To someone far away
(Poet's title: Der Entfernten)
Set by Schubert:
D 331
for TTBB quartet[probably summer 1816]
D 350
[probably summer 1816]
Wohl denk ich allenthalben,
O du Entfernte, dein,
Früh, wenn die Wolken falben,
Und spät im Sternenschein.
Im Grund des Morgengoldes,
Im roten Abendlicht,
Umschwebst du mich, o holdes,
Geliebtes Traumgesicht.
Es folgt in alle Weite
Dein trautes Bild mir nach,
Es wallt mir stets zur Seite,
Im Träumen oder wach;
Wenn Lüfte sanft bestreifen
Der See beschilften Strand,
Umflüstern mich die Schleifen
Von seinem Busenband.
Ein Abglanz seines Schleiers
Scheint auf die Saat gewebt;
Sein Hauch, was das Gemäuers
Bewegten Eppich hebt;
Der Kleidung weiche Falten,
Geformt aus Glanz und Duft,
Entschwinden in den Spalten
Der öden Felsenkluft.
Wo rauschender und trüber
Der Strom Gebirge trennt,
Weht oft sein Laut herüber,
Den meine Seele kennt;
Wenn ich den Fels erklimme,
Den noch kein Fuß erreicht,
Lausch ich nach jener Stimme,
Doch Kluft und Echo schweigt.
Wo durch die Nacht der Fichten
Ein Dämm’rungsflimmer wallt,
Seh ich dich zögernd flüchten,
Geliebte Luftgestalt!
Wenn sanft dir nachzulangen,
Der Sehnsucht Arm sich hebt,
Ist dein Phantom zergangen,
Wie Taugedüft verschwebt.
Wherever I am I cannot help thinking
Of you, away in the distance!
Early in the day, when the clouds are grey
And late at night in the starlight.
On the ground lit up by the gold of morning,
In the red light of evening,
You hover around me, you beauteous one,
Beloved face of my dreams!
However far I go, following me there is
Your devoted image,
It is always moving along by my side,
In my dreams or while I am awake;
When breezes gently sweep
Over the reeds on the sea-shore,
Flowing around me I can feel the ribbons
Of her bodice.
A reflection of her veil
Appears to be woven into the corn;
Her breath is what raises the wall’s
Ivy, her breath makes it move;
The soft folds of her clothing,
Made of gloss and perfume,
Disappear in the crevices
Of the barren cracked cliff.
Where a roaring and gloomy
River separates the mountains
The sound of her is heard over it,
Since my soul knows it;
When I scale the cliff-face,
Where no foot has yet trodden,
I pay attention to that voice
But the chasms and Echo say nothing.
Where through the night of the spruce trees,
With the flickering of sunset moving about,
I can see you hesitantly making an escape,
Beloved airy vision!
When I gently reach out for you
To draw you into my longing arms,
Your phantom has gone away,
Dissolved like dewy mist.
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.
☙
Themes and images in this text:
Arms and embracing Breath and breathing By water – beaches and general Climbing Clothes Clouds Corn and cornfields Dew Dreams Echo Evening and the setting sun Gold Ivy Longing and yearning Mirrors and reflections Mist and fog Morning and morning songs Mountains and cliffs Near and far Night and the moon Pictures and paintings Red and purple Reeds Ribbons Rivers (Strom) The sea Sleep Smells Spruce trees Stars Veils Voices Weaving Wind
There is no emotional distance here. The speaker addresses the absent beloved directly in the first and final stanzas, commenting on his inability to stop thinking of her, in all places and at all times of the day. However, he is perfectly aware that what is obsessing him is his own image of the beloved (so in the other stanzas it is the effect of the image rather than the woman herself that he is describing), and at the end of the text he acknowledges that she has become a phantom who dissolves into mist as soon as he tries to embrace her. For all we know, she might be as emotionally detached from the poet as she is physically distant; all of the closeness might be on his side or in his fantasy.
Two particularly unusual images give an indication of what she means to him. When the speaker sees the breeze moving the reeds by the sea he thinks first of the ribbons on her bodice (similarly blown by the wind). Equally erotically charged is the way that cracks and crevices in a cliff face remind the poet of the folds and pleats in her skirt. These are the thoughts of someone who has long wanted to touch and explore her clothing; he has a vivid memory of each dangling strand and suggestive indentation. The sheer intensity of these ideas leads us to conclude that he looked without touching.
☙
Original Spelling Der Entfernten Wohl denk' ich allenthalben, O du Entfernte, dein! Früh, wenn die Wolken falben, Und spät im Sternenschein. Im Grund des Morgengoldes, Im rothen Abendlicht, Umschwebst du mich, o holdes, Geliebtes Traumgesicht! Es folgt in alle Weite Dein trautes Bild mir nach, Es wallt mir stets zur Seite, Im Träumen oder wach; Wenn Lüfte sanft bestreifen Der See beschilften Strand, Umflüstern mich die Schleifen Von seinem Busenband. Ein Abglanz seines Schleyers Scheint auf die Saat gewebt; Sein Hauch, was das Gemäuers Bewegten Eppich hebt; Der Kleidung weiche Falten, Geformt aus Glanz und Duft, Entschwinden in den Spalten Der öden Felsenkluft. Wo rauschender und trüber Der Strom Gebirge trennt, Weht oft sein Laut herüber, Den meine Seele kennt; Wenn ich den Fels erklimme, Den noch kein Fuß erreicht, Lausch' ich nach jener Stimme, Doch Kluft und Echo schweigt. Wo durch die Nacht der Fichten Ein Dämm'rungsflimmer wallt, Seh' ich dich zögernd flüchten, Geliebte Luftgestalt! Wenn sanft dir nachzulangen, Der Sehnsucht Arm sich hebt, Ist dein Phantom zergangen, Wie Thaugedüft verschwebt.
Confirmed by Peter Rastl with Gedichte von J. G. von Salis. Neueste Auflage. Wien 1815. Bey B. Ph. Bauer, pages 85-86.
To see an early edition of the text, go to page 85 [99 von 192] here: http://digital.onb.ac.at/OnbViewer/viewer.faces?doc=ABO_%2BZ160622604