He has two clear eyes

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by Johann Paul Kaltenbaeck (1804 - 1861)

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Er hat zwei klare Äugelein

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG

Er hat zwei [klare]¹ Äugelein,
  Und einen rothen Mund,
Mein Herz hält er gefangen,
Nach ihm steht mein Verlangen,
  Zu einer jeden Stund.

Der Mai ist uns vergangen,
  Das acht' ich wahrlich klein.
Ich weiß kein größ'res Leiden,
Denn daß ich ihn muß meiden
  Den Allerliebsten mein.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

• W. Goethe

About the headline (FAQ)

View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with Orpheus. Musikalisches Taschenbuch für das Jahr 1841, Herausgegeben von August Schmidt, Zweiter Jahrgang, Wien: bei Franz Riedl's Witwe & Sohn, [1841], page 343.

Note: the Saloman score indicates that the text was "Mitgeteilt von J. P. Kaltenbaeck".

¹ von Goethe: "helle"

Text Authorship:

by Johann Paul Kaltenbaeck (1804 - 1861), no title [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 Walter von Goethe (1817 - 1885), "Als der Knabe fortzog", op. 20 (VI Altdeutsche Lieder), Heft 3 no. 5 [ vocal duet and piano ], Hannover: in der Hofmusikalienhandlung von Adolph Nagel [sung text checked 1 time]
by August Wilhelm Julius Rietz (1812 - 1877), "Er hat zwei klare Äuglein", op. 15 (Neun Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 2, published 1843 [ voice and piano ], Leipzig, Kistner [sung text not yet checked]
by Siegfried Saloman (1816 - 1899), "Altes Lied", op. 9 (6 Lieder für Mezzo-Sopran, Alt oder Bariton mit Pianoforte) no. 2, published 1844 [ voice and piano ], Hamburg, Schuberth und Co. [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor], Johann Winkler

This text was added to the website: 2025-10-08
Line count: 10
Word count: 48

He has two clear eyes

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

He has two [clear]¹ eyes,
  And red lips,
He holds my heart in captivity,
My yearning is for him
  At every single hour.

Maytime has passed away for us,
  That I truly regard as a small thing.
I know no greater suffering
Than that I have to be separated from him,
  [From him,] the most dearly beloved of mine.

About the headline (FAQ)

View original text (without footnotes)

Translations of titles:
"Als der Knabe fortzog" = "When the lad departed"
"Altes Lied" = "Old song"
"Er hat zwei klare Äuglein" = "He has two clear eyes"

¹ von Goethe: "bright"

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2025 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 Johann Paul Kaltenbaeck (1804 - 1861), no title
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2025-11-28
Line count: 10
Word count: 60