To music
(Poet's title: An die Musik)
Set by Schubert:
D 547
[March 1817]
Du holde Kunst, in wie viel grauen Stunden,
Wo mich des Lebens wilder Kreis umstrickt,
Hast du mein Herz zu warmer Lieb entzunden,
Hast mich in eine beßre Welt entrückt.
Oft hat ein Seufzer, deiner Harf entflossen,
Ein süßer, heiliger Akkord von dir,
Den Himmel bessrer Zeiten mir erschlossen,
Du holde Kunst, ich danke dir dafür.
Oh beauteous art, in so many dreary hours,
Where I have been swept up in the savage circle of life,
You have ignited my heart, giving it a warmer love.
You have carried me off into a better world.
There has often been a sigh flowing from your harp,
A sweet sacred chord of yours,
Which has opened up to me the better times of heaven.
Oh beauteous art, I thank you for it.
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:
Circles Grey Harmony Harps and Aeolian harps Hearts Heat Heaven, the sky Sighs and sighing Sweetness Time
Rilke disliked this poem. He found it sentimental and trite rather than simple and honest. It also appears that Franz von Schober, its author, did not rate it particularly highly either. He failed to include it in the collected edition of his poetry published in 1842. It may be that this is one of the few texts set to music by Schubert that was never intended to have an independent identity apart from its musical setting. Schober could well have written it specifically so that his friend Schubert could set it to music and we should not attempt to imagine it without Schubert’s own ‘sweet, sacred chords’.
Schober and Schubert may have intended that ‘An die Musik‘ be performed alongside ‘Trost im Liede‘ (D 546). Schubert was going through a phase in March 1817 of composing pairs of songs on similar themes.
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Original Spelling An die Musik Du holde Kunst, in wie viel grauen Stunden, Wo mich des Lebens wilder Kreis umstrickt, Hast du mein Herz zu warmer Lieb entzunden, Hast mich in eine beßre Welt entrückt. Oft hat ein Seufzer, deiner Harf entflossen, Ein süßer, heiliger Akkord von dir, Den Himmel beßrer Zeiten mir erschlossen, Du holde Kunst, ich danke dir dafür.