Past (Hebbel, set by (Johannes Brahms)) (The LiederNet Archive: Texts and Translations to Lieder, mélodies, canzoni, and other classical vocal music)

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by (Christian) Friedrich Hebbel (1813 - 1863)

Translation © by Emily Ezust

Vorüber

Language: German (Deutsch)

Available translation(s): DUT ENG FRE

Ich legte mich unter den Lindenbaum,
  In dem die Nachtigall schlug;
Sie sang mich in den süßesten Traum,
  Der währte auch lange genug.

Denn nun ich erwache, nun ist sie fort,
  Und welk bedeckt mich das Laub;
Doch leider noch nicht, wie am dunklern Ort,
  Verglühte Asche der Staub.

Authorship

by (Christian) Friedrich Hebbel (1813 - 1863), "Vorüber!" [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), "Vorüber", op. 58 (Acht Lieder und Gesänge) no. 7 (1867?), published 1872 [voice and piano], Leipzig, Rieter-Biedermann [
text verified 1 time
]

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

ENG English (Emily Ezust) , title 1: "Past", copyright ©
DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , title 1: "Voorbij", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , title 1: "Passé", copyright © 2011, (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: 8
Word count: 49

Past

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

I lay myself down beneath the linden tree,
  In which the nightingale was singing;
She sang me into the sweetest dream,
  Which lasted quite a long time.

But now I've awakened, and she is gone;
  And I am covered with wilted leaves,
But sadly not yet, as in that darker place,
  Does dust cover [these] burned-out ashes.

Last line revised 2009/11/04 thanks to a kind suggestion by Kelly Dean Hansen

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 -- https://www.lieder.net/
For any other purpose, please write to the e-mail address below to request permission and discuss possible fees.

Based on

a text in German (Deutsch) by (Christian) Friedrich Hebbel (1813 - 1863), "Vorüber!"

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 8
Word count: 57