Anne Lyle's song | If you were with me in the valley of life

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sometimes misattributed to Sophie Friederike Elise Mayer (1788 - 1827), as Sophie May and by Wilhelm Adolf Lindau (1774 - 1849)

Translation © by Malcolm Wren

Lied der Anne Lyle

Language: German (Deutsch) after the English

Available translation(s): CAT DUT ENG FRE ITA

Wär'st Du bei mir im Lebensthal',
Gern wollt' ich alles mit Dir theilen;
Mit Dir zu fliehn, wär' leichte Wahl,
Bei mildem Wind, bei Sturmesheulen.
Doch trennt uns harte Schicksalsmacht,
Uns ist nicht gleiches Loos geschrieben;
Mein Glück ist, wenn Dir Freude lacht,
Ich wein' und bete für den Lieben.

Es wird mein [thörig]¹ Herz vergeh'n,
Wenn's alle Hoffnung sieht verschwinden;
Doch soll's nie seinen Gram gesteh'n,
Nie mürrisch klagend ihn verkünden.
Und drückt des Lebens Last das Herz,
Soll nie den matten Blick sie trüben,
So lange mein geheimer Schmerz
Ein Kummer wäre für den Lieben.

View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with Montrose. Ein romantisches Gemählde von Walter Scott, übersetzt von W. A. Lindau. Zweiter Theil. Leipzig, Rein'sche Buchhandlung. 1824, page 271.

¹ Schubert: "töricht"

Authorship:

sometimes misattributed to Sophie Friederike Elise Mayer (1788 - 1827), as Sophie May
by Wilhelm Adolf Lindau (1774 - 1849), first published 1824 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Based on:

a text in English by Andrew MacDonald (1757 - 1790), "Air XXVII", appears in Love and Loyalty, first published 1791

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

by Franz Peter Schubert (1797 - 1828), "Lied der Anne Lyle", op. 85 (Zwei Lieder) no. 1, D 830 (1825?), published 1828 [ voice and piano ], A. Diabelli & Co., VN 2877, Wien [sung text checked 1 time]

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

CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "La cançó d’Anne Lyle", copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "Lied van Anna Lyle", copyright © 2007, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Malcolm Wren) , "Anne Lyle's song", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Chant d'Anne Lyle", copyright © 2012, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , "Canzone di Anne Lyle", copyright © 2007, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this text: Richard Morris , Peter Rastl [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2003-11-07
Line count: 16
Word count: 97

Anne Lyle's song

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

If you were with me in the valley of life
I would happily share everything with you;
Flying off with you would be an easy choice,
Either when the wind is gentle or in a howling storm.
But the power of rigid fate separates us,
The same destiny has not been prescribed for us;
My happiness is when joy laughs on you,
I weep and pray for him I love.

My foolish heart will expire
If it sees all hope disappear;
Yet it will never confess all of its grief,
Nor sullenly declare it with laments.
And if life's burden presses on my heart,
My dull gaze will not be troubled
For as long as my secret sorrow
Might cause anxiety for him I love.

Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2019 by Malcolm Wren, (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.
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Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) misattributed to Sophie Friederike Elise Mayer (1788 - 1827), as Sophie May and by Wilhelm Adolf Lindau (1774 - 1849), first published 1824

Based on:

a text in English by Andrew MacDonald (1757 - 1790), "Air XXVII", appears in Love and Loyalty, first published 1791

This text was added to the website: 2019-12-29
Line count: 16
Word count: 125