by Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962)
Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Erschütterung
Language: German (Deutsch) 
Our translations:  CAT ENG FRE
Trübe ward mir plötzlich der Wein im Becher,
Müde saß ich und mußte zu Boden schauen,
Fühlte mein Herz stillstehn und mein Haar ergrauen.
Lärmend lachten im Saal meine Freunde, die Zecher.

Da im Fenster erschien meiner Jugend Vertrauter,
Glänzender Mond, und schien die Halle zu dehnen,
Blitzte im Kelch und in meinen ausbrechenden Tränen.
Meine Freunde, die Zecher, sangen und jubelten lauter.

Stund um Stunde nun wandre ich und fühle die Winde
Ferner Sommer auf meinen brennenden Wangen,
Summe Lieder, die einst wir als Knaben sangen,
Denke der Heimat und weiß, daß ich nie mehr sie finde.

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, Sämtliche Werke, herausgegeben von Volker Michels, Band 10 Die Gedichte, bearbeitet von Peter Huber, Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag, 2002, page 237.


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):

  • CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "Commoció", copyright © 2024, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "Shock", copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Ébranlement", copyright © 2017, (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: 2009-06-17
Line count: 12
Word count: 98

Shock
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch) 
The wine in my goblet suddenly seemed turbid,
Weary I sat and had to look at the floor,
I felt my heart stand still and my hair go grey.
Noisily my friends, the carousers, laughed in the room.

There in the window appeared the confidant of my youth,
The radiant moon, and seemed to widen the hall,
Sparkled in the pitcher and in my welling tears.
My friends, the carousers, sang and cheered more loudly.

Hour upon hour now I wander and feel the winds
Of long-past summers upon my burning cheeks,
Hum songs that we once sang as lads,
Think of my homeland, and know that I shall never find it again.

Text Authorship:

  • Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2018 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: 

Based on:

 

This text was added to the website: 2018-05-14
Line count: 12
Word count: 113