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... O, wär' mein Lieb ein Holderstrauch, Wie der, voll Blumen jeder Ast! O, wär' ich selbst ein Vögelein! Auf seinen Zweigen hielt' ich Rast. Wie wollt' ich trauern, säh' ich ihn Entblättern von Herbst und Winters Weh'n; Wie singen, sähe blüh'nd und grün Ich wieder ihn im Lenze stehn! O, wär' mein Lieb' die rote Ros', Die auf des Schlosses Mauer glüht! O, wär' ich selbst der Tropfen Thau, Den man im Kelch der Rose sieht! An ihrer Brust die ganze Nacht Läg' ich, und schwelgt' in trunkner Lust; Bis Morgens, wo der Tag erwacht, Läg' ich an ihrer süßen Brust. ...
Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 3-4,1-2 of the original text.
Note: Freiligrath has divided his translation into four stanzas, where Burns' original is usually published in two. He has also rearranged the stanzas, so Burns' stanza 1 corresponds to stanzas 3 and 4 of Freiligrath.
Composition:
- Set to music by Frederick Brandeis (1835 - 1899), "O wär mein Lieb ein Holderstrauch", op. 43 no. 1, published 1877, stanzas 3-4,1-2 [ voice and piano ], from Four Songs, no. 1, New York: Martens Brothers, also set in Scottish (Scots)
Text Authorship:
- by Ferdinand Freiligrath (1810 - 1876), no title [an adaptation]
Based on:
- a text in Scottish (Scots) by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), "O were my Love yon lilac fair"
See other settings of this text.
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor], Johann Winkler
This text was added to the website: 2011-04-07
Line count: 16
Word count: 104
... Oh, si mon amour était un lilas Dont chaque branche serait pleine de fleurs violettes. Et si j'étais un petit oiseau, Sur ses branches je ferais une pause. Comme j'étais triste quand j'ai vu Ses feuilles arrachées par le souffle de l'automne, Comme j'ai chanté, quand en fleurs et vert je l'ai vu À nouveau se tenir au printemps. Oh, si mon amour était la rose rouge, Qui brille sur le mur du château ! Oh, si j'étais la goutte de rosée Que l'on voit dans la corolle de la rose ! Si sur son sein la nuit entière Je me posais et faisais silence enivré par le plaisir Jusqu'au matin, où le jour s'éveillerait, Si je me posais sur son sein. ...
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Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 3-4,1-2 of the original text.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to French (Français) copyright © 2015 by Guy Laffaille, (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.
Based on:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Ferdinand Freiligrath (1810 - 1876), no title [an adaptation]
Based on:
- a text in Scottish (Scots) by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), "O were my Love yon lilac fair"
Go to the general single-text view
This text was added to the website: 2015-07-27
Line count: 16
Word count: 120