On the watering of the garden | Oh watering of the garden to encourage the greenery!

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by Bertolt Brecht (1898 - 1956)

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Vom Sprengen des Gartens

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG

[O]¹ Sprengen des Gartens, das Grün zu ermutigen!
Wässern der durstgen Bäume! Gib mehr als genug. Und
Vergiß [nicht]² das Strauchwerk, auch
Das beerenlose nicht, das ermattete
[Geizige]³! Und übersieh [mir nicht]³
Zwischen den Blumen das Unkraut, das auch
Durst hat. Noch gieße nur
Den frischen Rasen oder den versengten nur:
Auch den nackten Boden erfrische du.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

• H. Eisler

Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada, but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.

View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with Die Gedichte von Bertolt Brecht in einem Band, Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag, 1981 (Neunte Auflage 1997), page 861

¹ Eisler: "Oh"
² Eisler: "auch nicht"
³ Eisler: "nicht"

Text Authorship:

by Bertolt Brecht (1898 - 1956), "Vom Sprengen des Gartens" [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 Hanns Eisler (1898 - 1962), "Vom Sprengen des Gartens", 1943, from Hollywooder Liederbuch, no. 44 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "On the watering of the garden", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 9
Word count: 61

On the watering of the garden

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

Oh watering of the garden to encourage the greenery!
Watering of the thirsty trees!  Give more than enough. And
Do not forget the bushes, even
Those without any berries, the drooping
[Miserly]¹ ones! And do not overlook
The weeds between the flowers that are also
Thirsty.  Also do not water only the fresh lawn, or the singed lawn:
Refresh even the naked soil.

View original text (without footnotes)
Translator's note: "Sprengen" can mean "watering," but it can also mean "exploding." Brecht plays on the double meaning here; a bomb 'waters' everything -- even the naked soil.
¹ omitted by Eisler

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2010 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 Bertolt Brecht (1898 - 1956), "Vom Sprengen des Gartens"
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2010-10-11
Line count: 8
Word count: 64