by Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962)
Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Julikinder
Language: German (Deutsch) 
Available translation(s): ENG FRE
Wir Kinder im Juli geboren
Lieben den Duft des weißen Jasmin,
Wir wandern an blühenden Gärten hin
Still und in schwere Träume verloren.
 
Unser Bruder ist der scharlachene Mohn,
Der brennt in flackernden Schauern
Im Ährenfeld und auf den heißen Mauern,
Dann treibt seine Blätter der Wind davon.
 
Wie eine Julinacht will unser Leben
Traumbeladen seinen Reigen vollenden,
Träumen und heißen Erntefesten ergeben,
Kränze von Ähren und rotem Mohn in den Händen.

Confirmed with Hermann Hesse, Sämtliche Werke, herausgegeben von Volker Michels, Band 10 Die Gedichte, bearbeitet von Peter Huber, Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag, 2002, pages 156-157.


Authorship:

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

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

  • ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "Children of July", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Enfants de juillet", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Research team for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2009-05-08
Line count: 12
Word count: 72

Children of July
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch) 
We children, born in July,
Love the scent of the white jasmine,
We wander along beside blooming gardens
Silent and lost in deep dreams.

Our brother is the scarlet poppy
That burns in flickering shivers
In the wheat-fields and upon the hot stone walls;
Then the wind scatters its petals.

Like a night in July, dream-laden, our life
Wishes to complete its roundelay,
Yielding to dreams and to fervent harvest festivals
With wreaths of wheat and red poppies in hand.

Authorship:

  • Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2013 by Sharon Krebs, (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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This text was added to the website: 2013-11-12
Line count: 12
Word count: 80