Man is just a dot in the structure of this world

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by Johann Hoheisel (1767 - 1841)

Translation © by Malcolm Wren

Ein Punkt nur ist der Mensch in diesem...

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG FRE

Ein Punkt nur ist der Mensch in [diesem]¹ Weltgebäude;
Doch oft auch eine Sonn' im eigenen System,
Ein reicher Mittelpunkt, aus dem
Sich Wärm' und Licht und Freude 
Beseligend auf das ergießt,
Womit er in Verbindung ist.

Spendou! so hall's in unserem Verein,
Spendou! so dank' ihm jeder Witwe Ruf,
Spendou! Spendou! [war]² dieser Sonnenschein,
Als er das Institut der Witwen schuf.

About the headline (FAQ)

View original text (without footnotes)
¹ Schubert, first edition: "unsrem"
² Schubert, first edition: "ward"

Text Authorship:

by Johann Hoheisel (1767 - 1841), no title, written 1816 [author's text not yet checked 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), "Rezitativ und Chor", subtitle: "Basso, Chor der Witwen (SSA)", D 472 no. 3 (1816), first performed 1816 [ bass, chorus, and orchestra ], from cantata Kantate zu Ehren von Josef Spendou, no. 3, confirmed with a CD booklet [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Malcolm Wren) , copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Récitatif et chœur", copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Malcolm Wren [Guest Editor] , Peter Rastl [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2017-10-16
Line count: 10
Word count: 64

Man is just a dot in the structure of...

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

Man is just a dot in the structure of this world;
Yet he is often also a sun in his own system,
A rich middle point, from whom
Warmth and light and joy
Are poured out in blessings on all that
With which he is connected.

Spendou! This is what is heard in our company,
Spendou! This is how he is thanked by each widow's cry,
Spendou! Spendou! He was the sunshine
When he created the Institute for Widows.

About the headline (FAQ)

Translation of title "Rezitativ und Chor" = "Recitative and chorus"

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.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) by Johann Hoheisel (1767 - 1841), no title, written 1816
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2017-10-18
Line count: 10
Word count: 79