by
Emily Dickinson (1830 - 1886)
The murmur of a bee
Language: English
Our translations: FRE GER
The murmur of a bee
A witchcraft yieldeth me.
If any ask me why,
'T were easier to die
Than tell.
The red upon the hill
Taketh away my will;
If anybody sneer,
Take care, for God is here,
That's all.
The breaking of the day
Addeth to my degree;
If any ask me how,
Artist, who drew me so,
Must tell!
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Cees van As (1946 - 1986), "Mysteries", op. 2 no. 2, published 1982 [ female voice and piano ], from Mysteries, no. 2, Amsterdam: Donemus Publishing [sung text not yet checked]
- by Adolf Weiss (1891 - 1971), "Mysteries", 1938, published c1930 [ soprano and string quartet ], from Seven Songs for Soprano and String Quartet, no. 5 [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [
Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 15
Word count: 62
Le murmure de l'abeille
Language: French (Français) after the English
Le murmure de l'abeille --
De la sorcellerie, cela me semble.
Si quelqu'un me demande « Pourquoi » --
Ce serait plus facile de mourir
Que de le dire !
Le Rouge sur la Colline
Emporte ma volonté --
Si quelqu'un ricane,
Qu'il prenne garde -- car Dieu est proche --
C'est tout !
Le Lever du Jour --
Ajoute à mon Rang --
Si quelqu'un demande « comment » --
l'Artiste qui m'a dessinée ainsi --
Doit le dire !
About the headline (FAQ)
Translation of title "Mysteries" = "Mystères"
Text Authorship:
- Translation from English to French (Français) copyright © 2016 by Guy Laffaille, (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: licenses@email.lieder.example.net
Based on:
This text was added to the website: 2016-12-31
Line count: 15
Word count: 69