Quiet Journey | I stood beside a dark sea

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by Hans Benzmann (1869 - 1926)

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Stille Fahrt

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG

Ich stand an einem dunklen Meer,
Da kam vom grünen Eiland her
Ein stiller Kahn geschwommen.
Mir ward so leicht, mir ward so schwer,
Mein Herz ward aller Unrast leer,
Der Schmerz ward mir genommen.

Still stieß das Schifflein an den Strand,
Sein Lenker winkte mit der Hand,
Er lachte wie im Traume
Und lud mich ein zum andern Land,
Das in der Ferne unbekannt
Grün glänzte aus dem Schaume.

Und ich stieg ein. Der stille Mann
Zog stumm die schwarzen Ruder an,
Wir schwammen aus dem Hafen.
Er nickte müde dann und wann,
Und sang ein seltsam Liedchen dann,
Und ich bin eingeschlafen . . . . . . .

Confirmed with Die Gesellschaft. Monatschrift für Litteratur, Kunst und Sozialpolitik, Jahrgang 1896, Drittes Quartal (Juli), pages 918-919

Text Authorship:

by Hans Benzmann (1869 - 1926), "Stille Fahrt" [author's text checked 2 times 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 Henri Marteau (1874 - 1934), "Stille Fahrt", op. 28 (Acht Gesänge) no. 1, published 1923 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]

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

ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "Quiet Journey", copyright © 2017, (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: 2010-03-25
Line count: 18
Word count: 111

Quiet Journey

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

I stood beside a dark sea,
From the green isle a quiet ship
Came floating over.
I felt so light, I felt so laden,
My heart became empty of all unrest,
Pain was taken from me.

The little ship nudged the shore silently,
Its shipman beckoned with his hand,
He laughed as in a dream
And invited me to the other land
That in the distance, unknown,
Shone greenly out of the foam.

And I boarded. The silent man
Pulled mutely at the black oars,
We floated out of the harbour.
He nodded wearily now and then,
And then he sang a strange little song,
And I, I fell asleep . . . . . . .

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2017 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 Hans Benzmann (1869 - 1926), "Stille Fahrt"
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2017-05-02
Line count: 18
Word count: 117