by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926)
Translation © by Margaret Dows Herter Norton (1894 - 1985), as Margaret Dows Herter
Atmen, du unsichtbares Gedicht!
Language: German (Deutsch)
Our translations: FRE
[Atmen, du unsichtbares Gedicht! Immerfort um]1 das eigne [Sein rein eingetauschter Weltraum. Gegengewicht, in dem ich mich rhythmisch ereigne.]2 Einzige Welle, deren allmähliches Meer ich bin ; sparsamstes du von allen möglichen Meeren, -- Raumgewinn. Wieviele von diesen Stellen der Räume waren schon innen in mir. Manche Winde sind wie mein Sohn. Erkennst du mich, Luft, du, voll [noch]2 einst meiniger Orte ? [Du, einmal glatte Rinde, Rundung und Blatt meiner Worte.]2
E. Janson sets stanzas 1, 4
H. Birtwistle sets line 6-7
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)1 Janson: "Atmen, immerfort in"
2 omitted by Janson
Text Authorship:
- by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926), no title, appears in Die Sonette an Orpheus 2, no. 1 [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 Harrison Birtwistle, Sir (1934 - 2022), "Elegy 24, Sonnet II, 1", 2003-04, line 6-7 [ oboe, harp and countertenor ], from Orpheus elegies, no. 23, Boosey & Hawkes [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Fritz Büchtger (1903 - 1978), "Atmen, du unsichtbares Gedicht!", 1975-1976 [ voice and piano ], from Vor der Tür (Als Requiem für Elisabeth Büchtger), no. 18 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Fritz Büchtger (1903 - 1978), "Atmen du unsichtbares Gedicht", 1951 [ voice and piano ], from Orpheus, no. 2, Orlando Musikverlag Gartenmaier KG [sung text not yet checked]
- by Peter Michael Hamel (b. 1947), "Atmen, du unsichtbares Gedicht!", 2016, published 2017 [ medium voice and piano ], from Vier Sonette an Orpheus, no. 3, Berlin, Verlag Neue Musik [sung text not yet checked]
- by Gérard Hilpipre (b. 1959), "Atmen, du unsichtbares Gedicht !", subtitle: "Sonnets à Orphée, II, 1", published 2014 [ soprano and orchestra ], from Rilke-Lieder, no. 3, Editions Delatour [sung text not yet checked]
- by Erik Janson (b. 1967), "Atmen, du unsichtbares Gedicht!", 2008, stanzas 1,4 [ soprano and violoncello ], from Fragmente nach Rilke, no. 2 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Peter Lieberson (1946 - 2011), "Atmen, du unsichtbares Gedicht" [ mezzo-soprano and piano ], from Five Rilke Songs, no. 2 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Mike Svoboda (b. 1960), "Raumgewinn", 2006, first performed 2006 [ soli, chorus and brass ], from Raumgewinn – Musik für eine Elbaue, no. 1 [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in English, a translation by Anita Barrows , copyright © and by Joanna Macy , copyright © ; composed by Andrea Elsie Tomasi.
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Margaret Dows Herter Norton (1894 - 1985) , no title, copyright © ; composed by Paul Mealor.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Respire, poème invisible !", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2009-06-01
Line count: 18
Word count: 73
Breathing, you invisible poem!
Language: German (Deutsch) after the German (Deutsch)
Breathing, you invisible poem! [ ... ]
About the headline (FAQ)
This text may be copyright, so we will not display it until we obtain permission to do so or discover it is public-domain.Confirmed with Rainer Maria Rilke, Sonnets to Orpheus, W. W. Norton, 2006, p.71
Text Authorship:
- by Margaret Dows Herter Norton (1894 - 1985), as Margaret Dows Herter, no title, copyright © [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926), no title, appears in Die Sonette an Orpheus 2, no. 1
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Paul Mealor (b. 1975), "Solitary Wave", copyright © 2001 [ soprano and flute, oboe, clarinet, piano, viola, violoncello ], from Till time shall cease, no. 2, York : University of York Music Press [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in English, a translation by Anita Barrows , copyright © and by Joanna Macy , copyright © ; composed by Andrea Elsie Tomasi.
This text was added to the website: 2023-10-10
Line count: 14
Word count: 79