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Hör ich seine Weise flüstern Meinen Bambus in der Nacht, Hab ich bang und reiselüstern Manche Stunde hell gewacht. Dringlich zieht michs fort von allen Den gewohnten Lebenskreisen, Weg zu fliegen, weg zu fallen, Ins Unendliche zu reisen. Einst vor tausend Jahren gab es Eine Heimat, einen Garten, Wo im Beet des Vogelgrabes Aus dem Schnee die Krokus starrten. Vogelschwingen möcht ich breiten Aus dem Bann, der mich begrenzt, Zu dem Beet und zu den Zeiten, Deren Gold mir heut noch glänzt.
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Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada, but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.
Confirmed with Hermann Hesse, Gesammelte Werke, Erster Band (Stufen, Die späten Gedichte, Frühe Prosa, Peter Camenzind), Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag, 1970, page 152. This is the first version (erste Fassung). The second version can be found here.
Authorship
- by Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962), "Einst vor tausend Jahren" [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 Bernhard Rövenstrunck (b. 1920), "Hör ich seine Weise flüstern", 1962 [ mezzo-soprano and guitar ], from Zwei Lieder für Mezzosopran und Gitarre nach Gedichten von Hermann Hesse, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
Set in a modified version by Lothar Hundertmark, as Mark Lothar, Ernst Ludwig Leitner, Hildegard Quiel.
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2009-05-29
Line count: 16
Word count: 82
When I hear my bamboo whispering Its melody in the night, Anxious and yearning to travel I have lain wide awake many an hour. Urgently I am drawn away From all the accustomed circles of life, To fly away, to fall away, To travel into the infinite. Once a thousand years ago there was A homeland, a garden, Where in the flower bed of the bird’s grave The crocuses peeped out of the snow. I would like to spread the wings of a bird [And fly] out of the spell that restricts me To the flowerbed and to the times Whose gold still glints for me today.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translations of title(s):
"Hör ich seine Weise flüstern" = "When I hear whispering its melody"
"Einst vor tausend Jahren" = "Once a thousand years ago"
Authorship
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2019 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.
Contact:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962), "Einst vor tausend Jahren"
This text was added to the website: 2019-10-18
Line count: 16
Word count: 107