The castle | Their horses step over a slain peasant

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by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926)

Translation © by Knut W. Barde

[No title]

(Sung text for setting by V. Ullmann)

See original

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG FRE

Sie reiten über einen erschlagenen Bauer.
Er hat die Augen weit offen und Etwas spiegelt sich drin;
kein Himmel. Später heulen Hunde.
Es kommt also ein Dorf, endlich.
Und über den Hütten steigt steinern ein Schloß.
Breit hält sich ihnen die Brücke hin.
Groß wird das Tor. Hoch willkommt das Horn.
Horch: Poltern, Klirren und Hundegebell!
Wiehern im Hof, Hufschlag und Ruf.

Confirmed with Rainer Maria Rilke, Werke. Kommentiere Ausgabe in vier Bänden, herausgegeben von Manfred Engel, Ulrich Fülleborn, Horst Nalewski, August Stahl, Band I Gedichte 1895 bis 1910, herausgegeben von Manfred Engel und Ulrich Fülleborn, Frankfurt am Main: Insel Verlag, 1996, page 147.

Composition:

Viktor Ullmann

Die Weise von Liebe und Tod des Cornets Christoph Rilke, Erster Teil

Text Authorship:

by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926), no title, written 1899, appears in Die Weise von Liebe und Tod des Cornets Christoph Rilke, no. 13, first published 1906

See other settings of this text.

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

ENG English (Knut W. Barde) , "The castle", copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Ils passent à cheval sur un paysan", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: John Versmoren , Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor], Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 9
Word count: 62

The castle

(Sung text translation for setting by V. Ullmann)

See original

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

 Their horses step over a slain peasant. 
 He has his eyes wide open and something reflects in them;
 not the sky.  Later dogs bark.
 That means that they finally have come upon a village.
 And above the huts rises a castle of stone.
 The broad bridge offers itself to them. 
 The gate looms large. The high trumpet  sounds a welcome. 
 Listen: A racket, clattering, and dogs barking.
 Neighing in the courtyard,  hoof-beats and shouts.

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © by Knut W. Barde, (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.
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Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926), no title, written 1899, appears in Die Weise von Liebe und Tod des Cornets Christoph Rilke, no. 13, first published 1906
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This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 9
Word count: 75