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 Grevelius and Sholto Kynoch, or click here to buy the CD from Stone Records.
Rat einer Alten
German source:
Eduard Mörike
Kann auch mitreden,
Und alt geworden,
Drum gilt mein Wort.
Schön reife Beeren
Am Bäumchen hangen:
Nachbar, da hilft kein
Zaun um den Garten;
Lustige Vögel
Wissen den Weg.
Aber, mein Dirnchen,
Du lass dir raten:
Halte dein Schätzchen
Wohl in der Liebe,
Wohl im Respekt!
Mit den zwei Fädlein
In eins gedrehet,
Ziehst du am kleinen
Finger ihn nach.
Aufrichtig Herze,
Doch schweigen können,
Früh mit der Sonne,
Mutig zur Arbeit,
Gesunde Glieder,
Saubere Linnen,
Das machet Mädchen
Und Weibchen wert.
Bin jung gewesen,
Kann auch mitreden,
Und alt geworden,
Drum gilt mein Wort.
Old woman's advice
English translation ©
Richard Stokes
So I can talk,
And now I’ve grown old,
My word carries weight.
Lovely ripe berries
Hang from the tree:
Neighbour, it’s no use
Fencing in the garden;
Cheerful birds
Know the way in.
But young lady –
A piece of advice:
Make sure your sweetheart
Loves
And respects you!
With those two threads
Twined into one,
You’ll lead him
By the little finger.
Be open of heart,
Yet know how to keep quiet,
Be up with the sun
And go to work with a will,
A healthy body
And clean linen –
These things become a girl
And a wife.
I was young once,
So I can talk,
And now I’ve grown old,
My word carries weight.
Translation © Richard Stokes, author of The Book of Lieder (Faber, 2005)
Rat einer Alten
German source:
Eduard Mörike
Old woman's advice
English source:
Richard Stokes
Bin jung gewesen,
I was young once,
Kann auch mitreden,
So I can talk,
Und alt geworden,
And now I’ve grown old,
Drum gilt mein Wort.
My word carries weight.
Schön reife Beeren
Lovely ripe berries
Am Bäumchen hangen:
Hang from the tree:
Nachbar, da hilft kein
Neighbour, it’s no use
Zaun um den Garten;
Fencing in the garden;
Lustige Vögel
Cheerful birds
Wissen den Weg.
Know the way in.
Aber, mein Dirnchen,
But young lady –
Du lass dir raten:
A piece of advice:
Halte dein Schätzchen
Make sure your sweetheart
Wohl in der Liebe,
Loves
Wohl im Respekt!
And respects you!
Mit den zwei Fädlein
With those two threads
In eins gedrehet,
Twined into one,
Ziehst du am kleinen
You’ll lead him
Finger ihn nach.
By the little finger.
Aufrichtig Herze,
Be open of heart,
Doch schweigen können,
Yet know how to keep quiet,
Früh mit der Sonne,
Be up with the sun
Mutig zur Arbeit,
And go to work with a will,
Gesunde Glieder,
A healthy body
Saubere Linnen,
And clean linen –
Das machet Mädchen
These things become a girl
Und Weibchen wert.
And a wife.
Bin jung gewesen,
I was young once,
Kann auch mitreden,
So I can talk,
Und alt geworden,
And now I’ve grown old,
Drum gilt mein Wort.
My word carries weight.
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
Eduard Mörike
Eduard Friedrich Mörike was a German Romantic poet. Mörike was born in Ludwigsburg. His father was Karl Friedrich Mörike (d. 1817), a district medical councilor; his mother was Charlotte Bayer. He attended the Latin school at Ludwigsburg, and the…