Das ist ein Wandern, wenn der Schnee
Der Alpenberge kühl erglänzt,
Indes der erste blaue See
Italiens schon die Sicht begrenzt!
Durch Höhenwind und herbe Luft
Weht eine süße Ahnung her
Von violettem Ferneduft
Und südlich übersonntem Meer.
Und weiter sehnt das Auge sich
Zum hellen Florentiner Dom
Und träumt nach jedem Hügelstrich
Aufsteigend das beglänzte Rom.
Schon formt die Lippe unbewußt
Der fremden schönen Sprache Laut,
Indes ein Meer verklärter Lust
Dir schauernd warm entgegenblaut.
Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada and the U.S., 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, Sämtliche Werke, herausgegeben von Volker Michels, Band 10 Die Gedichte, bearbeitet von Peter Huber, Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag, 2002, page 79.
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):
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "Over the alps", copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Au-dessus des Alpes", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust
[Administrator] , Sharon Krebs
[Guest Editor] This text was added to the website: 2009-05-06
Line count: 16
Word count: 76
That is a wandering, when the snow
Of the alpine mountains sparkles coolly,
Whilst Italy’s first blue lake
Is already appearing on the view’s edge!
Through the wind of the heights and tangy air
A sweet premonition wafts hence --
[A premonition] of violet scent of the distance
And southerly-sunned sea.
And your eyes yearn farther
Toward the bright cathedral of Florence
And, beyond every line of hills,
You imagine radiant Rome rising up.
Unconsciously your lips are already forming
The sounds of the lovely foreign tongue,
Whilst a sea of transfigured joy
Comes bluely, warmly, shiveringly toward you.