 3 (1897) [ high voice with piano and flute, or orchestra ], from Poèmes d'automne, no. 3 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

  • ENG English (Faith J. Cormier) , "The Water Lily", copyright © 2001, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Die Wasserlilie", copyright © 2017, (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: 14
Word count: 113

Die Wasserlilie
Language: German (Deutsch)  after the French (Français) 
Im Nebeldunst - das Röhricht, fahl wie alt’ Gebein,
umrahmt den schwarzen Teich, der stille ruht.
Auf seinem Wasser, glatt und schläfrig in opaker Glut
ziehn Vögel durch des Himmels Widerschein.

Dort drüben, weit von Schilf und Ufer abgerückt,
nur sie allein, gewiegt von Stolz und Unbekümmertheit,
schwimmt eine Wasserlilie, deren weißes Kleid
das stille, schwarze Wasser prachtvoll schmückt.

Wie sie, sich mir dein Herz einst öffnen mag,
Du, meine größte Lieb’, meins Herzens Hoffen zag,
traurige, kalte Blum’ - in meines Kummers See erblüht.

Und deiner bleichen Blütenkrone keusch’ Arom
mit meines Herzens letztem Schmerzenston
einst in die nächt’ge, grenzenlose Stille zieht.

Text Authorship:

  • Translation from French (Français) to German (Deutsch) copyright © 2017 by Bertram Kottmann, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you must ask the copyright-holder(s) directly for permission. If you receive no response, you must consider it a refusal.

    Bertram Kottmann.  Contact: BKottmann (AT) t-online.de

    If you wish to commission a new translation, please contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

  • a text in French (Français) by Edmond Haraucourt (1856 - 1941), "Le nénuphar", written 1885, appears in L'Âme nue, in 2. La Vie intérieure, in 3. Le Soir, no. 25, Éd. Fasquelle, first published 1885
    • Go to the text page.

 

This text was added to the website: 2017-01-18
Line count: 14
Word count: 101

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