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.
Что поют часы-кузнечик, Лихорадка шелестит И шуршит сухая печка — Это красный шёлк горит. Что зубами мыши точат Жизни тоненькое дно, — Это ласточка и дочка Отвязала мой челнок, Что на крыше дождь бормочет — Это чёрный шёлк горит, Но черёмуха услышит И на дне морском простит. Потому что смерть невинна, И ничем нельзя помочь, Что в горячке соловьиной Сердце теплое ещё.
Show a transliteration: Default | DIN | GOST
Note on TransliterationsAuthorship:
- by Osip Emil'evich Mandelstam (1891 - 1938), written 1918, appears in Tristia, first published 1922 [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 Elena Olegovna Firsova (b. 1950), "Что поют часы-кузнечик", op. 22 no. 4, published 1979, first performed 1981 [ soprano and chamber orchestra ], from cantata Tristia, no. 4 [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English [singable] (Dmitri Nikolaevich Smirnov) , "What grasshopper-clocks are singing", copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Dmitri Smirnov
This text was added to the website: 2008-02-29
Line count: 16
Word count: 62
What grasshopper-clocks are singing -- Fever is murmuring mad, And the withered stove is rustling Like a silk that's burning red. What the teeth of mice are nibbling The slim-bottomed life to naught -- Is the swallow or her sibling That cut loose my wretched boat. Rain on tiles bubbles like a burning Silk of black, but cherry tree Will be hearing and forgiving At the bottom of the sea. Death is innocent, therefore There is nothing that can heal In that nightingale's fever Beating heart that is warm still.
Authorship:
- Singable translation by Dmitri Nikolaevich Smirnov (1948 - 2020), "What grasshopper-clocks are singing", copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Russian (Русский) by Osip Emil'evich Mandelstam (1891 - 1938), written 1918, appears in Tristia, first published 1922
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-03-06
Line count: 16
Word count: 88