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Proofreading requested
Original lyrics
Gedächtnisfeier
Keine Messe wird man singen,
Keinen Kadosch wird man sagen,
Nichts gesagt und nichts gesungen
Wird an meinen Sterbetagen.
Doch vielleicht an solchem Tage,
Wenn das Wetter schön und milde,
Geht spazieren auf Montmartre
Mit Paulinen Frau Mathilde.
Mit dem Kranz von Immortellen
Kommt sie, mir das Grab zu schmücken,
Und sie seufzet: »Pauvre homme!«
Feuchte Wehmut in den Blicken.
Leider wohn ich viel zu hoch,
Und ich habe meiner Süßen
Keinen Stuhl hier anzubieten;
Ach! sie schwankt mit müden Füßen.
Süßes, dickes Kind, du darfst
Nicht zu Fuß nach Hause gehen;
An dem Barrieregitter
Siehst du die Fiaker stehen.
Submitted by SaintMark on 2016-09-14
Translation
Commemoration
Masses you won’t hear them singing,
Kaddish they’ll have never started,
Nothing will be sung or chanted,
When I’m recently departed.
Yet perhaps a few days later,
When the weather’s fine, or finer,
They’ll be strolling in Montmartre --
Frau Mathilde with Paulina.
Evergreen the wreath she’ll leave me
When she comes, my grave adorning,
Sighing softly: Pauvre homme!
Eyes all moist from wistful mourning.
Right up high I have my house, [but]
I’ve no chair to spare for making
My sweet darling very welcome,
Though her weary feet are aching.
Plump and loving girl! I know [that]
Walking home is irritating;
Look outside, right by the gate, and
You will see a carriage waiting.
equirhythmic
metered
poetic
rhyming
singable
Thanks! ❤ | ||
This is a poetic translation - deviations from the meaning of the original are present (extra words, extra or omitted information, substituted concepts).
Submitted by Paul Lawley on 2022-08-28
Author's comments:
I have taken the liberty of regularizing Heine's two metrical irregularities in my version. Lines 13 and 17 in the original both end with stressed syllables (unlike every other line in this trochaic poem). I have put my unstressed additions in square brackets. They can be safely ignored, but they do make for smoother reading.
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About translator
Name: Paul
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