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Hirschlein ging im Wald spazieren, Trieb allda sein artig Spiel, Daß er stets den andern Thieren Als ein lust'ger Freund gefiel. Laufen konnt' er, konnte springen Ueber Graben, Heck' und Bach, Mit der frühsten Vögel Singen Ward auch er zum Spielen wach. Aber hinter Haselsprossen Barg sich Jäger und sein Hund, Hat nur gar zu gut geschossen, Schoß das arme Hirschlein wund. Da sich's schnell zusammenraffte, Bangend lief durch Thal und Hain, Rief der Jäger laut, und klaffte [sic] Phylax spottend hinterdrein. Hirschlein wollt's den Freunden klagen, Aber Alle liefen fort, Ließen's wunde Hirschlein zagen, Suchte jeder sichern Ort. Hirschlein kann nun nicht mehr springen, Thut die Wund' ihm gar zu weh', Wenn die Vögel wieder singen, Legt sich's weinend in den Klee.
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Friedrich de La Motte-Fouqué, Alwin: ein Roman in zwei Bänden von Pellegrin, Zweiter Band, Berlin: bei Friedrich Braunes 1808, pages 223-224
Authorship
- by Friedrich Heinrich Karl, Freiherr de La Motte-Fouqué (1777 - 1843), no title, appears in Alwin: ein Roman in zwei Bänden von Pellegrin [author's text checked 1 time 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 Peter Cornelius (1824 - 1874), "Hirschlein ging im Wald spazieren", 1859 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Axel Liebmann (1849 - 1876), "Fröhlicher Kontrapunkt" [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2016-01-11
Line count: 24
Word count: 123
Little deer promenaded in the forest, There he played his agreeable games, So that the other animals always Liked him as a merry companion. He could run, he could leap Over hedge, ditch and brook; With the singing of the earliest birds He, too, awakened to play. But behind the hazelnut scions A hunter concealed himself with his dog; The hunter shot only too well, Wounded the poor little deer. When the deer quickly gathered himself, Ran anxiously through valley and grove, The hunter called loudly, and [the dog] Phylax yelped mockingly after him. The little deer wanted to tell his friends of his woe, But all of them ran away, They left the wounded little deer to his distress, Each of them sought a safe place. The little deer can no longer leap now, His wound is all too painful, When the birds sing again, It lies down in the clover and weeps.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translation of title "Fröhlicher Kontrapunkt" = "Joyful counterpoint"Authorship
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2016 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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- a text in German (Deutsch) by Friedrich Heinrich Karl, Freiherr de La Motte-Fouqué (1777 - 1843), no title, appears in Alwin: ein Roman in zwei Bänden von Pellegrin
This text was added to the website: 2016-01-11
Line count: 24
Word count: 154