Θέλω λέγειν Ἀτρείδας, θέλω δὲ Κάδμον ἄιδειν, ὁ βάρβιτος δὲ χορδαῖς ἔρωτα μοῦνον ἠχεῖ. ἤμειψα νεῦρα πρώην καὶ τὴν λύρην ἅπασαν· κἀγὼ μὲν ἦιδον ἄθλους Ἡρακλέους, λύρη δέ ἔρωτας ἀντεφώνει. χαίροιτε λοιπὸν ἡμῖν, ἥρωες· ἡ λύρη γάρ μόνους ἔρωτας ἄιδει.
Note (provided by Peter Rastl): this text might not be by Anacreon but by a later imitator. See Anacreontea quæ dicuntur secundum levesquii collationem codicis palatini recensuit, strophis suis restituit, stephani notis integris, aliorum selectis suisque, illustravit Dr. Fridericus Mehlhorn, gymnasii evangelici glogaviensis archididascalus, Glogaviæ, in Libraria Nova Guenteriana, 1825 ; also see Albin Lesky, Geschichte der griechischen Literatur, 3rd edition, 1971, Bern und München, page 210.
Show a transliteration: DIN | ISO 843
Note on TransliterationsText Authorship:
- possibly by Anacreon (c582BCE - c485BCE), "Εις λυραν", appears in Odes, no. 1 [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 Carl Loewe (1796 - 1869), "Εις λυραν", 1815?, also set in German (Deutsch) [sung text checked 1 time]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in Dutch (Nederlands), a translation by Carel Vosmaer (1826 - 1888) , "Op mijne lier" ; composed by Lodewijk Mortelmans.
- Also set in English, a translation by John Berkenhead, Sir (c1617 - 1679) ; composed by Henry Lawes.
- Also set in French (Français), a translation by Auguste Lacaussade (1815 - 1897) , "Sur sa lyre", appears in Poésies, Les épaves ; composed by Angèle Blot.
- Go to the text. [Note: the text is not in the database yet.]
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- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Franz Seraph Ritter von Bruchmann (1798 - 1867) [an adaptation] ; composed by Paul Mirsch, Franz Peter Schubert.
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Johann Heinrich Friedrich Meinecke (1745 - 1825) , "Die Leyer" ; composed by Carl Loewe.
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Eduard Mörike (1804 - 1875) , "Verschiedener Krieg", appears in Anakreontische Lieder, no. 2 [an adaptation] ; composed by Fritz Franz Schieri.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CHI Chinese (中文) (Dr Huaixing Wang) , "竖琴", copyright © 2024, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Thomas Moore) , "Ode I", appears in Odes of Anacreon, no. 1, first published 1800 [an adaptation]
- FRE French (Français) (Ernest Falconnet) , "Sur sa lyre", first published 1847
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 40
Ich will von den Atriden, Ich will von Kadmus singen: Doch meiner Leyer Saiten Ertönen nur vom Amor. Jüngst wechselt' ich die Saiten, Und dann die Leyer selber, Und wollte nun die Kämpfe Des Herkules besingen: Allein die Leyer tönte Ein Lied von Liebe wieder. So lebt denn wohl, ihr Helden! Denn meine Leyer singet Von nichts als Liebesgöttern.
About the headline (FAQ)
View text with all available footnotesConfirmed with Johann Heinrich Friedrich Meinecke: Anakreons Gedichte, nebst zwey andern anakreonitschen Gedichten, und den Oden der Sappho. Aus dem Griechischen in die Versarten des Originals übersetzt. Leipzig, bey Weidmanns Erben und Reich. 1776, page 21.
Text Authorship:
- by Johann Heinrich Friedrich Meinecke (1745 - 1825), "Die Leyer" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Greek (Ελληνικά) possibly by Anacreon (c582BCE - c485BCE)
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Carl Loewe (1796 - 1869), "An die Leier", 1815?, also set in Greek (Ελληνικά) [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (John H. Campbell) , "To the lyre", copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Amelia Maria Imbarrato) , "Alla lira", copyright © 2006, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- SPA Spanish (Español) (Elisa Rapado) , copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Peter Rastl [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2003-10-20
Line count: 13
Word count: 62