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O süßer Mai, Der Strom ist frei, Ich steh verschlossen, Mein Aug' verdrossen, Ich seh nicht deine grüne Tracht, Nicht deine buntgeblümte Pracht, Nicht dein Himmelblau, Zur Erd' ich schau; O süßer Mai, Mich lasse frei, Wie den Gesang An den [dunkeln]1 Hecken entlang.
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View original text (without footnotes)Confirmed with Tröst Einsamkeit, alte und neue Sagen und Wahrsagungen. Geschichten und Gedichte, herausgegeben von Ludwig Achim von Arnim, Heidelberg, bei Mohr und Zimmer, 1808, page 11, an excerpt from Der freie Dichtergarten; headed Zweyte Stimme. Selbstbeschwerung.
1 Brahms: "dunklen"Authorship:
- possibly by Karl Joachim ("Achim") Friedrich Ludwig von Arnim (1781 - 1831), no title [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 Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), "O süßer Mai", op. 93a (Sechs Lieder und Romanzen für vierstimmigen gemischten Chor) no. 3 (1883?), published 1884 [ SATB chorus a cappella ], Berlin, Simrock [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Felix vom Rath (1866 - 1905), "Selbstbeschwerung", op. 8 (Drei Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 1, published 1902 [ voice and piano ], Berlin, Ries & Erler [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "O zoete mei", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Emily Ezust) , "O sweet May", copyright ©
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Ô doux moi de Mai", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 45
Ô doux moi de Mai, le courant est libre, Je me tiens taciturne, mes yeux contrariés, Je ne vois ni taon costume vert, Ni ta magnificence de fleurs colorées, Ni tes cieux bleus, vers la terre je regarde. Ô doux moi de Mai, laisse-moi libre, Comme un chant le long de la haie sombre.
Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to French (Français) copyright © 2010 by Guy Laffaille, (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) possibly by Karl Joachim ("Achim") Friedrich Ludwig von Arnim (1781 - 1831)
This text was added to the website: 2010-08-16
Line count: 12
Word count: 54