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 Mark Stone and Sholto Kynoch, or click here to buy the CD from Stone Records.
Nun lass uns Frieden schliessen, liebstes Leben
German source:
Paul Heyse
Zu lang ist’s schon, dass wir in Fehde liegen.
Wenn du nicht willst, will ich mich dir ergeben;
Wie könnten wir uns auf den Tod bekriegen?
Es schliessen Frieden Könige und Fürsten,
Und sollten Liebende nicht darnach dürsten?
Es schliessen Frieden Fürsten und Soldaten,
Und sollt es zwei Verliebten wohl missraten?
Meinst du, dass, was so grossen Herrn gelingt,
Ein Paar zufriedner Herzen nicht vollbringt?
Let us now make peace, love of my life
English translation ©
Richard Stokes
We have been feuding far too long.
If you’re not willing, I’ll give in to you;
How could we wage war to the death?
Peace is made by kings and princes,
Why should not lovers crave the same?
Peace is made by soldiers and princes,
So why should two lovers not succeed?
Do you think what such great lords can manage
Cannot be done by two contented hearts?
Translation © Richard Stokes, author of The Book of Lieder (Faber, 2005)
Nun lass uns Frieden schliessen, liebstes Leben
German source:
Paul Heyse
Let us now make peace, love of my life
English source:
Richard Stokes
Nun lass uns Frieden schliessen, liebstes Leben,
Let us now make peace, love of my life,
Zu lang ist’s schon, dass wir in Fehde liegen.
We have been feuding far too long.
Wenn du nicht willst, will ich mich dir ergeben;
If you’re not willing, I’ll give in to you;
Wie könnten wir uns auf den Tod bekriegen?
How could we wage war to the death?
Es schliessen Frieden Könige und Fürsten,
Peace is made by kings and princes,
Und sollten Liebende nicht darnach dürsten?
Why should not lovers crave the same?
Es schliessen Frieden Fürsten und Soldaten,
Peace is made by soldiers and princes,
Und sollt es zwei Verliebten wohl missraten?
So why should two lovers not succeed?
Meinst du, dass, was so grossen Herrn gelingt,
Do you think what such great lords can manage
Ein Paar zufriedner Herzen nicht vollbringt?
Cannot be done by two contented hearts?
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…