In foreign lands | Ah God! what do I hear being sung

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by Friedrich Heinrich Oser (1820 - 1891)

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

In der Fremde

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG

  Ach Gott! was hör' ich singen 
Und fern so hold verklingen? 
Ist's nicht der Heimath Lied, 
  Zum Preis der grünen Matten, 
Das wir gesungen hatten, 
Als ich aus meinem Thale schied? 

  Mir will's das Herz zerreißen, 
-- Sie haben's mir verheißen! --
Und muß doch bleiben hier!
  Wann werd' ich wieder schauen 
Die frischen, schönen Auen 
Mit ihrer Wälder Schmuck und Zier?

  O Heimathland, mein Leben!
Dem Winde nur kann geben 
Für dich ich meinen Gruß! 
  Ach! einen Hauch nur sende 
Zurück mir vom Gelände, 
Eh mich das Weh verzehren muß!

Confirmed with Liederbuch von Friedrich Oser, 1842-1874. Mit einem biographischen Verzeichnis der Componisten, Basel: Benno Schwabe, Verlagsbuchhandlung, 1875, page 274.

Text Authorship:

by Friedrich Heinrich Oser (1820 - 1891), "In der Fremde", appears in Liederbuch, in 4. Vaterlandslieder, no. 304 [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 Philipp Tietz (1816 - 1878) [sung text not yet checked]

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

ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "In foreign lands", copyright © 2026, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this page: Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2026-01-23
Line count: 18
Word count: 90

In foreign lands

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

  Ah God! what do I hear being sung
And dying away so beautifully in the distance?
Is it not the song of my homeland,
  In praise of the green meadows,
Which we had sung
When I departed from my valley?

  It wants to tear my heart,
-- They prophesied it to me! --
And yet I must remain here!
  When shall I once more see
The fresh, beautifully meadows
With the adornment and embellishment of their forests?

  Oh homeland, my life!
I can give my greeting for you
Only to the wind!
  Ah! only send back to me a breath 
From the countryside
Before pain must consume me!

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2026 by Sharon Krebs, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) by Friedrich Heinrich Oser (1820 - 1891), "In der Fremde", appears in Liederbuch, in 4. Vaterlandslieder, no. 304
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2026-06-25
Line count: 18
Word count: 107