Der Bergsee
Language: German (Deutsch)
Blickt noch so grün die Alm hinein,
Der Himmel noch so klar,
Und grüßt im hellsten Sonnenschein
Ihn der Libellen Schaar:
Ach! schwarz und düster bleibt der See;
Nur wenn die Winde fächeln,
Verbirgt sein tiefes, tiefes Weh
Er schmerzlich unter Lächeln.
Erblühen noch so wunderschön
Die Rosen seinem Grund,
Thun noch so jubelnd aus den Höhn
Ihr Glück die Vöglein kund:
Ach! schwarz und düster bleibt der See;
Nur wenn die Wipfel brausen,
Verweht sein tiefes, tiefes Weh
Zum Trost im sanften Sausen.
Die Tanne dort, die still hinab
Die Zweige senkt zur Fluth,
Die weiß es noch, allwo sein Grab
Einst fand das junge Blut;
Die weiß allein, warum der See
Sich nimmermehr mag freuen,
Warum sein tiefes, tiefes Weh
Sich ewig muß erneuen.
Confirmed with Liederbuch von Friedrich Oser, 1842-1874. Mit einem biographischen Verzeichnis der Componisten, Basel: Benno Schwabe, Verlagsbuchhandlung, 1875, pages 97-98.
Text Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "The mountain lake", copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Sharon Krebs
[Guest Editor] This text was added to the website: 2025-07-22
Line count: 24
Word count: 127
The mountain lake
Language: English after the German (Deutsch)
Though the alpine meadow be ever so green,
The sky be ever so clear,
And though the host of dragonflies
Bring greetings in the brightest sunshine:
Ah, the lake remains black and somber;
Only when the winds fan it,
It painfully conceals its deep, deep woe
Under a smile.
Though the roses may bloom
Ever so wonderfully toward its depths,
Though the birdlets from the heights
Ever so joyfully proclaim their happiness:
Ah, the lake remains black and somber;
Only when the treetops swoosh,
Its deep, deep woe is wafted away
Comfortingly in gentle swishing.
The fir yonder that quietly inclines
Its branches to the waters,
It still remembers where a young man
Once found his grave;
It alone knows why the lake
Can never be happy,
Why its deep, deep woe
Must eternally renew itself.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2025 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:
This text was added to the website: 2025-07-25
Line count: 24
Word count: 137
