by Heinrich Heine (1797 - 1856)
Translation by Felice Cavallotti (1842 - 1898)

Ich weiß nicht, was soll es bedeuten
Language: German (Deutsch) 
Available translation(s): DUT ENG FIN FRE GRE HUN POR SPA
  Ich weiß nicht, was [soll es]1 bedeuten,
Daß ich so traurig bin;
Ein Märchen aus [alten]2 Zeiten,
Das [kommt]3 mir nicht aus dem Sinn.

  Die Luft ist kühl und es dunkelt,
Und ruhig [fließt]4 der Rhein;
[Der Gipfel des Berges]5 funkelt
Im Abendsonnenschein.

  Die schönste Jungfrau sitzet
Dort oben wunderbar,
Ihr goldnes Geschmeide blitzet
Sie kämmt [ihr goldenes]6 Haar.

  Sie kämmt es mit [goldenem]7 Kamme
Und singt ein Lied dabei;
Das hat eine wundersame,
[Gewaltige]8 Melodei.

  Den Schiffer im kleinen [Schiffe]9
Ergreift es mit wildem Weh;
Er [schaut]10 nicht die Felsenriffe,
Er [schaut nur hinauf]11 in die Höh'.

  Ich glaube, [die Wellen verschlingen
Am Ende]12 Schiffer und Kahn;
Und das hat mit ihrem Singen
Die [Lorelei]13 gethan.

R. Schonthal sets stanza 1

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Confirmed with: Heinrich Heine’s sämtliche Werke in vier Bänden, herausgegeben von Otto F. Lachmann, Erster Band, Leipzig: Druck und Verlag von Philipp Reclam jun, [1887], pages 116-117.

1 Bronsart, Liszt,: "soll's"
2 Fibich: "uralten"
3 Fibich: "geht"
4 Bürde: "fliesset"
5 Fibich: "Des Berges Gipfel"
6 Bronsart, Kinkel: "ihr goldnes"; Bürde: "das gold'ne"; C. Schumann: "ihr gold'nes"
7 Bronsart: "goldnem"; Liszt, C. Schumann: "gold'nem"
8 Bronsart, Kinkel, Liszt: "Gewalt'ge"
9 Bürde: "Kahne"
10 Fibich: "sieht"
11 Fibich: "sieht nur nach ihr"
12 Kinkel: "am Ende verschlingen / Die Wellen"
13 Bürde: "Loreley"

Authorship:

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

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

  • Also set in English, a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by John G. Barnett.
  • Also set in English, a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by Theo. H. Northrup.
  • Also set in Italian (Italiano), a translation by Felice Cavallotti (1842 - 1898) ; composed by Giorgio Miceli.

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

  • DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Walter Meyer) , no title, copyright © 1995, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Emma Lazarus) , appears in Poems and Ballads of Heinrich Heine, first published 1881
  • ENG English [singable] (Arthur Westbrook) , "The Loreley"
  • ENG English [singable] (Samuel Langhorne Clemens) , "The lorelei", appears in A Tramp Abroad, Volume 1, Leipzig: Bernhard Tauchnitz, p. 123-4, first published 1880
  • FIN Finnish (Suomi) (Erkki Pullinen) , copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • GRE Greek (Ελληνικά) [singable] (Christakis Poumbouris) , copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • HUN Hungarian (Magyar) (Tamás Rédey) , "Lorelei", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • POL Polish (Polski) (Aleksander Kraushar) , no title, appears in Pieśni Heinego, in Powrót, no. 2
  • POR Portuguese (Português) (Margarida Moreno) , "A Loreley", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • SPA Spanish (Español) (Alfredo García) , "Lorelei", copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Research team for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 24
Word count: 118

Loreley, Leggenda
Language: Italian (Italiano)  after the German (Deutsch) 
Non so cosa voglia mai dire
Che così triste io son!
Non vuolmi dall'animo uscire
Antica una canzon.
 
Rinfrescasi l'aria e s'oscura
Placido scorre il Ren…
Scintilla su in vetta l'altura
Nel tramonto seren!
 
Là siede fanciulla abbagliante
Di magico splendor!
Nell'aurea sua veste raggiante
Si pettina il crin d'ôr.
 
Col pettine d'oro il ravvia
E una canzone va
Cantando (Potente armonia)
Meravigliosa ell'à!
 
Nel piccolo schifo il nocchiere
Assal con ria virtù!
Non vede egli più le scogliere,
non guarda che lassù!
 
Travolgono l'onde frattanto
Barca e nocchier con sé…
Ah! Questo col magico canto
La Loreley potè!

Authorship:

Based on:

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


Researcher for this text: Mario Buonafede

This text was added to the website: 2018-10-21
Line count: 24
Word count: 99