There was a jolly miller once Lived on the River Dee; He work'd and sang from morn till night, No lark more blithe than he. And this the burden of his song Forever used to be; I care for nobody, no, not I, If nobody cares for me. The reason why he was so blithe, He once did thus unfold; The bread I eat my hands have earn'd; I covet no man's gold; I do not fear next quarter-day; In debt to none I be. I care for nobody, no, not I, If nobody cares for me. A coin or two I've in my purse, To help a needy friend; A little I can give the poor, And still have some to spend. Though I may fail, yet I rejoice, Another's good hap to see. I care for nobody, no, not I, If nobody cares for me. So let us his example take, And be from malice free; Let every one his neighbour serve, As served he'd like to be. And merrily push the can about And drink and sing with glee; If nobody cares a [doit]1 for us, Why not a [doit]1 care we.
L. Beethoven sets stanzas 1-2, 4
Note: this version of the folk text was discovered in 1857 written on a flyleaf of a 1716 collection of John Dryden's poems.
1 Beethoven: "dot"Text Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827), "The Miller of Dee", WoO 157 no. 5 (1819), stanzas 1-2,4, from 12 songs of various nationalities, no. 5 [sung text checked 1 time]
Another version of this text exists in the database.
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- GER German (Deutsch) (Georg Pertz) , "Der Müller am Flusse Dee"
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2005-12-08
Line count: 32
Word count: 197
Es war ein lust'ger Müller einst, Er lebt' am Flusse Dee; Er mahlt' und sang von früh bis spät Froh wie die Lerche nie. Und hell erklang in seinem Lied Das Sprüchlein für und für: Nach keinem in der Welt frag' ich, Wenn keiner fragt nach mir. Oft gab er so die Ursach' kund, Daß ihm so froh zumut: Ich esse, was ich selbst gesä't, Begehre niemand's Gut. Ich fürchte keinen Jahresschluß, Denn keinem schuld' ich hier. Nach keinem in der Welt frag' ich, Wenn keiner fragt nach mir. So lebt denn ohne Sorg' und Neid, Wie euch dies Beispiel lehrt; Tu' jeder seinem Nächstens das, Was er von him begehrt. Und freudig stimmt nun alle ein, Und trinkt und singt mit mir: Fragt keiner in der Welt nach uns, Nach keinem fragen wir.
Text Authorship:
- by Georg Pertz (1830 - 1870), "Der Müller am Flusse Dee" [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English from Volkslieder (Folksongs)
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: Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2005-12-08
Line count: 24
Word count: 134