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Mutter geht durch ihre Kammern Räumt die Schränke ein und aus, Sucht, und weiß nicht was, mit Jammern, Findet nichts, als leeres Haus. Leeres Haus! O Wort der Klage, Dem, der einst ein holdes Kind Drin gegängelt hat am Tage, Drin gewiegt in Nächten lind. Wieder grünen wohl die Buchen, Wieder kommt der Sonne Licht, Aber, Mutter, laß' Dein Suchen, Wieder kommt Dein Liebes nicht. Und wenn Abendlüfte fächeln, Vater heim zum Herde kehrt, Regt sich's fast in ihm, wie Lächeln, Dran doch gleich die Thräne zehrt. Vater weiß, in seinen Zimmern Findet er die Todesruh', Hört nur bleicher Mutter Wimmern, Und kein Kindlein lacht ihm zu.
About the headline (FAQ)
View text with all available footnotesConfirmed with Neue romantische Unterhaltungs-Bibliothek für die gebildete und elegante Lesewelt. I. Band. Undine, eine Erzählung. Von Friedrich Baron de la Motte Fouqué. Wien 1814. In der F. Haas'schen Buchhandlung, page 97; and with Die Jahreszeiten. Eine Vierteljahresschrift für romantische Dichtungen. Herausgegeben von Friedrich Baron de la Motte Fouqué u.a.m. 1811. Frühlings-Heft. Berlin, bei J. E. Hitzig, pages 108-109.
Text Authorship:
- by Friedrich Heinrich Karl, Freiherr de La Motte-Fouqué (1777 - 1843), no title, appears in Undine, first published 1811 [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 Franz Peter Schubert (1797 - 1828), "Lied", D 373 (1816), published 1895 [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "Cançó", copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "Lied D.373 'Het lege huis'", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Malcolm Wren) , copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Chant", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Richard Morris , Peter Rastl [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 20
Word count: 107
The mother goes through her rooms, She rifles through the cupboards, She is searching, and she doesn't know for what, she wails but She finds nothing but an empty house. Empty house! Oh lamentable word For someone who once had a beautiful child To dangle there during the day, Who used to rock it gently to sleep there at night. The beech trees are already turning green again, The sun's light is coming back, But, mother, put an end to your search, Your loved one is not coming back. And when evening breezes stir, The father returns home to the hearth, Something moves within him, like a smile, But then suddenly tears take over. The father knows that in his rooms He will find a deathly calm, All he can hear is the pale mother's whimpering And no child is going to smile back at him.
About the headline (FAQ)
View text with all available footnotesTranslation of title "Lied" = "Song"
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2017 by Malcolm Wren, (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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Based on:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Friedrich Heinrich Karl, Freiherr de La Motte-Fouqué (1777 - 1843), no title, appears in Undine, first published 1811
This text was added to the website: 2017-07-16
Line count: 20
Word count: 146