Attention! Some of this material is not in the public domain.
It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. It is also illegal to reprint copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator.
To inquire about permissions and rates, contact Emily Ezust at
If you wish to reprint translations, please make sure you include the names of the translators in your email. They are below each translation.
Note: You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.
Eine Schale des Stroms, welcher Vergessenheit Durch Elysiums Blumen rollt, Bring, o Genius, bring deinem Verschmachtenden! Dort, wo Phaon die Sängerin, Dort, wo Orpheus vergaß seiner Eurydike, Schöpf den silbernen Schlummerquell! Ha! Dann tauch' ich dein Bild, spröde Gebieterin, Und die lächelnde Lippe voll Lautenklanges, des Haars schattige Wallungen, Und das Beben der weißen Brust, Und den siegenden Blick, der mir im Marke zuckt, Tauch' ich tief in den Schlummerquell.
Authorship
- by Ludwig Heinrich Christoph Hölty (1748 - 1776) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
- by Johann Heinrich Voss (1751 - 1826) [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 Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), "Die Schale der Vergessenheit", op. 46 (Vier Gesänge für eine Singstimme mit Begleitung des Pianoforte) no. 3 (1868), published 1868 [voice and piano], Berlin, Simrock [text verified 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Emily Ezust) , title 1: "The cup of oblivion", copyright ©
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , title 1: "La coupe d'oubli", copyright © 2012, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , title 1: "De beker der vergetelheid", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2003-11-04
Line count: 12
Word count: 70
A goblet of the river Lethe which spreads oblivion Through the flowers of Elysium, O spirit, bring one to your thirsting servant! There, where Phaon forgot the singer Sappho, There, where Orpheus forgot his Eurydice, Ladle up the silver sleeping potion! Ha! For there will I plunge your image, brittle, imperious one; And your smiling lips full of Lute-music, your hair's shadowy waves, The shaking of your white breast, And that victorious gaze which pierces me through; I will plunge all of them deep into oblivion.
Authorship
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © by Emily Ezust
Emily Ezust permits her translations to be reproduced without prior permission for printed (not online) programs to free-admission concerts only, provided the following credit is given:
Translation copyright © by Emily Ezust,
from the LiederNet Archive -- https://www.lieder.net/For any other purpose, please write to the e-mail address below to request permission and discuss possible fees.
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Ludwig Heinrich Christoph Hölty (1748 - 1776) and by Johann Heinrich Voss (1751 - 1826)
This text was added to the website: 2003-11-04
Line count: 12
Word count: 86