Swiftly walk over the western wave, Spirit of Night! Out of the misty eastern cave, Where, all the long and lone daylight, Thou wovest dreams of joy and fear Which make thee terrible and dear, - Swift be thy flight! Wrap thy form in a mantle grey Star-inwrought! Blind with thine hair the eyes of Day, Kiss her until she be wearied out, Then wander o'er city and sea, and land, Touching all with thine opiate wand - Come, long-sought! When I arose and saw the dawn, I sigh'd for thee; When light rode high, and the dew was gone, And noon lay heavy on flower and tree, And the weary Day turn'd to his rest, Lingering like an unloved guest, I sigh'd for thee. Thy brother Death came, and cried, "Wouldst thou me?" Thy sweet child Sleep, the filmy-eyed, Murmur'd like a noontide bee, "Shall I nestle near thy side? Wouldst thou me?" - And I replied, "No, not thee!" Death will come when thou art dead, Soon, too soon - Sleep will come when thou art fled; Of neither would I ask the boon I ask to thee, beloved Night - Swift be [thine]1 approaching flight, Come soon, soon!
L. Lehrman sets lines 8-11
E. Maconchy sets stanza 5
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)1 Maconchy: "thy"
Authorship:
- by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792 - 1822), "To night" [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 David Arditti (b. 1964), "To the Night", 1985, first performed 1994, from Three Poems of Percy Bysshe Shelley, no. 2 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Cecil Armstrong Gibbs (1889 - 1960), "Night", op. 2 (Two Songs) no. 1, unpublished [sung text not yet checked]
- by Leonard J[ordan] Lehrman (b. 1949), "A songlet on an English love note", op. 41 (1977), first performed 1979, lines 8-11 [ soprano and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Elizabeth Maconchy (1907 - 1994), "To the night", 1965, first performed 1966, stanza 5 [ SATB chorus a cappella ], from Nocturnal, no. 3 [sung text checked 1 time]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Luise von Plönnies, née Leisler (1803 - 1872) , "An die Nacht" ; composed by Adolf Jensen.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CZE Czech (Čeština) (Jaroslav Vrchlický) , "Noci", Prague, J. Otto, first published 1901
- HUN Hungarian (Magyar) (Dezső Kosztolányi) , "Az Éjhez"
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 35
Word count: 202
Göttin der Nacht, schweb' über die Fluth Und die westliche Well'! Aus des Ostens Höhle, wo du geruht, So lang uns geleuchtet das Tageslicht hell, Wo du Träume, an Schrecken und Freuden reich, Gewoben, du furchtbar und hold zugleich, Nahe mir schnell! Wick'le in grauen Schleier dich ein, Sternenverschönte! Verhüll' mit den Locken des Tags hellen Schein, Und küss' ihn, bis müd' er an's Herz sich dir lehnte; Dann schweb' über Länder und Meere hinab, Berühre sie all' mit dem Zauberstab; Komm', lang Ersehnte! Als ich am frühen Morgen erwacht, Seufzt' ich nach dir! Als den Thau getrocknet der Sonne Pracht, Und die Gluth lag drückend auf Bäumen und mir, Und der müde Tag sich zögernd zur Rast Wandte, gleich einem unlieben Gasts Seufzt' ich nach dir!
Authorship:
- by Luise von Plönnies, née Leisler (1803 - 1872), "An die Nacht" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792 - 1822), "To night"
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Adolf Jensen (1837 - 1879), "An die Nacht", op. 61 (Sechs Lieder für 1 tiefe Stimme und Pianoforte) no. 6, published 1877 [ low voice and piano ], Breslau, Hainauer [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2011-07-18
Line count: 21
Word count: 127