À ceux qui se sont tus | Ô la folie de la grande ville, quand le soir

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by Georg Trakl (1887 - 1914)

Translation © by Pierre Mathé

An die Verstummten

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG FRE

O, der Wahnsinn der großen Stadt, da am Abend
An schwarzer Mauer verkrüppelte Bäume starren,
Aus silberner Maske der Geist des Bösen schaut;
Licht mit magnetischer Geißel die steinerne Nacht verdrängt.
O, das versunkene Läuten der Abendglocken.

Hure, die in eisigen Schauern ein totes Kindlein gebärt.
Rasend peitscht Gottes Zorn die Stirne des Besessenen,
Purpurne Seuche, Hunger, der grüne Augen zerbricht.
O, das gräßliche Lachen des Golds.

Aber stille blutet in dunkler Höhle stummere Menschheit,
Fügt aus harten Metallen das erlösende Haupt.

Text Authorship:

by Georg Trakl (1887 - 1914), "An die Verstummten" [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 Ernst Křenek (1900 - 1991), "An die Verstummten", WoO. 126 (1931) [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

ENG English (Bertram Kottmann) , "To the silenced", copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "À ceux qui se sont tus", copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2014-07-22
Line count: 11
Word count: 82

À ceux qui se sont tus

Language: French (Français) after the German (Deutsch)

Ô la folie de la grande ville, quand le soir
Des arbres estropiés  figés contre un mur noir,
L'esprit du mal observe à travers un masque d'argent ;
La lumière avec son fouet magnétique évince la nuit de pierre.
Ô le tintement naufragé des cloches du soir.

Putain, qui dans un frisson glacé enfante un enfant mort,
La fulgurante colère de Dieu cingle le front du possédé,
Épidémie pourpre, faim, l'œil vert se brise.
Ô, l'atroce rire de l'or.

Mais dans une sombre tanière une humanité muette saigne,
La tête obtempère se délivrant de durs métaux.

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to French (Français) copyright © 2017 by Pierre Mathé, (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:

a text in German (Deutsch) by Georg Trakl (1887 - 1914), "An die Verstummten"
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2017-09-27
Line count: 11
Word count: 95