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

O schau, sie schweben wieder
Language: German (Deutsch) 
Available translation(s): ENG FRE
O schau, sie schweben wieder
Wie leise Melodien
Vergessener schöner Lieder
Am blauen Himmel hin!

Kein Herz kann sie verstehen,
Dem nicht auf langer Fahrt
Ein Wissen von allen Wehen
Und Freuden des Wanderns ward.

Ich liebe die Weißen, Losen
Wie Sonne, Meer und Wind,
Weil sie der Heimatlosen
Schwestern und Engel sind.

About the headline (FAQ)

Confirmed with Hermann Hesse. Sämtliche Werke, herausgegeben von Volker Michels, Band 10 Die Gedichte, bearbeitet von Peter Huber, Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag, 2002, page 123.


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) , "White clouds", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Researcher for this text: Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2007-05-31
Line count: 12
Word count: 53

White clouds
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch) 
Oh look, they drift again
Like quiet melodies
Of forgotten, beautiful songs
Along the blue heavens!

No heart can understand them
That has not, upon a long journey,
Acquired a knowledge
Of all the pains and joys of wandering.

I love the white, diffuse ones
Like sun, ocean, and wind,
Because they are the sisters and angels
Of those people who are homeless.

Authorship:

  • Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2014 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: 2014-03-25
Line count: 12
Word count: 63