by
Franz Kafka (1883 - 1924)
Noch spielen die Jagdhunde im Hof, aber...
Language: German (Deutsch)
Available translation(s): ENG FRE
Noch spielen die Jagdhunde im Hof, aber das Wild entgeht ihnen nicht,
so sehr es jetzt schon durch die Wälder jagt.
Lächerlich hast du dich aufgeschirrt für diese Welt.
Je mehr Pferde du anspannst, desto rascher gehts -
nämlich nicht das Ausreißen des Blocks aus dem Fundament,
was unmöglich ist, aber das Zerreißen der Riemen
und damit die leere fröhliche Fahrt.
G. Kurtág sets lines 1-2
About the headline (FAQ)
Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by (Peter) Alexander Goehr (b. 1932), "Noch spielen die Jagdhunde im Hof", op. 41 no. 2 (1979) [ voice and piano ], from Das Gesetz der Quadrille, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Ernst Křenek (1900 - 1991), "Noch spielen die Jagdhunde im Hof", op. 82 (Fünf Lieder nach Franz Kafka ) no. 3 (1937-8) [ voice and piano ], Universal Edition [sung text not yet checked]
- by György Kurtág (b. 1926), "In memoriam Robert Klein", op. 24 no. 4c (1985-6), lines 1-2 [ soprano and violin ], from Kafka-Fragmente, no. 4c [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Laura Prichard) , copyright © 2020, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [
Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2007-09-27
Line count: 7
Word count: 61
Still playing, are the hounds in the...
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch)
Still playing, are the hounds in the courtyard, but the game won't escape,
when they begin to hunt in the woods.
Ridiculously, you have tried to ready yourself for the world.
The more horses you harness, the faster they go -
namely, not tearing the block out of its base,
which is impossible, but shredding their harness straps
and running happily away with no load.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translations of title(s):
"Noch spielen die Jagdhunde im Hof" = "Still playing, are the hounds in the courtyard"
"In memoriam Robert Klein" = "In memory of Robert Klein"
Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2020 by Laura Prichard, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net
Based on:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Franz Kafka (1883 - 1924), written 1917
This text was added to the website: 2020-01-08
Line count: 7
Word count: 65