Wo, in welchen immer selig bewässerten Gärten, an welchen Bäumen, aus welchen zärtlich entblätterten Blüten-Kelchen reifen die fremdartigen Früchte der Tröstung? Diese köstlichen, deren du eine vielleicht in der zertretenen Wiese deiner Armut findest. Von einem zum anderen Male wunderst du dich über die Größe der Frucht, über ihr Heilsein, über die Sanftheit der Schale, und daß sie der Leichtsinn des Vogels dir nicht vorwegnahm und nicht die Eifersucht unten des Wurms. Giebt es denn Bäume, von Engeln beflogen, und von verborgenen langsamen Gärtnern so seltsam gezogen, daß sie uns tragen, ohne uns zu gehören? Haben wir niemals vermocht, wir Schatten und Schemen, durch unser voreilig reifes und wieder welkes Benehmen jener gelassenen Sommer Gleichmut zu stören?
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926), no title, appears in Die Sonette an Orpheus 2, no. 17 [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 Robert Edler (1912 - 1986), "Sonett 17 b (Solo und Chor)", op. 59 no. 11 [ tenor, speaker, chorus and orchestra ], from Sonette an Orpheus, no. 11 [sung text not yet checked]
- by (Peter) Alexander Goehr (b. 1932), "Wo, in welchen immer selig bewässerten Gärten, an welchen", op. 97 no. 8 (2013-15), first performed 2016 [ tenor and piano or instrumental ensemble ], from Verschwindenes Wort, no. 8, Schott [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in English, a translation by James Blair Leishman (1902 - 1963) , no title ; composed by Colin Matthews.
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2023-08-16
Line count: 14
Word count: 117
Where, in what ever-blissfully watered gardens, upon what trees, out of, oh, what gently dispetalled flower-cups do these so strange-looking fruits of consolation mature? Delicious, when, now and then, you pick one up in the poor trampled field of your poverty. Time and again you find yourself lost in wonder over the size of the fhiit, over its wholesomeness, over its smooth, soft rind, and that neither the heedless bird above nor jealous worm at the root has been before you. Are there, then, trees where angels will congregate, trees invisible leisurely gardeners so curiously cultivate, that, without being ours, they bear for us fruits like those? Have, we, then, never been able, we shadows and shades, with our doing that ripens too early and then as suddenly fades, to disturb that even-tempered summer’s repose?
About the headline (FAQ)
Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada, but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.
Confirmed with Rainer Maria Rilke, Sonnets to Orpheus, London : The Hoghard Press, 1949, p.120
Text Authorship:
- by James Blair Leishman (1902 - 1963), no title [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. 17
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Colin Matthews (b. 1946), "Where, in what ever-blissfully watered gardens, upon what trees", 1975-76 [ tenor and harp ], from Five Sonnets: To Orpheus, no. 2, London : Faber music [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2023-08-30
Line count: 14
Word count: 135