by Paul Fleming (1609 - 1640)
Translation © by Emily Ezust

O liebliche Wangen
Language: German (Deutsch) 
Available translation(s): DUT ENG FRE HEB SPA
O liebliche Wangen,
Ihr macht mir Verlangen,
Dies rote, dies weiße 
Zu schauen mit Fleiße.
Und dies nur alleine 
Ist's nicht, [das]1 ich meine;
Zu schauen, zu grüssen,
Zu rühren, zu küssen!
Ihr macht mir Verlangen,
O liebliche Wangen!

O Sonne der Wonne!
O Wonne der Sonne!
O Augen, so saugen
Das Licht meiner Augen.
O englische Sinnen!
O himmlisch Beginnen!
O Himmel auf Erden,
Magst du mir nicht werden,
O Wonne der Sonne!
O Sonne der Wonne!

O Schönste der Schönen!
Benimm mir dies Sehnen,
Komm, eile, komm, komme,
Du süße, du fromme!
Ach, Schwester, ich sterbe,
Ich sterb', ich verderbe,
Komm, [tröste, komm, heile]2,
Benimm mir dies Sehnen,
O Schönste der Schönen!

View original text (without footnotes)
1 Brahms: "was"
2 Brahms: "komme, komm, eile"

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 Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), "O liebliche Wangen", op. 47 (Fünf Lieder für eine Singstimme mit Begleitung des Pianoforte) no. 4 (1868), published 1868, first performed 1887 [voice and piano], Berlin, Simrock [
     text verified 1 time
    ]

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

  • ENG English (Emily Ezust) , title 1: "O lovely cheeks", copyright ©
  • SPA Spanish (Español) (Eduardo Borja Illescas) , title 1: "Oh, encantadoras mejillas", copyright © 1982, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , title 1: "Ô joues adorables", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • HEB Hebrew (עברית) (Max Mader) , title 1: "הו לחיים יפות", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , title 1: "O lieflijke wangen", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

Text added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Last modified: 2014-06-16 10:01:28
Line count: 29
Word count: 114

O lovely cheeks
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch) 
O lovely cheeks,
You make me want to
Gaze diligently
On this red, this white.
And this alone 
Is not what I mean;
To behold, to greet,
To touch, to kiss! 
You make me desirous,
O lovely cheeks!

O sun of ecstasy!
O ecstasy of the sun!
 O eyes, suck
The light of my eyes.
O angelic thoughts!
 O heavenly beginnings!
O Heaven on earth,
May you not become for me,
O ecstasy of the sun!
O sun of ecstasy!

O fairest of the fair!
Take away from me this longing,
Come, hurry, come, come!
You sweet, innocent soul!
Ah, sister, I am dying,
I am dying, I am ruined,
Come, come, come, hurry.
Take away from me this longing,
O fairest of the fair!

Authorship

  • Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © by Emily Ezust

    Emily Ezust permits her translations to be reproduced without prior permission for printed (not online) programs to free-admission concerts only, provided the following credit is given:

    Translation copyright © by Emily Ezust,
    from the LiederNet Archive -- https://www.lieder.net/

    For any other purpose, please write to the e-mail address below to request permission and discuss possible fees.


Based on

 

Text added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Last modified: 2014-06-16 10:01:28
Line count: 29
Word count: 125