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Ich weiß, daß ich bald sterben muß -- Es leuchten doch alle Bäume Nach langersehntem Julikuß. Fahl werden meine Träume. Nie dichtete ich einen trüberen Schluß In den Büchern meiner Reime. Eine Blume brichst du mir zum Gruß, Ich liebte sie schon im Keime. . . . Doch ich weiß, daß ich bald sterben muß. Mein Odem schwebt über Gottes Fluß -- Ich setze leise meinen Fuß Auf den Pfad zum ewigen Heime.
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Else Lasker-Schüler, Werke und Briefe. Kritische Ausgabe, herausgegeben von Norbert Oellers, Heinze Rölleke und Itta Shedletzky, Band 1 Gedichte, bearbeitet von Karl Jürgen Skrodzki unter Mitarbeit von Norbert Oellers, Frankfurt am Main: Jüdischer Verlag im Suhrkamp Verlag, 1996, page 266.
Text Authorship:
- by Else Lasker-Schüler (1869 - 1945), "Ich weiß . . .", appears in Mein blaues Klavier, first published 1943 [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 Erwin Amend (1919 - 1997), "Ich weiß", 1978, first performed 1983 [ mezzo-soprano and orchestra ], from Mein blaues Klavier. Fünf Lieder aus dem Gedichtzyklus für Mezzosopran und Orchester, no. 5 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Peter Benary (1931 - 2015), "Ich weiß, daß ich bald sterben muß", 1972, first performed 2000 [ voice and instrumental ensemble ], from Vier Gesänge, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Johann Karl Brandeis (1910 - 1987), "Ich weiß", 1962 [ alto and strings ], from Vier ernste Lieder, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Sharon Eitan (b. 1961), "Ich weiß", 1992 [ soprano and piano ], from Else Lasker-Schüler Song Cycle, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Wolfgang Heißler (b. 1948), "Ich weiß", 2013-2015 [ chorus a cappella ], from Drei Stücke für Chor, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Alfred Koerppen (b. 1926), "Ich weiß", 2008 [ male voice and piano ], from Fünf Lieder für tiefe Männerstimme und Klavier, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Ulrich Küchl (b. 1943), "Ich weiß", op. 5 no. 3 (1985), first performed 1985 [ medium voice and piano ], from Helles Wachen - dunkles Schlafen. Vier Lieder für mittlere Stimme und Klavier, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Eric Mayr (b. 1962), "Ich weiß", 2021, first performed 2022 [ soprano and piano ], from Mein blaues Klavier, 32 Lieder für Sopran und Klavier, no. 18 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Leo Nadelmann (1913 - 1998), "Ich weiß", 1968 [ soprano and piano or orchestra ], from Mein blaues Klavier: Ein Requiem für Else Lasker-Schüler. Fünf Lieder für Sopran und Klavier, no. 4, Zürich; Wien: Universal Editions [sung text not yet checked]
- by Christian Immo Schneider (b. 1935), "Ich weiß", 1986/2005 [ mezzo-soprano and piano ], from 54 Lieder für Mezzosopran und Klavier, no. 29 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Erich-Walter Sternberg (1891 - 1974), "Ich weiß", 1945 [ voice and piano or orchestra ], from Mein Volk: 5 Lieder für Sopran (Mezzosopran/Tenor) und Orchester (Klavier), no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Sybil Westendorp (1910 - 1999), "Ich weiß", 1985 [ voice and piano ] [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] , Karl Bellenberg [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2022-05-22
Line count: 12
Word count: 71
I know that I must soon die -- For all the trees are shining After the long-yearned-for kiss of July. My dreams grow pallid. I have never written a drearier ending In the books of my rhymes. You break off a flower for me as a greeting, I loved it already as a sprouting seed. . . . But I know that I must soon die. My breath wafts over God's river -- I set my feet quietly Upon the path to the eternal home.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translations of titles:
"Ich weiß . . ." = "I know . . . "
"Ich weiß, daß ich bald sterben muß" = "I know that I must soon die"
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 Else Lasker-Schüler (1869 - 1945), "Ich weiß . . .", appears in Mein blaues Klavier, first published 1943
This text was added to the website: 2024-11-10
Line count: 12
Word count: 83