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Die Weise guter Zecher ist
Zu früh' und später Stunde,
Daß alter Wein im Becher ist,
Und neuer Witz im Munde --
Denn wo man Eins davon entbehrt,
Da ist das Andre auch nichts werth --
Das Eine steht zum Andern.
Je mehr wir uns vertieft im Wein,
Je höher steigt der Geist uns --
Der Bart der Weisheit trieft von Wein,
Die ganze Welt umkreis't uns,
Versunken ganz in Trunkenheit,
Und trunken in Versunkenheit,
In Wein, Gesang und Liebe!
Die Weisen beim Pokale stehn
Hoch über der Gemeinheit,
Wie Berge überm Thale stehn
In himmelhoher Reinheit --
Die Berge färbt des Himmels Licht,
Uns wiederstrahlt das Angesicht
Im Glanz der vollen Becher!
...
Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1-3 of the original text.
Composition:
- Set to music by Anton Grigoryevich Rubinstein (1829 - 1894), "Die Weise guter Zecher ist", op. 34 no. 5 (1854), stanzas 1-3 [ voice and piano ], from Zwölf Lieder von Mirza-Schaffy, no. 5, also set in Russian (Русский)
Text Authorship:
- by Friedrich Martin von Bodenstedt (1819 - 1892), no title, appears in Die Lieder des Mirza-Schaffy, in Lieder zum Lobe des Weines und irdischer Glückseligkeit, no. 3
Based on:
- a text in Azerbaijani (Azərbaycan dili) by Mirzə Şəfi Vazeh (1794 - 1852) [text unavailable]
See other settings of this text.
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2024, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Michael P Rosewall) , copyright © 2024, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , appears in Clair-obscur, first published 1954, copyright © 2016, (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: 2003-11-08
Line count: 35
Word count: 192
The technique of a good drinker is,
In the early and late hours,
To have old wine in the glass
And new witticisms in the mouth –
For if you lack one of these,
The other isn’t worth anything –
Each one depends on the other.
The deeper we are into our wine,
The higher our spirits rise –
The beard of wisdom drips with wine,
The entire world that surrounds us,
Completely sunken in drunkenness,
And drunken in sunkenness,
In wine, song and love!
Wise ones stand by their goblets,
High above life’s baseness,
Like mountains towering over the valleys
In the purity of heaven on high –
The mountains are colored by heavens light
And our faces reflect that
In the radiance of a full goblet!
...
Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1-3 of the original text.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2024 by Michael P Rosewall, (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 Friedrich Martin von Bodenstedt (1819 - 1892), no title, appears in Die Lieder des Mirza-Schaffy, in Lieder zum Lobe des Weines und irdischer Glückseligkeit, no. 3
Based on:
- a text in Azerbaijani (Azərbaycan dili) by Mirzə Şəfi Vazeh (1794 - 1852) [text unavailable]
Go to the general single-text view
This text was added to the website: 2024-07-11
Line count: 35
Word count: 212