×
You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.
Some of the following material is not in the public domain.
It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. Printing copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator is also illegal.
You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.
For more information, contact us at:
Before writing, please read the instructions below the translations (under Authorship). Always include the names of the translators in your email if you wish to reprint something!
by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)
Translation © by Laura Prichard
Aus wie vielen Elementen
Language: German (Deutsch)
Aus wie vielen Elementen Soll ein echtes Lied sich nähren, Daß es Laien gern empfinden, Meister es mit Freuden hören? Liebe sei vor allen Dingen Unser Thema, wenn wir singen; Kann sie gar das Lied durchdringen, [Wird's um desto besser]1 klingen. Dann muß Klang der Gläser tönen Und Rubin des Weins erglänzen: Denn für Liebende, für Trinker [Winkt man mit den schönsten]2 Kränzen. Waffenklang wird auch gefodert, Daß auch die Drommete schmettre; Daß, wenn Glück zu Flammen lodert, [Sich im Sieg der]3 Held vergöttre. Dann zuletzt ist unerläßlich, Daß der Dichter manches hasse; Was unleidlich ist und häßlich, [Nicht wie Schönes leben]4 lasse. Weiß der Sänger, dieser Viere Urgewalt'gen Stoff zu mischen, [Hafis gleich wird er die]5 Völker Ewig freuen und erfrischen.
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)1 Zelter: "Desto besser wird es"
2 Zelter: "Warten immergüne"
3 Zelter: "Siegreich unsern"
4 Zelter: "Leben nicht wie Schönes"
5 Zelter: "Wird er aller Lande"
Authorship
- by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832), "Elemente", written 1814, appears in West-östlicher Divan, in 1. Buch des Sängers -- Moganni Nameh [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 Karl Friedrich Zelter (1758 - 1832), "Liederstoff", 1815, published 1826 [four-part men's chorus a cappella], from Tafel-Lieder für Männerstimmen. Heft V. von Carl Fried. Zelter, no. 1, Berlin, T. Trautwein [ sung text verified 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Laura Prichard) , "Elements", copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Éléments", copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Melanie Trumbull
Text added to the website: 2008-12-23 00:00:00
Last modified: 2017-09-09 22:33:11
Line count: 24
Word count: 122
Elements
Language: English after the German (Deutsch)
From how many elements Should a sincere song be built up, So that laymen will feel pleasure [when hearing it, and] Masters will hear it with joy? Love, before all other things, shall be Our subject, when we sing; If it can permeate the whole song, It’ll sound even better. Then the clink of glasses must sound And the ruby color of the wine must gleam: Because for lovers, for drinkers, One beckons with the most beautiful rims1. The sound of weapons is also in demand [in songs], And also, the trumpet2 should blare out; So that when happiness flares up into flames, The hero will be deified in victory. Then finally, it is obligatory For the poet to include many hated things; Something intolerable and ugly Should not be allowed to live as though it were beautiful. If the singer knows, [using] these four elements, How to mix this all-powerful material, Like Hafez3, he will cause the people To rejoice and be rejuvenated forever.
View original text (without footnotes)
1 literally “wreaths” or “rings”, but here referring poetically to the rims of the wine glasses.
2 first appears in German writing as “dromette” in 1470, and in Martin Luther 1522 translation Isaiah 18:3 as “drommete”; modern spelling is Trompete(n)
3 Hafez: an influential and much-memorized Persian poet (living c1326-c1390) whose ghazals and proverbs consider love, faith, and exposing hypocrisy.
1 literally “wreaths” or “rings”, but here referring poetically to the rims of the wine glasses.
2 first appears in German writing as “dromette” in 1470, and in Martin Luther 1522 translation Isaiah 18:3 as “drommete”; modern spelling is Trompete(n)
3 Hafez: an influential and much-memorized Persian poet (living c1326-c1390) whose ghazals and proverbs consider love, faith, and exposing hypocrisy.
Authorship
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2016 by Laura Prichard, (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.
Contact:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832), "Elemente", written 1814, appears in West-östlicher Divan, in 1. Buch des Sängers -- Moganni Nameh
Text added to the website: 2016-04-04 00:00:00
Last modified: 2016-04-04 22:41:55
Line count: 24
Word count: 165