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Die Blumen glüh'n im Mondenlicht Der märchenschönen Mitternacht. Im Baume unten, blütendicht, Der Sterne Glanz sich flimmernd bricht; Sie kosen mit der Blätterpracht, Im süßen Zauber der Mitternacht! Die Lüfte geh'n so weich, so hehr, Wie ferner Dome Glockenklang; Mir ist das Herz so andachtsschwer, Es rauscht um mich wie Gotteslehr', Wie Orgelton und Feiersang Im süßen Zauber der Mitternacht. Ich fühle frei von Sündenlast Und kindlich fromm die wilde Brust; Ich möchte jauchzen und jubeln fast, Umschlingen, was ich sonst gehaßt, In heiliger Versöhnungslust, Im süßen Zauber der Mitternacht!
A. Bruckner sets stanzas 1-2
Confirmed with Wilde Blumen. Dichtungen von Joseph Mendelssohn, Leipzig: Ph. Reclam junior, 1843, pages 92 - 93. Note for the third stanza: "Ich fühle frei" [sic] is a strange construction and possibly a misprint for "Ich fühl' befreit". If another edition surfaces with some other phrase, we will add a note here.
Text Authorship:
- by Joseph Mendelssohn (1817 - 1856), "Mitternacht", appears in Wilde Blumen, in Bunte Lieder, first published 1843 [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 Louis Anger (1813 - 1870), "Mitternacht", op. 11 (Fünf Lieder) no. 3, published 1860 [ four-part men's chorus ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by (Joseph) Anton Bruckner (1824 - 1896), "Mitternacht", stanzas 1-2 [ male voices and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (David Arkell) , "Midnight", copyright © 2020, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Bertram Kottmann , Malcolm Wren [Guest Editor] , Melanie Trumbull
This text was added to the website: 2008-06-29
Line count: 18
Word count: 90
The flowers glow in the moonlight Of midnight’s fairy-tale beauty. In the thickly blossomed tree below, The flickering gleam of the stars emerges; They caress the splendour of the leaves, In the sweet magic of midnight! The breezes move so softly, so nobly, Like the sound of distant cathedrals’ bells; My heart is so weighted with reverence, The rustling around me is like God’s teaching, Like organ tones and festive singing In the sweet magic of midnight. I feel free from sin’s burden And inwardly exuberant with childlike meekness; I could almost shout and cheer with joy, Embrace what I hated before, In holy desire of reconciliation, In the sweet magic of midnight!
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2020 by David Arkell, (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 Joseph Mendelssohn (1817 - 1856), "Mitternacht", appears in Wilde Blumen, in Bunte Lieder, first published 1843
This text was added to the website: 2020-06-22
Line count: 18
Word count: 113