by William Smyth (1765 - 1849)
Translation Singable translation by Georg Pertz (1830 - 1870)
The farewell song
Language: English
Available translation(s): FRE
O Erin! To thy harp divine I bid adieu: Yet let me now its sounds resign With homage due. Thy gen'rous sons, that know not fear, Their feelings, genius, fire: O blest be all! But Erin dear, Be blest thy lyre. O where the heart that would not bound With answering beat, To hear thy Planxty's dancing sound, And numbers sweet. And where the heart that sinks not low, And musing melts away, To hear thy harp's deep lonely flow, When mourns the lay. No toil can e'er such sweets supply No chymic power, As brings me bee, with honied thigh, From wild heath flower: And Science, that could wake the strings To chords of rapture high. May envy, while she smiling sings Thy minstrelsy.
Authorship:
- by William Smyth (1765 - 1849) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827), "The farewell song", WoO. 154 (12 Irische Lieder) no. 3, G. 225 no. 3, published 1812/3 [ voice, piano, violin, violoncello ] [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Le chant d'adieu", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) [singable] (Georg Pertz) , "Abschiedsgesang"
Research team for this page: Guy Laffaille [Guest Editor] , Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2005-09-18
Line count: 24
Word count: 125
Abschiedsgesang
Language: German (Deutsch)  after the English
O Irland! Deinem Saitenspiel Biet' ich Ade; Doch huld'gen noch laß ohne Ziel Dir, eh' ich geh'! Den Deinen, trotzend Schwert und Pfeil, Magst Flammenmut du weihn; Heil ihnen! Doch vor allem Heil Der Harfe dein! Wo ist das Herz, das hoch nicht fliegt Und Antwort schlägt, Wenn deine Harfe, lustgewiegt, Die Schwingen regt? Und wo das Herz, das nicht erbebt, Nicht jäh zu springen droht, Wenn Klage deinem Lied entschwebt Um sie, die tot?
Authorship:
- Singable translation by Georg Pertz (1830 - 1870), "Abschiedsgesang" [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English by William Smyth (1765 - 1849)
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- [ None yet in the database ]
Researcher for this page: Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2005-09-18
Line count: 16
Word count: 75