Bekränzet die Tonnen,
Und zapfet mir Wein;
Der Mai ist begonnen,
Wir müssen uns freun!
Die Winde verstummen,
Und athmen noch kaum;
Die Bienlein umsummen
Den blühenden Baum.

 ... 

Note: This is the version as published by Voß. The initial version of this poem, according to Hölty's manuscript, has two more stanzas and is quite different (see below).

Composition:

Set to music by Josephine Lang (1815 - 1880), "Trinklied im Maÿ", stanza 1 [ voice and piano ], unpublished, undated

Text Authorship:

• by Ludwig Heinrich Christoph Hölty (1748 - 1776), "Trinklied im Mai", written 1775, first published 1777

See other settings of this text.

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

• CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "Cant bàquic al maig", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "Drinklied in Mei", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• ENG English (Malcolm Wren) , "Drinking song in May", copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Chanson à boire en mai", copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor] , Peter Rastl [Guest Editor] , Johann Winkler

This text was added to the website: 2004-01-12
Line count: 48
Word count: 174