[Es sprach zu Hänschen Gretchen]1:
"Mein Lieben mich gereut.
Du [scherzt]2 mit allen Mädchen,
Wir sind geschied'ne Leut.
Geh' deines [Weges]3 wieder!
Mein Kuss bleibt dir versagt,
Bis einst der span'sche Flieder
Im Garten Aepfel tragt!"

Das Fenster ward geschlossen,
Den Vorhang zog sie für,
Und Hänschen ging verdrossen
Von seiner Liebsten Thür.
Als Tags darauf er wieder
Den Weg zur Trauten fand,
Sass Gretchen auf dem Flieder,
[Daran]4 sie Aepfel band.

View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with Rudolf Baumbach, Spielmannslieder , Leipzig: Verlag von A.G. Liebeskind, 1893, page 49.

¹ Bohm, Reger, Zerlett: "Zum Hänschen sprach das Gretchen"; Blumenberg, Claassen, Kirchl, Kretschmer, Isenmann, Meyer-Helmund, Patzcker, Reinecke, Roeder: "Es sprach zum Hänschen Gretchen"
² Bohm, Reger: "scherzest"
³ Bohm, Reger: "Wegs nur"
⁴ Reger: "Darauf"

Text Authorship:

• by Rudolph Baumbach (1840 - 1905), "Der Schwur", appears in Spielmannslieder, first published 1883 [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 Carl Attenhofer (1837 - 1914), "Der Schwur", op. 64 (Drei Männerchöre) no. 3, published 1889 [ ttbb chorus ], Leipzig: Hug  [sung text not yet checked]
• by Fritz Baselt (1863 - 1931), "Der Schwur", op. 36, published 1892 [ voice and piano ], Leipzig: Gustav Richter [sung text not yet checked]
• by Victor Bause , "Der Schwur", published 1895 [ voice and piano ], from Drei Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianofortebegleitung, no. 2, Wien, Jungmann & Lerch [sung text not yet checked]
• by Franz Blumenberg (1869 - 1940), "Der Schwur", op. 31, published 1896 [ voice and piano ], Leipzig: Vormeyer [sung text not yet checked]
• by Carl Bohm (1844 - 1920), "Der Schwur", op. 310 no. 2, published 1884 [ voice and piano ], Berlin, Simrock [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Arthur Claassen (1859 - 1920), "Der Schwur", op. 10, Heft 3 no. 5, published 1883 [ ttbb chorus ], from Zech- und Minnelieder für vierstimmigen Männergesang, no. 5, Magdeburg: Heinrichshofen Verlag [sung text not yet checked]
• by Josef Freyer , "Der Schwur", op. 72 (Drei Männerchöre) no. 3, published 1898 [ ttbb chorus ], Leipzig: Luckhardt's Musik-Verlag [sung text not yet checked]
• by Carl Isenmann (1839 - 1889), "Der Schwur", op. 72 (Drei Lieder für vierstimmigen Männerchor) no. 2, published 1884 [ four-part men's chorus a cappella ], Berlin, Ries & Erler [sung text not yet checked]
• by Adolf Kirchl (1858 - 1936), "Der Schwur", op. 28 (Zwei heitere Gesänge für vier Männerstimmen, Chor oder Soloquartett) no. 1, published 1893 [ ttbb chorus ], Leipzig: Leuckhart [sung text not yet checked]
• by Arno Kleffel (1840 - 1913), "Der Schwur", op. 46 (Sechs Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianofortebegleitung) no. 5, published 1890 [ voice and piano ], Berlin, Stern [sung text not yet checked]
• by (Carl Franz) Edmund Kretschmer (1830 - 1908), "Der Schwur", op. 52 no. 3 [ ttbb chorus ] [sung text not yet checked]
• by Josef Lamberg (b. 1852), "Der Schwur", op. 58 no. 2, published 1891 [ ttbb chorus ], Wien: Rebay & Robitschek [sung text not yet checked]
• by Gustav Lazarus (1861 - 1920), "Der Schwur", op. 42 (Zwei Lieder für eine Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 1, published 1898 [ voice and piano ], Leipzig: Hofmeister [sung text not yet checked]
• by Alfred von Lindheim, jun. , "Der Schwur", op. 7, published 1893 [ voice and piano ], from Neun Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianofortebegleitung, no. 7, Wien, Doblinger [sung text not yet checked]
• by Erik Meyer-Helmund (1861 - 1932), "Der Schwur", op. 8 no. 4, published 1884 [ voice and piano ], from Spielmannslieder von Rudolf Baumbach, no. 4, Berlin, Ries & Erler, also set in English [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Willy Musseleck , "Der Schwur", op. 1 no. 2, published 1898 [ voice and piano ], Hamburg: Hoffmann [sung text not yet checked]
• by Ottomar Neubner (1843 - 1912), "Der Schwur", op. 36 (Zwei Gesänge für gemischten Chor) no. 1, published <<1893 [ mixed chorus ], Leipzig, Siegel [sung text not yet checked]
• by Georg Patzcker , "Der Schwur", published 1888 [ voice and piano ], from [Drei] Lieder und Gesänge für 1 Singstimme mit Pianofortebegleitung, no. 1, Halle, Karmrodt [sung text not yet checked]
• by Max Reger (1873 - 1916), "Der Schwur", op. 76 (Schlichte Weisen) no. 26 (1904) [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Karl Heinrich Carsten Reinecke (1824 - 1910), "Der Schwur", published 1884 [ voice and piano ], from Lieder-Album für 1 Singstimme mit Pianofortebegleitung , no. 8, Berlin: Ries & Erler [sung text not yet checked]
• by P. Remmorf , "Der Schwur ", published 1887 [ high voice and piano ], from Drei Lieder für 1 hohe Stimme mit Pianoforte, no. 1, Leipzig, Dörffel  [sung text not yet checked]
• by Martin Roeder (1851 - 1895), "Der Schwur", op. 44 (Vier Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 2, published 1886 [ voice and piano ], Dresden, Hoffarth [sung text not yet checked]
• by Ferdinand Sabathil (1852 - 1937), "Der Schwur", published 1897 [ satb chorus ], Bremen: Fischer [sung text not yet checked]
• by Emil Seling (1868 - 1939), "Der Schwur", published 1893 [ voice and piano ], from Lieder und Gesänge für eine Singstimme mit Pianoforte, no. 4, Wien: Rosé [sung text not yet checked]
• by August Thonet (1829 - 1910), "Der Schwur", op. 181, published 1886 [ voice and piano ], Wien: Bösendorfer [sung text not yet checked]
• by Wilhelm Ungemach , "Der Schwur", op. 24, published 1897 [ ttbb chorus ], Köln: P.J. Tonger [sung text not yet checked]
• by Josef Wagenbrenner , "Der Schwur", op. 6 (Vier Männerchöre) no. 1, published 1900 [ ttbb chorus ], Leipzig: Leuckart [sung text not yet checked]
• by Max Wolf , "Der Schwur", op. 22 (Zwei Lieder für Sopran (oder Tenor) mit Pianoforte) no. 2, published 1883 [ soprano or tenor and piano ], Wien, Lewy [sung text not yet checked]
• by Johann Baptist Zerlett (1859 - 1935), "Der Schwur ", op. 24 (Vier Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianofortebegleitung) no. 4, published 1890 [ voice and piano ], Leipzig, Breitkopf & Härtel [sung text not yet checked]

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

• Also set in English, a translation by John P. Jackson (d. 1902) ; composed by Erik Meyer-Helmund.
  • Go to the text.
    

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

• CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "El jurament", copyright © 2023, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• ENG English [singable] (Natalie Macfarren)
• ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "The vow", copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Le serment", copyright © 2016, (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 between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 72

Gretchen said to Hans:
"I regret loving you.
You flirt with all the girls;
We two are parting company.

[Go]1 on your way again!
My kiss shall remain denied you,
Until the Spanish lilac
In the garden bears apples!"

The window was shut,
She drew the curtains,
And, peeved, Hans went
Away from his beloved's door.

When on the following day
He again found his way to his darling,
Gretchen was sitting upon the lilac,
[To which]2 she was tying apples.