Attention! Some of this material is not in the public domain.
It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. It is also illegal to reprint copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator.
If you wish to reprint translations, please use the Reprint Basket (upper right hand corner).
Reminder: You must always use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.
Die Sterne überm Tale stehn, Das Mühlrad nur man [höret]1, Zum kranken Müller muß ich gehn, Er hat den Freund [begehret]2. Ich steig' hinab den Felsenstein, Es donnert dumpf die Mühle, Und eine Glocke tönt darein: "Die Arbeit ist am Ziele!" In Müllers Kammer tret' ich [nun]3: Starr liegt das Greisen Hülle. Es stockt sein Herz, die Pulse ruhn, Und draußen auch wird's stille. Die treuen Lieben weinen sehr, Still bleibt sein Herz und kühle; Die Wasser fließen wohl daher, Still aber steht die Mühle.
About the headline (FAQ)
View text without footnotesConfirmed with Kerners Werke, Zweiter Teil, Gedichte, ed. Raimund Pissin, Berlin, Leipzig, Wien, Stuttgart: Deutsches Verlagshaus Bong & Co., 1914, page 28.
1 Vieuxtemps: "hört"2 Vieuxtemps: "begehrt"
3 Vieuxtemps: "ein"
Text Authorship:
- by Justinus (Andreas Christian) Kerner (1786 - 1862), "Der tote Müller", appears in Gedichte, in Die lyrischen Gedichte [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 Sigismund Thalberg (1812 - 1871), "Der todte Müller", op. 13 (Sechs deutsche Lieder, Drittes Heft) no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Henri Vieuxtemps (1820 - 1881), "Der tote Müller", published 1976 [ voice and piano ], from 5 mélodies inédites, no. 5, Éd. Chappell, also set in French (Français) [sung text checked 1 time]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in French (Français), a translation by Paul Wachsmann ; composed by Henri Vieuxtemps.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "The dead miller", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , copyright © 2021, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 90
The stars stand over the valley, One only hears the millwheel. I must go to the sick miller, He wished to see his friend. I climb down the rocky crags, The mill thunders dully, And a bell sounds: "The [life]work is at its end!" I step into the miller's chamber [now]1: The old man's body lies still and rigid. His heart falters, his pulse is at rest, And outdoors, too, it becomes quiet. His faithful loved ones weep copiously, His heart remains quiet and cool; The waters continue to flow along, But the mill stands motionless.
1 omitted by Vieuxtemps
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2013 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 Justinus (Andreas Christian) Kerner (1786 - 1862), "Der tote Müller", appears in Gedichte, in Die lyrischen Gedichte
This text was added to the website: 2013-09-30
Line count: 16
Word count: 97