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Ich warf eine Rose ins Meer, eine blühende Rose ins grüne Meer. Und weil die Sonne schien, [Sonne]1 schien, sprang das Licht hinterher, mit [hundert]2 zitternden Zehen hinterher. Als die erste Welle kam, [wollte]3 die Rose, meine Rose ertrinken. Als die zweite sie sanft auf ihre Schultern nahm, mußte das Licht, das Licht ihr zu Füßen sinken. Da faßte die dritte sie am Saum, und das Licht sprang hoch, zitternd hoch, wie zur Wehr; aber hundert tanzende Blütenblätter wiegten sich rot, rot, rot um mich her, und es tanzte mein Boot, und mein Schatten auf dem Schaum, und das grüne Meer, [das Meer]4 - -
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)Confirmed with Richard Dehmel, Gesammelte Werke in drei Bänden. Zweiter Band, S. Fischer Verlag, Berlin, 1913, pages 48-49.
1 Geutebrück, Morý: "die Sonne"2 Morý: "tausend"
3 Morý: "da wollte"
4 Geutebrück: "Meer"
Text Authorship:
- by Richard Fedor Leopold Dehmel (1863 - 1920), "Wellentanzlied", appears in Weib und Welt [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 Robert Georg Ernst Geutebrück (1893 - 1944), "Tanzlied", op. 1 (Lieder und Gesänge) no. 5, published <<1916? [ voice and piano ], Wien: C Schmidl & Comp. Nachf. Otto Keerl [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Eduard Künneke (1885 - 1953), "Wellentanzlied", op. 9 no. 1 [ soprano and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Ján Móry (1892 - 1978), "Wellentanzlied", op. 16 (Drei Lieder) no. 3 [ voice and piano ], Berlin: Verlag von Ries & Erler [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Ernest Vietor (flourished 1905-1930), "Wellentanzlied", op. 17 no. 1 (1939-40) [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Chanson de la danse des vagues", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor] , Harry Joelson
This text was added to the website: 2007-07-04
Line count: 16
Word count: 104
I threw a rose into the sea, a blooming rose into the green sea. And because the sun shone, [sun]1 shone, The light leapt after it, after it with a [hundred]2 trembling toes. As the first wave came, the rose, my rose was about to drown. As the second [wave] gently took it upon its shoulders, the light, the light was forced to sink down at [my rose's] feet. Thereupon the third one caught it at its edge, and the light sprang up, tremblingly up, as if in defense; but a hundred dancing blossom-petals swayed red, red, red about me and my boat danced, and my shadow upon the foam and the green sea, [the sea]3 - -
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)Translations of titles:
"Tanzlied" = "Dancing song"
"Wellentanzlied" = "The waves' dancing song"
2 Morý: "thousand"
3 Geutebrück: "sea"
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.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net
Based on:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Richard Fedor Leopold Dehmel (1863 - 1920), "Wellentanzlied", appears in Weib und Welt
This text was added to the website: 2025-01-02
Line count: 16
Word count: 117