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Du, Nachbar Gott, wenn ich dich manchesmal in langer Nacht mit hartem Klopfen störe, - so ists, weil ich dich selten atmen höre und weiß: Du bist allein im Saal. Und wenn du etwas brauchst, ist keiner da, um deinem Tasten einen Trank zu reichen: Ich horche immer. Gieb ein kleines Zeichen. Ich bin ganz nah. Nur eine schmale Wand ist zwischen uns, durch Zufall; denn es könnte sein: ein Rufen deines oder meines Munds - und sie bricht ein ganz ohne Lärm und Laut. Aus deinen Bildern ist sie aufgebaut. Und deine Bilder stehn vor dir wie Namen. Und wenn einmal in mir das Licht entbrennt, mit welchem meine Tiefe dich erkennt, vergeudet sichs als Glanz auf ihren Rahmen. Und meine Sinne, welche schnell erlahmen, sind ohne Heimat und von dir getrennt.
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Rainer Maria Rilke, Werke, kommentierte Ausgabe in vier Bänden, Band 1 Gedichte 1895 bis 1910, herausgegeben von Manfred Engel und Ulrich Fülleborn, Frankfurt am Main und Leipzig: Insel Verlag, 1996, page 159.
Text Authorship:
- by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926), "Du, Nachbar Gott", written 1899, appears in Das Stundenbuch, in 1. Das Buch vom mönchischen Leben , no. 6, first published 1905 [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 Robert Fürstenthal (1920 - 2016), "Du, Nachbar Gott" [ voice and piano ], from Lieder an Gott nach Gedichten von Rainer Maria Rilke, no. 5 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Samuel Gray (b. 1977), "Du, Nachbar Gott", 2017 [ baritone, string quartet and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Johannes Holik (b. 1961), "Du Nachbar Gott" [ soprano, horn, and piano ], Koebl [sung text not yet checked]
- by Svein Hundsnes (b. 1951), "Du Nachbar Gott", 1991, first performed 1991 [ baritone, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, violin, viola, violoncello, piano ], from Rilke-Lieder, no. 3, NB noter [sung text not yet checked]
- by Anselm König (b. 1957), "Du Nachbar Gott", 1989 [ voice, guitar and saxophone ], from Ausgewählte Liedlyrik, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Norbert Laufer (b. 1960), "Nachbar Gott", 2003, first performed 2003 [ soprano, baritone, violin, violoncello, harpsichord ], Textlich stehen sich das Gedicht "Du, Nachbar Gott" von Rainer Maria Rilke aus dem Stunden-Buch (Erstes Buch: "Vom mönchischen Leben") und Bibelzitate gegenüber. Diese greifen einige Stichworte Rilkes auf und spitzen diese zu. [sung text not yet checked]
- by Harald Münz (b. 1965), "Du, Nachbar Gott" [ mixed chorus ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Anton Reinthaler (b. 1950), "Du Nachbar Gott", 1972 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Raymond Murray Schafer (b. 1933), "Du, Nachbar Gott" [ voice, strings and piano ], from Songs from Rilke's Book of Hours, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Oliver Steller (b. 1967), "Du, Nachbar Gott", 2006 [ narrator, saxophone and double bass ], from Zwischen den Sternen. Gedichte. Briefe. Leben. , no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Ernst Toch (1887 - 1964), "Du, Nachbar Gott", op. 60 (1932) [ baritone and orchestra ], Mainz : Schott [sung text not yet checked]
- by Michael Töpel (b. 1958), "Intermezzo: Rätsel", 2010, copyright © 2012 [ soprano, baritone, clarinet, 2 violins and 2 violas ], from oratorio Te Deum, no. 3, Edition Merseburger; note: This text is a collage made by the composer himself form Das Stundenbuch [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2024, (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: 2009-09-17
Line count: 20
Word count: 131
You, neighbour God, when in the long night I sometimes disturb you with hard knocking, -- then it is because I seldom hear you breathing and know: you are alone in the hall. And if you need something, no one is there to pass your fumbling hands a drink: I listen ever. Give me a small sign. I am quite near. There is only a narrow wall between us, by happenstance; for it could be: a cry of your or my mouth -- and it would collapse quite without noise or sound. It is built up out of your images. And your images stand before you like names. And when someday the light is kindled in me, [the light] with which my depth recognizes you, it shall squander itself as radiance upon their frames. And my senses, which rapidly grow lame, are without a homeland and separated from you.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translations of title(s):
"Du, Nachbar Gott" = "You, neighbour God"
"Intermezzo: Rätsel" = "Intermezzo: Riddle"
"Nachbar Gott" = "Neighbour God"
Translator's note to stanza 1, lines 4-6: The above is a literal translation of the German; however, the meaning is that speaker is the "you" in these lines, not God.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2024 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 Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926), "Du, Nachbar Gott", written 1899, appears in Das Stundenbuch, in 1. Das Buch vom mönchischen Leben , no. 6, first published 1905
This text was added to the website: 2024-04-09
Line count: 20
Word count: 147