Songs
Grenzen der Menschheit
(1821)
D716
Grenzen der Menschheit
Wenn der uralte, Heilige VaterMit gelassener Hand Aus rollenden Wolken Segnende BlitzeÜber die Erde sä’t, Küss’ ich den letzten Saum seines Kleides, Kindliche Schauer Tief in der Brust.Denn mit GötternSoll sich nicht messen Irgend ein Mensch.Hebt er sich aufwärtsUnd berührtMit dem Scheitel die Sterne, Nirgends haften dannDie unsichern Sohlen,Und mit ihm spielen Wolken und Winde.Steht er mit festen, Markigen KnochenAuf der wohlgegründeten Dauernden Erde;Reicht er nicht auf, Nur mit der Eiche Oder der RebeSich zu vergleichen.Was unterscheidet Götter von Menschen? Dass viele WellenVor jenen wandeln, Ein ewiger Strom: Uns hebt die Welle, Verschlingt die Welle, Und wir versinken.Ein kleiner RingBegränzt unser Leben,Und viele GeschlechterReihen sich dauerndAn ihres DaseinsUnendliche Kette.
Limitations of mankind
When the ancient of days,The holy fatherWith a serene handFrom rolling cloudsScatters beneficent lightningOver the earth,I kiss the extremeHem of his garment,Childlike aweDeep in my breast.For no manShould measure himselfAgainst the gods.If he reaches upAnd touchesThe stars with his head,His uncertain feetLose their hold,And clouds and windsMake sport of him.If he stands with firm,Sturdy limbsOn the soldEnduring earth,He cannot even reach upTo compare himselfWith the oakOr vine.What distinguishesGods from men?Before the,Many waves roll onwards,An eternal river:We are tossed by the wave,Engulfed by the wave,And we founder.A little ringBounds our life,And many generationsConstantly succeed each otherLike links in the endless chainOf existence.
Translations by Richard Stokes, author of The Book of Lieder (Faber, 2005)
If you would like to use our texts and translations, please click here for more information.
Composer
Franz Peter Schubert was an late Classical and early Romantic composer. He produced a vast oeuvre during his short life, composing more the 600 vocal works (largely Lieder), and well as several symphonies, operas, and a large body of piano music. He was uncommonly gifted from a young age, but appreciation of his music was limited during his lifetime. His work became more popular in the decades after his death, and was praised by 19th century composers, including Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms, and Liszt.
Information from Wikipedia. Read more here.
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Poet
Johann Wolfgang Goethe was a German writer and statesman. His body of work includes epic and lyric poetry written in a variety of metres and styles; prose and verse dramas; memoirs; an autobiography; literary and aesthetic criticism; treatises on botany, anatomy, and colour; and four novels. In addition, numerous literary and scientific fragments, more than 10,000 letters, and nearly 3,000 drawings by him exist. A literary celebrity by the age of 25, Goethe was ennobled by the Duke of Saxe-Weimar, Karl August in 1782 after first taking up residence there in November 1775 following the success of his first novel, The Sorrows of Young Werther. He was an early participant in the Sturm und Drang literary movement. During his first ten years in Weimar, Goethe served as a member of the Duke's privy council, sat on the war and highway commissions, oversaw the reopening of silver mines in nearby Ilmenau, and implemented a series of administrative reforms at the University of Jena. He also contributed to the planning of Weimar's botanical park and the rebuilding of its Ducal Palace, which in 1998 were together designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Taken from Wikipedia. To view the full article, please click here.
See Full Entry
Sorry, no further description available.
Previously performed at:
- 13 Oct 2021: 35. Dietrich Henschel: Schubert: Songs of the Sea (second performance)
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- 12 Oct 2021: 27. Dietrich Henschel: Schubert: Songs of the Sea (first performance)
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- 26 Oct 2016: Mastercourse Day Three
-
Grenzen der Menschheit
Limitations of mankind
If you would like to use our texts and translations, please click here for more information.
Composer
Franz Peter Schubert was an late Classical and early Romantic composer. He produced a vast oeuvre during his short life, composing more the 600 vocal works (largely Lieder), and well as several symphonies, operas, and a large body of piano music. He was uncommonly gifted from a young age, but appreciation of his music was limited during his lifetime. His work became more popular in the decades after his death, and was praised by 19th century composers, including Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms, and Liszt.
Information from Wikipedia. Read more here.
See Full Entry
Poet
Johann Wolfgang Goethe was a German writer and statesman. His body of work includes epic and lyric poetry written in a variety of metres and styles; prose and verse dramas; memoirs; an autobiography; literary and aesthetic criticism; treatises on botany, anatomy, and colour; and four novels. In addition, numerous literary and scientific fragments, more than 10,000 letters, and nearly 3,000 drawings by him exist. A literary celebrity by the age of 25, Goethe was ennobled by the Duke of Saxe-Weimar, Karl August in 1782 after first taking up residence there in November 1775 following the success of his first novel, The Sorrows of Young Werther. He was an early participant in the Sturm und Drang literary movement. During his first ten years in Weimar, Goethe served as a member of the Duke's privy council, sat on the war and highway commissions, oversaw the reopening of silver mines in nearby Ilmenau, and implemented a series of administrative reforms at the University of Jena. He also contributed to the planning of Weimar's botanical park and the rebuilding of its Ducal Palace, which in 1998 were together designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Taken from Wikipedia. To view the full article, please click here.
See Full Entry
Sorry, no further description available.
Previously performed at:
- 13 Oct 2021: 35. Dietrich Henschel: Schubert: Songs of the Sea (second performance)
- 12 Oct 2021: 27. Dietrich Henschel: Schubert: Songs of the Sea (first performance)
- 26 Oct 2016: Mastercourse Day Three