Ein Tännlein grünet, wo,
Wer weiß, im Walde,
Ein Rosenstrauch, wer sagt,
In welchem Garten?
Sie sind erlesen schon,
Denk' es, o Seele!
Auf deinem Grab zu wurzeln
Und zu wachsen.

Zwei schwarze Rößlein weiden
Auf der Wiese,
Sie kehren heim zur Stadt
In [muntern]1 Sprüngen.
Sie werden schrittweis gehn
Mit deiner Leiche;
[Vielleicht, vielleicht noch eh']2
An ihren Hufen
Das Eisen los wird,
Das ich blitzen sehe!

About the headline (FAQ)

View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with Eduard Mörike, Gedichte, Dramatisches, Erzählendes, Zweite, erweiterte Auflage, Stuttgart: J.G. Cotta'sche Buchhandlung Nachf., 1961, page 103.

¹ Pfitzner: "muntren"
² Distler: "Vielleicht noch, vielleicht eh'"; Rheinberger: "Vielleicht noch eh'"

Authorship:

• by Eduard Mörike (1804 - 1875), "Denk es, o Seele!" [author's text checked 2 times against a primary source]

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

• by Matti Borg (b. 1956), "Denk' es, o Seele", 1997-1998, published 1998 [ mixed chorus a cappella ], from 12 Gedichte von Mörike, no. 10 [sung text not yet checked]
• by W. Colsmann , "Denk es, o Seele" [sung text not yet checked]
• by Gustav Dippe (1858 - 1914), "Denk es, o Seele", op. 17 (Drei Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 3, published 1901 [ voice and piano ], Berlin, Challier & Co.  [sung text not yet checked]
• by Hugo Distler (1908 - 1942), "Denk es, o Seele!", op. 19 (Mörike-Chorliederbuch), Heft 1 no. 21 (1939) [ chorus ] [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Felix (August Bernhard) Draeseke (1835 - 1913), "Denk es, o Seele!", op. 81 (Vier Gesänge) no. 4, published 1906 [sung text not yet checked]
• by Robert Franz (1815 - 1892), "Ein Tännlein grünet wo", op. 27 (Sechs Lieder) no. 6, published 1856 [ voice and piano ], Leipzig, Senff [sung text not yet checked]
• by Hans Gál (1890 - 1987), "Denk' es, o Seele", 1911 [ voice and piano ], unpublished [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Marguerite de Geymuller (1897 - 1979), "Denk es, O Seele", 1951, rev. 1975 [sung text not yet checked]
• by Adalbert von Goldschmidt (1848 - 1906), "Denk' es, o Seele", published 1893 [ voice and piano ], from Neue Lieder und Gesänge, no. 11, Leipzig, Breitkopf & Härtel [sung text not yet checked]
• by Hermann Haller (1914 - 2002), "Böhmisches Volkslied" [sung text not yet checked]
• by Carl Hauer (1828 - 1892), "Denk es, O Seele!" [sung text not yet checked]
• by Carl Hauer (1828 - 1892), "Denk' es, o Seele", published 1877 [ voice and piano ], Berlin, Paez [sung text not yet checked]
• by Martin Herchenröder (b. 1961), "Denk' es, o Seele", 1989, first performed 1990, from Lieder nach Mörike-Gedichten, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
• by (Leopold) Heinrich (Picot de Peccaduc), Freiherr von Herzogenberg (1843 - 1900), "Untreue", op. 26 ([Acht] Lieder und Romanzen für vierstimmigen Frauenchor a capella, oder mit Begleitung des Pianoforte) no. 7, published 1879 [ four-part women's chorus a cappella (or with piano) ], Leipzig, Rieter-Biedermann [sung text not yet checked]
• by Thomas Holland-Moritz (b. 1948), "Denk' es, o Seele", published 1999 [ soprano and organ ] [sung text not yet checked]
• by Robert Kahn (1865 - 1951), "Denk' es, o Seele", op. 12 (Fünf Gesänge) no. 5 (1890), published 1891 [ low voice and piano ], Leipzig, Leuckart [sung text not yet checked]
• by Karl von Kaskel (1866 - 1943), "Denk es, o Seele", op. 8 (Vier Lieder für 1 hohe Singstimme mit Pianoforte ) no. 1, published 1901 [ high voice and piano ], Leipzig, Herrn. Seemann Nachf. [sung text not yet checked]
• by (Karl) Emil Kauffmann (1836 - 1909), "Denk es, O Seele!", op. 6 (Vier Lieder) no. 3, published 1866 [ voice and piano ], Stuttgart, Zumsteeg  [sung text not yet checked]
• by Hans Joachim Kauffmann (b. 1926), "Denk' es, O Seele", 1939 [sung text not yet checked]
• by Wilhelm Killmayer (1927 - 2017), "Denk' es, o Seele", 2003/4, published 2014, first performed 2004 [ tenor and piano ], from Mörike-Lieder für Tenor und Klavier, no. 2, Mainz, London, Berlin, Madrid, New York, Paris, Prague, Tokyo, Toronto: Schott Music [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Stephan Krehl (1864 - 1924), "Denk es, o Seele" [sung text not yet checked]
• by Roger Matscheizik (b. 1960), "Ein Tännlein grünet wo", 1996-2002 [ baritone or mezzo-soprano and organ ], from Denk es, o Seele!, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
• by Wilhelm Petersen (1890 - 1957), "Denk es, o Seele", op. posth. 10 (Drei Lieder) no. 3 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
• by Hans Erich Pfitzner (1869 - 1949), "Denk' es, o Seele!", op. 30 (4 Lieder) no. 3 [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Emil Nikolaus von Rezniček (1860 - 1945), "Denk' es, o Seele" [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger (1839 - 1901), "Ein Tännlein grünet, wo", op. 31 (Fünf Lieder für gemischten Chor) no. 5, published 1870 [ mixed chorus ], note: in a 1990 edition the title was given as "Denk es o Seele!" but this has since been fixed [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Manfred Schlenker (b. 1926), "Denk es, o Seele", published 2005 [ chorus ], from Sechs Mörike-Chorlieder, no. 5 [sung text not yet checked]
• by Heinrich Spitta (1902 - 1972), "Denk es, o Seele", 1945, published 1987 [ chorus ], from Denk es, o Seele, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
• by Wolfgang Ulrich (1924 - 1995), "Denk' es, o Seele", 1983 [sung text not yet checked]
• by (Olav) Fartein Valen (1887 - 1952), "Denk' es, o Seele!", op. 39 (Zwei Lieder) no. 1 (1941), published 1954 [sung text not yet checked]
• by Lienhard "Lieni" Wegmann (1918 - 1986), "Denk es, O Seele" [sung text not yet checked]
• by Oscar Weil (1839? - 1921), "Denk es, o Seele", op. 7 no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
• by Hugo Wolf (1860 - 1903), "Denk' es, o Seele!", from Mörike-Lieder, no. 39 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

• CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• ENG English (Jakob Kellner) , "A little fir-tree flourishes", copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Un petit sapin s'épanouit", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• FRE French (Français) (Stéphane Goldet) (Pierre de Rosamel) , "Songes à cela, o mon âme !", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , "Pensaci, o anima!", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• ITA Italian (Italiano) (Paolo Pupillo) , "Pensaci, o anima", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• SPA Spanish (Español) (Martin Zubiria) , "Piensa en ello, alma mía", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this text: Jakob Kellner , Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 18
Word count: 68

Un piccolo abete verdeggia, dove,
chissà! nel bosco,
un cespuglio di rose, chi dice
in quale giardino?
Sono già stati scelti,
pensaci, o anima,
per metter radici sulla tua tomba
e per accrescersi.

Due neri cavallini pascolano
sul prato,
tornano a casa in città
saltando (allegri).
Andranno al passo
con la tua salma;
forse, forse ancor prima
dai loro zoccoli
si staccherà il ferro
che vedo brillare !