Songs
In dem Schatten meiner Locken
by Hugo Wolf From Spanisches Liederbuch: Weltliche Lieder (1890)
This song was recorded live at the Oxford Lieder Festival as part of Hugo Wolf: The Complete Songs on Stone Records.
Click here to listen to this song with Anna Huntley and Sholto Kynoch, or click here to buy the CD from Stone Records.
In dem Schatten meiner Locken
German source:
Paul Heyse
Schlief mir mein Geliebter ein.
Weck’ ich ihn nun auf? – Ach nein!
Sorglich strählt’ ich meine krausen
Locken täglich in der Frühe,
Doch umsonst ist meine Mühe,
Weil die Winde sie zerzausen.
Lockenschatten, Windessausen
Schläferten den Liebsten ein.
Weck’ ich ihn nun auf? – Ach nein!
Hören muß ich, wie ihn gräme,
Daß er schmachtet schon so lange,
Daß ihm Leben geb’ und nehme
Diese meine braune Wange,
Und er nennt mich seine Schlange,
Und doch schlief er bei mir ein.
Weck’ ich ihn nun auf? – Ach nein!
In the Shadow of my Tresses
English translation ©
Richard Stokes
My lover has fallen asleep.
Shall I wake him now? – Ah no!
Carefully, I combed my curly
Tresses early each morning,
But my efforts are in vain,
For the winds tousle them.
Shade-giving tresses, sighing breezes
Have lulled my lover to sleep.
Shall I wake him now? – Ah no!
I shall have to hear how he grieves,
How he has languished so long,
How his whole life depends
On these my dusky cheeks.
And he calls me his serpent,
And yet he fell asleep at my side,
Shall I wake him now? – Ah no!
Translations by Richard Stokes, author of The Book of Lieder (Faber, 2005)
In dem Schatten meiner Locken
German source:
Paul Heyse
In the Shadow of my Tresses
English source:
Richard Stokes
In dem Schatten meiner Locken
In the shadow of my tresses
Schlief mir mein Geliebter ein.
My lover has fallen asleep.
Weck’ ich ihn nun auf? – Ach nein!
Shall I wake him now? – Ah no!
Sorglich strählt’ ich meine krausen
Carefully, I combed my curly
Locken täglich in der Frühe,
Tresses early each morning,
Doch umsonst ist meine Mühe,
But my efforts are in vain,
Weil die Winde sie zerzausen.
For the winds tousle them.
Lockenschatten, Windessausen
Shade-giving tresses, sighing breezes
Schläferten den Liebsten ein.
Have lulled my lover to sleep.
Weck’ ich ihn nun auf? – Ach nein!
Shall I wake him now? – Ah no!
Hören muß ich, wie ihn gräme,
I shall have to hear how he grieves,
Daß er schmachtet schon so lange,
How he has languished so long,
Daß ihm Leben geb’ und nehme
How his whole life depends
Diese meine braune Wange,
On these my dusky cheeks.
Und er nennt mich seine Schlange,
And he calls me his serpent,
Und doch schlief er bei mir ein.
And yet he fell asleep at my side,
Weck’ ich ihn nun auf? – Ach nein!
Shall I wake him now? – Ah no!
Composer
Hugo Wolf
Hugo Filipp Jakob Wolf was born on 13 March 1860, the fourth of six surviving children, in Windischgraz, Styria, then part of the Austrian Empire. He was taught the piano and violin by his father at an early age and continued to study piano at the…
Poet
Paul Heyse
Paul Johann Ludwig von Heyse was a distinguished German writer and translator. A member of two important literary societies, the Tunnel über der Spree in Berlin and Die Krokodile in Munich, he wrote novels, poetry, 177 short stories, and about sixty…