Nestle up to this little boat | Nestle up to this little boat

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by Christian Reinhold (1813 - 1856)

Translation © by Emily Ezust

Auf dem See

(Sung text for setting by J. Brahms)

See original

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: CAT DUT ENG ENG FRE

  An dies Schifflein schmiege,
Holder See, dich sacht!
Frommer Liebe Wiege,
Nimm sie wohl in Acht!

  Deine Wellen rauschen;
Rede nicht so laut!
Laß mich ihr nur lauschen,
Die mir viel vertraut!

 ... 

  Deine Wellen zittern
Von der Sonne Glut;
Ob sie's heimlich wittern,
Wie die Liebe tut?

  Weit und weiter immer
Rück den Strand hinaus!
Aus dem Himmel nimmer
Laß uns steigen aus!

  Fern von Menschenreden
Und von Menschensinn,
Als ein schwimmend Eden
Trag dies Schifflein hin!

Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1-2,4-6 of the original text.

First published in the periodical Morgenblatt, November 9, 1840 (No. 268).

Note to Lang's setting: Lang was working a text that Köstlin had copied out for her (Christian Reinhold Köstlin’s poetry manuscripts, Cod.hist. 4º 437, Fasz. 10a Nr. 1, poem [23], Württembergische Landesbibliothek, Stuttgart, Germany); in that copy the poem began with "Um." With the exception of "rauschen" in stanza 3 (which was Lang's error) all the other differences are also from that poetry manuscript.

Composition:

Johannes Brahms

Text Authorship:

by Christian Reinhold (1813 - 1856), no title, written 1840, appears in Gedichte, in Lieder und vermischte Gedichte, in Seelieder, no. 11, first published 1840

See other settings of this text.

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

CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "Op het meer (Kabbel langs dit scheepje)", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Emily Ezust) , "Nestle up to this little boat", copyright ©
ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2021, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Sur le lac", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 24
Word count: 95

Nestle up to this little boat

(Sung text translation for setting by J. Brahms)

See original

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

Nestle up to this little boat,
lovely lake, gently!
Cradle of holy love,
Take good care of it!

Your waves are roaring;
do not speak so loudly!
Just let me listen to her,
who is confiding so much to me!

 ... 

Your waves tremble
from the heat of the sun,
could it be they secretly sense 
how love works?

Farther and farther,
draw us away from the shore!
From this heaven
never let me descend!

Far from human speech
and human thoughts,
like a floating Eden,
carry this little boat away!

Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1-2,4-6 of the original text.

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © by Emily Ezust
Emily Ezust permits her translations to be reproduced without prior permission for printed (not online) programs to free-admission concerts only, provided the following credit is given:
Translation copyright © by Emily Ezust,
from the LiederNet Archive
For any other purpose, please write to the e-mail address below to request permission and discuss possible fees.
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Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) by Christian Reinhold (1813 - 1856), no title, written 1840, appears in Gedichte, in Lieder und vermischte Gedichte, in Seelieder, no. 11, first published 1840
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This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 24
Word count: 104