To the sun
(Poet's title: An die Sonne)
Set by Schubert:
D 270
[August 25, 1815]
Sinke, liebe Sonne, sinke,
Ende deinen trüben Lauf,
Und an deine Stelle winke
Bald den Mond herauf.
Herrlicher und schöner dringe
Aber Morgen dann herfür,
Liebe Sonn’! und mit dir bringe
Meinen Lieben mir.
Set, dear sun, set!
End your dreary course,
And in your place signal to
The moon to take over soon.
Appear more majestic and beautiful
Tomorrow, coming through,
Dear sun! and with you bring
Me my beloved.
All translations into English that appear on this website, unless otherwise stated, are by Malcolm Wren. You are free to use them on condition that you acknowledge Malcolm Wren as the translator and schubertsong.uk as the source. Unless otherwise stated, the comments and essays that appear after the texts and translations are by Malcolm Wren and are © Copyright.
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Themes and images in this text:
Evening and the setting sun Morning and morning songs Night and the moon Rising and falling Running and races The sun
It seems odd that the speaker addresses the ‘dear’ sun but also thinks that it has been running on a ‘dreary’ course. It is only when we arrive at the end of the text that we realise that the speaker has found the day to be tedious because her / his beloved has not made an appearance. All hope is now focused on the following morning. The poem is being uttered at that late point of the day when it has to be accepted that the lover is not coming. Tomorrow’s sunrise is therefore bound to be more beautiful.
Indeed, the title of the poem in the 1800 edition of Baumberg’s work was ‘Als ich einen Freund des nächsten Morgens auf dem Lande zum Besuche erwartete’, ‘When I was expecting a friend to visit me in the country the following morning’.
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Original Spelling An die Sonne Sinke, liebe Sonne, sinke! Ende deinen trüben Lauf, Und an deine Stelle winke Bald den Mond herauf. Herrlicher und schöner dringe Aber Morgen dann herfür, Liebe Sonn'! und mit dir bringe Meinen Lieben mir.
Confirmed by Peter Rastl with Schubert’s probable source Sämmtliche Gedichte Gabrielens von Baumberg. Wien, gedruckt bey Joh. Thom. Edl. v. Trattnern, k.k. Hofbuchdrucker und Buchhändler, 1800, page 18.
To see the 1800 edition of the text go to page 18 (48 von 350) here: http://digital.onb.ac.at/OnbViewer/viewer.faces?doc=ABO_%2BZ103534702