The bare tree stretches | The bare tree stretches

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by Stefan George (1868 - 1933)

Translation © by Emily Ezust

Kahl reckt der baum

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG FRE IRI

Kahl reckt der baum
Im winterdunst
Sein frierend leben ·
Lass deinen traum
Auf stiller reise
Vor ihm sich heben!
Er dehnt die arme –
Bedenk ihn oft
Mit dieser gunst
Dass er im harme
Dass er im eise
Noch frühling hofft!

About the headline (FAQ)

Confirmed with Stefan George, Gesamt-Ausgabe der Werke, Band 6 / 7, Der siebente Ring, Berlin, 1931, page 160.

Text Authorship:

by Stefan George (1868 - 1933), no title, appears in Der siebente Ring, in Lieder, in Lieder I-VI, no. 5 [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 Theodor W. Adorno (1903 - 1969), "Kahl reckt der Baum", 1921/1922 [ voice and piano ], from Sechs Lieder aus »Der siebente Ring« von Stefan George, no. 5 [sung text checked 1 time]
by Anton von Webern (1883 - 1945), "Kahl reckt der Baum", op. 3 (Fünf Lieder aus 'Der siebente Ring') no. 5 (1908-9) [sung text checked 1 time]
by Egon Joseph Wellesz (1885 - 1974), "Kahl reckt der Baum im Winterdunst", op. 22 no. 4 (1917) [ voice and piano ], from Lieder nach Dichtungen von Stefan George, no. 4 [sung text checked 1 time]
by Max Zehnder (1901 - 1972), "Kahl reckt der baum", 1929 [ soprano and piano ], from Fünf Lieder für Sopran und Klavier, no. 5 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Emily Ezust) , "The bare tree stretches", copyright ©
FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "L'arbre nu dresse", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
IRI Irish (Gaelic) [singable] (Gabriel Rosenstock) , copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this page: Hubert Schmid

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 42

The bare tree stretches

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

The bare tree stretches 
in the winter mist
with frozen life.
Let your dream,
on its quiet journey, 
rise before it!
It reaches out its arms -
dwell on this often
with admiration,
that in the midst of its affliction,
and surrounded by ice,
it yet hopes for Spring!

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

a text in German (Deutsch) by Stefan George (1868 - 1933), no title, appears in Der siebente Ring, in Lieder, in Lieder I-VI, no. 5
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 48