To distant friends | When a book falls into my hands

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by Hans Heinrich Ehrler (1872 - 1951)

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Fernen Freunden

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG

Kommt mir ein Buch in die Hand,
Les ich darinnen,
Worte und Reim wie bekannt
Wecken mich innen. 

Einmal in einstiger Stadt
Ist es gewesen,
Saß ich mit euch und da hat 
Einer gelesen. 

Doch welche Hand benedeit
Buch jetzt und Stunde,
Wer schob hinweg uns die Zeit?

Hört mir vom Munde 
Worte und Reim wie geweiht
Geistiger Runde!

Confirmed with Hans Heinrich Ehrler, Gesicht und Antlitz: Neue Gedichte, Gotha: Leopold Klotz Verlag, 1928, page 49.

Text Authorship:

by Hans Heinrich Ehrler (1872 - 1951), "Fernen Freunden", appears in Gesicht und Antlitz: Neue Gedichte [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 Hermann Reutter (1900 - 1985), "Fernen Freunden", op. 64 no. 1, from Ehrler-Zyklus I, no. 1 [sung text not yet checked]

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

ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "To distant friends", copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this page: Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2022-09-19
Line count: 14
Word count: 59

To distant friends

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

When a book falls into my hands,
I read in it,
Words and rhymes how familiarly
Waken me inside.

It was once earlier
In another city,
I sat with you all and 
Someone was reading.

But what hand blesses 
The book now and the hour,
Who pushed time away from us?

Hear from my lips 
Words and rhymes as if dedicated
To a learned circle!

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2022 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 Hans Heinrich Ehrler (1872 - 1951), "Fernen Freunden", appears in Gesicht und Antlitz: Neue Gedichte
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2022-10-03
Line count: 14
Word count: 65