When I am with you I must put off all artistry | When I am with you I must put off all artistry and meritoriousness

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by Felix Ludwig Julius Dahn (1834 - 1912)

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Bei Dir muß ich mich aller Kunst und des...

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG

Bei Dir muß ich mich aller Kunst und des Verdienst's entschlagen,
  Vom Himmel frei fällt deine Gunst wie Tau an [Maientagen]¹:
  Dem Feind, dem sag' ich: "scheue mich, ich führe scharfes Eisen,"
  Dem Freund, dem sag' ich: "ehre mich, ich will mich würdig weisen."

Dem König sag' ich: "gieb mir Gold, ich weiß, ich kann's verdienen,["]
  Meiner Mutter sag' ich: "sei mir hold, ich hab Dein Blut und Mienen:" -- 
  Doch deine Huld, -- wie Sonnenschein, -- die kann ich nicht verlangen: -- 
  Da muß man fein bescheiden sein und sie geschenkt empfangen.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

• A. Ritter

About the headline (FAQ)

View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with Felix Dahn's Sämtliche Werke poetischen Inhalts, Band XVI, Leipzig: Breitkopf und Härtel, 1898, pages 66-67.

¹ Ritter: "Maienmorgen"

Text Authorship:

by Felix Ludwig Julius Dahn (1834 - 1912), no title, appears in Schlichte Weisen, no. 6 [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 Alexander Ritter (1833 - 1896), "Bei dir muss ich mich aller Kunst", op. 2 no. 3, published 1871 [ voice and piano ], from Schlichte Weisen: Fünf Gedichte von Felix Dahn, no. 3 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "When I am with you I must put off all artistry", copyright © 2019, (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: 2011-07-10
Line count: 8
Word count: 90

When I am with you I must put off all artistry

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

When I am with you I must put off all artistry and meritoriousness,
  Your favour falls freely from Heaven like dew upon a [day]¹ in May:
  To my enemy I say: "Dread me, I wield sharp steel,"
  To my friend I say: "Honour me, I shall show myself worthy."

To the king I say: "Give me gold, I know that I can earn it,["]
  To my mother I say: "Be good to me, I have your blood and visage." --
  But your favour, -- like sunshine, -- that I cannot ask for: --
  For that one must be very humble and accept it as a gift.

View original text (without footnotes)
¹ Ritter: "morning"

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2019 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 Felix Ludwig Julius Dahn (1834 - 1912), no title, appears in Schlichte Weisen, no. 6
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2019-12-27
Line count: 8
Word count: 103