An English translation of Schubert’s Winterreise, settings of poems by Wilhelm Müller. A synopsis of the story told by the poems.
The twenty-four poems of Winterreise were written in 1821 and 1822 and published in full in 1824. The first twelve poems were published separately in 1823. Schubert made his settings of the poems in 1827.
This version of the poems is based on the 1895 translation of Dr Theodore Baker, first published by Schirmer. However, there are important differences. Baker’s translation, designed to be sung with Schubert’s music, reproduces the metres of the original. This version is in blank verse and is designed purely to introduce modern readers to the poems. I have ignored the original metrical scheme in order to make the poems easy to read, but I have tried to make the translation as accurate as possible. I have also tried to use a vocabulary that suggests romantic poetry.
Synopsis
Winterreise is primarily about feelings and atmosphere, but there is nevertheless a story, albeit told in a fragmented narrative. A young man, the hero (or anti-hero) of the poems, arrives in an idyllic village in May (Good Night). There he befriends a family of mother, father and daughter and is invited to live with them (Good Night). He falls in love with the daughter and his love is returned, or so he is led to believe (Benumbed). However, the daughter rejects him to marry a wealthy suitor with the approval of her parents (The Vane). It is now winter and the hero leaves his adopted home in the dead of night, writing a farewell message to his beloved (Good Night). As he leaves the town crows shower him with snow from the roofs (Looking Back) and he begins a painful journey, constantly tortured by memories of his past happiness (Frozen Tears, On the River, The Watercourse). As he leaves the town he is joined by a raven, possibly symbolic of a death wish (The Raven). Eventually he arrives at another town (Solitude) where it seems that he stays for some time as he writes of the post arriving there (The Post). The cycle ends with a particularly bleak image. An organ-grinder or hurdy-gurdy man has a pitch near the village where he plies his trade ignored by the villagers and harassed by dogs. It is ironic that in this final poem the poet asks if the hurdy-gurdy man will set the poet’s songs to music, an invitation that was ultimately accepted by Schubert.
Barry Mitchell, July 2009.
The Poems.
1. Good Night (Gute Nacht)
As a stranger I shall leave
I remember a perfect day in May
How bright the flowers, how cool the breeze
The maiden had a friendly smile
The mother had kind words
But now the world is dreary
With a winter path before me
I can’t choose the season
To depart from this place
I won’t delay or ponder
I must begin my journey now
The bright moon lights my path
I see the snow-covered meadow
I see where deer have trod
A voice within says – go now
Why linger and delay?
Leave the dogs to bay at the moon
Before her father’s gate
For love is a thing of changes
God has made it so
Ever-changing from old to new
God has made it so
So love delights in changes
Good night, my love, good night
Love is a thing of changes
Good night, my love, good night
I’ll not disturb your sleep
But I’ll write over your door
A simple farewell message
Good night, my love, good night
These are the last words spoken
Soon I’ll be out of sight
A simple farewell message
Goodnight, my love, good night.
2. The Vane (Die Wetterfahne)
The wind is turning the weathervane
On the roof of my sweetheart’s house
Round and round it mocks and teases
Teases and mocks my sighs and my tears
If only I’d seen this fickle symbol
Before I entered that house
I would not have hoped so much
Of one inconstant, though so fair
For Nature plays with our hearts
As the wind plays with the vane
What do they care if my heart is dying?
Their child will be a wealthy bride
3. Frozen Tears (Gefrorne Tränen)
Cling to my face
Have I really been crying
And not noticed them flow?
Teardrops, heavy teardrops
What chills you through
What turns you into ice
Like drops of early dew?
From this poor bosom tears flow
Flow with burning heat
Flow enough to melt
The winter frost and snow
4. Benumbed (Erstarrung)
I look for traces of her footsteps
I look for them in vain
Where leaning on my arm
She crossed the bright green field
I’ll kiss the wintry carpet
And with my scalding tears
Dissolve the freezing snow
I’ll bring that field to life again
Do flowers still bloom?
Is the grass still green?
All the flowers have died
The grass is withered and thin
Of yesterday’s happiness
When my sorrows fall silent
Who will speak to me of her?
It seems my heart is frozen
Her face etched on the ice
If my heart ever melts
Her face will fade away
5. The Linden Tree (Der Lindenbaum)
A Linden-tree stands there
Many times I’ve sought its shade
A place of rest and pleasant dreams
When dreaming there I carved
Some words of love upon the bark
Both joy and sorrow
Drew me to that shady spot
But today I must wander
Through this blackest night
In darkness I passed this tree
But couldn’t bear to look
I heard the branches rustle
As if they spoke to me
Come to me my old friend
Find peace with me
Cruel winds were blowing
Coldly cutting my face
My hat was blown behind me
I quickly sped on my way
I’m now many miles distant
From that dear old Linden-tree
But I still hear it whisper
“Come – find peace with me.”
6. The Watercourse (Wasserflut)
Deep marks in the snow
The cold flakes
Absorbing all my sorrows
When the grass begins to grow
And feels a warmer breeze
The swelling ice begins to break
And the sun melts the snow
Snow, you know of my yearnings
Tell me, where do you go?
Take my tears with you
As you flow to the stream
Flow through the town together
Go where the road leads
You’ll feel my hot tears
As you pass where my loved-one lives
7. On the River (Auf dem Flusse)
Flowing fast and bright
Why are you now so still
Lifeless, chilled and silent
A hard and icy case
Is now your winter prison
You lie cold and dreary
Pressed fast upon the earth
I’ll write upon your cover
With a pointed stone
My loved one’s name
A day and a time
The day when I first met her
The day when my love began
I’ll draw a broken ring
Around that name and date
Does my heart see
Your image in this river?
Does it swell and quiver
In its own icy case?
8. Looking Back (Rückblick)
It feels like I’m walking on fireThough underfoot is ice and snow
I’ve hardly time to draw breath
So keen am I to leave that town
Every stone has made me stumble
In my haste to get away
From every roof I’ve passed
Crows have showered me with snow
How different when I arrived
How well you greeted me then
Where the lark and nightingale sang
A Linden-tree whispered in the breeze
The murmur of the sparkling stream
Then the spell cast upon my heart
From a beautiful maiden’s eyes
Now when I think of that day
I’m tempted to turn and look back
To retrace my weary way
To stand before my loved one’s house
9. Will O’ the Wisp (Irrlicht)
Will O’ the Wisp has led me
Deep into a rocky maze
I look from right to left
I seek a path, but there is none
I’m about to lose my way
All paths appear the same
Our joys and sorrows are no more real
Than this teasing phantom light
Through the gorge where the river rushed
I’ll calmly travel on
Every river flows to the sea
Every sorrow will come to an end
10. Rest (Rast)
I feel weary
Nothing could tire me
While I pressed on
Over desolate winter paths
I was carried along as if on wings
It was too cold to stop
The winter wind helped me on my way
A helping hand on my back
11. Spring Dreams (Frühlingstraum)
I dreamt of flowers in many colours
That burst forth in May
I dreamt of the grassy meadow
And the sound of endless birdsong
When the cock crowed
I awoke in my bed
Eveything was cold and dismal
And ravens croaked overhead
Who drew those leafy flowers
Upon the window pane?
Why do you mock the dreamer
Whose garden blooms in winter?
And of the love we shared
I dreamt of sweet kisses
And blissful caresses
When the cock crowed
I started from my dreams
Now I’m sitting alone
With a memory of that dream
My eyes are closing again
Once more my heart begins to throb
Will leaves ever turn green?
Will I ever embrace my sweetheart?
12. Solitude (Einsamkeit)
Across the bright blue sky
Soft breezes gently sigh
In the dark forest
But in moody silence
I walk with sluggish feet
Alone and unnoticed
Why is the air so tranquil!
Why is the world so fair!
Even in the raging storm
I never felt such despair
Credit for the Translation, Text and Tags goes to Barry Mitchell, without whose work this post would not exist.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigitte_Fassbaender
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winterreise
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