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Wenn's die Bäume könnten klagen, Wenn die Blätter Zungen wären, Und die Welt Papier zum schreiben, Tint' das Wasser in den Meeren, Federn Blumen nicht zu zählen, Möchte doch manch Blatt mir fehlen, Meine Liebe dir zu sagen.
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Ferdinand Gregorovius, Wanderjahre in Italien, Erster Band, Figuren. Geschichte, Leben und Scenerie aus Italien, Vierte Auflage, Leipzig: F.A. Brockhaus, 1874, page 313.
Text Authorship:
- by Ferdinand Gregorovius (1821 - 1891), no title, appears in Wanderjahre in Italien, in Toscanische Melodieen, no. 19 [author's text checked 2 times against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Italian (Italiano) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist , Tuscan [text unavailable]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Gustav Jenner (1865 - 1920), "Wenn's die Bäume könnten klagen" [ SATB chorus and piano ], from 12 Quartette aus dem Toskanischen für 4 Singstimmen (SATB) mit Klavier, no. 12 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Robert Kahn (1865 - 1951), "Toskanisches Lied", op. 23 (Fünf Gesänge für 1 Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 5 (1896), published 1896 [ voice and piano ], Leipzig, Leuckart [sung text not yet checked]
- by J. Sipergk , "Wenn's die Bäume könnten klagen", published 1875 [ voice and piano ], from Zwölf toscanische Volkslieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianoforte, no. 9, Leipzig, Breitkopf & Härtel [sung text not yet checked]
- by Gustav Tyson Wolff (1840 - 1907), "Wenn's die Bäume könnten klagen", op. 29 no. 3, published 1886 [ mezzo-soprano and piano ], from Zwölf toscanische Melodieen (nach Texten aus dem Volk), no. 3, Leipzig, (W. Dietrich.) [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
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Si les arbres pouvaient se plaindre", copyright © 2020, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2009-08-28
Line count: 7
Word count: 38
If the trees could lament it, If the leaves were tongues And the world paper upon which to write, Ink the water in the oceans, Flowers -- innumerable quills, I would still be short of many a page Upon which to tell you of my love.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translations of title(s):
"Toskanisches Lied" = "Tuscan song"
"Wenn's die Bäume könnten klagen" = "If the trees could lament it"
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.
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Based on:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Ferdinand Gregorovius (1821 - 1891), no title, appears in Wanderjahre in Italien, in Toscanische Melodieen, no. 19
Based on:
- a text in Italian (Italiano) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist , Tuscan [text unavailable]
This text was added to the website: 2024-04-29
Line count: 7
Word count: 45