Canst thou bear a fond embrace, love?

by Ivar Julius Mortensson-Egnund (1857 - 1934)

Translation Singable translation by F. H. David

Liv aa Saele

Language: Norwegian (Nynorsk)

Tåler du de stærke favntag, 
at jeg kyrster dig i mine arme fast 
saa hjertet næsten brister.
Tåler du jeg hedt dig kysser, 
at jeg næsten drar til mig din hele sjæl?
Hvor er ordet koldt og dödt!
Jeg vil kjende duften af de myge lokker,
jeg vil kysse dine öine og din mund,
jeg vil slynge begge mine arme om din hals,
og få kryste dig saa tæt indtil mig
Du mig stryger med de milde hænder
ser mig ind i öiet, till jeg segner for din fod,
Det allene  Saligheden er for mig.

Text Authorship:

by Ivar Julius Mortensson-Egnund (1857 - 1934) [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 Christian Sinding (1856 - 1941), "Liv aa Saele", op. 37 no. 3 [ voice and piano ], from Or Duldo: Fra det dulgte = Aus dem Verborgenen, no. 3, title in Danish: "Liv eg Salighed" ; first line in Danish: "Taaler du de staerke Favntag", also set in German (Deutsch) [sung text checked 1 time]

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Wilhelm Henzen (1850 - 1910) ; composed by Christian Sinding.

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

ENG English [singable] (F. H. David)

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2016-12-11
Line count: 13
Word count: 95

Canst thou bear a fond embrace, love?

Language: English after the Norwegian (Nynorsk)

Canst thou bear a fond embrace, love?
In my arms so tightly may I clasp thee,
that thy heart must nigh be breaking?
Canst thou suffer my hot kisses?
May I quaff in ecstasy thy loved soul?
Words are cold, so cold and dead!
Just to breathe the scent of thy fair perfum'd tresses,
just to press a kiss on thy sweet eyes and lips,
just to place my arms, beloved, round about thy neck
and to hold thee close to my fond heart,
if thou touchest me with thy dear hands, love,
look'st but in mine eyes, till I sink down at thy feet,
that alone is Life, is Happiness for me!

About the headline (FAQ)

From the Sinding score.

Text Authorship:

Singable translation by F. H. David

Based on:

a text in Norwegian (Nynorsk) by Ivar Julius Mortensson-Egnund (1857 - 1934)
- Go to the text page.

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

[ None yet in the database ]

Researcher for this page: Johann Winkler

This text was added to the website: 2021-04-20
Line count: 13
Word count: 113