Wenn zwei von einander scheiden
German source:
Heinrich Heine
So geben sie sich die Händ,
Und fangen an zu weinen,
Und seufzen ohne End.
Wir haben nicht geweinet,
Wir seufzten nicht weh und Ach!
Die Tränen und die Seufzer,
Die kamen hintennach.
When two part from each other
English translation ©
Hal Draper
They wring their hands and blend
Their tears and sobs and sorrow
And sighing without end.
We did not weep, my darling,
And not a sigh was heard;
The tears, the sighs, the anguish,
These came afterward.
Translations by Hal Draper published by Oxford University Press and Suhrkamp/Insel Verlag (1984)
Wenn zwei von einander scheiden
German source:
Heinrich Heine
When two part from each other
English source:
Hal Draper
Wenn zwei voneinander scheiden,
When two part from each other
So geben sie sich die Händ,
They wring their hands and blend
Und fangen an zu weinen,
Their tears and sobs and sorrow
Und seufzen ohne End.
And sighing without end.
Wir haben nicht geweinet,
We did not weep, my darling,
Wir seufzten nicht weh und Ach!
And not a sigh was heard;
Die Tränen und die Seufzer,
The tears, the sighs, the anguish,
Die kamen hintennach.
These came afterward.
Composer
Josephine Lang
Josephine Lang (1815-1880) was a much-respected song composer, inspiring early biographies by her contemporary Ferdinand Hiller and son Heinrich Köstlin. Her family included many professional musicians. Initially taught by her mother, the opera…
Poet
Heinrich Heine
Heine was born of Jewish parents. Much of his early life was influenced by the financial power of his uncle Salomon Heine, a millionaire Hamburg banker, with whom he remained on an awkward footing for many years. After he had been educated in the…