Eichendorff: “I Wander through the Quiet Night”

Josef Karl Benedikt von Eichendorff (1788-1857)

 

Set by Fanny Mendelssohn-Hensel (1805-1847), “Nachtwanderer,” op. 7, no. 1. Translation © Emily Ezust, Lied & Art Song Texts Page.

Ich wandre durch die stille Nacht


I wander through the quiet night;
the moon floats so secretly and gently,
often out from a dark cover of clouds.
And here and there in the valley
a nightingale awakens
but then all is gray and still again.
 .
O wonderful nightsong
from distant parts - the rushing of a stream
and the soft shuddering in the dark trees
confuse my thoughts.
My clamorous singing here
is only like a cry from my dreams.
My singing is a cry,
only a cry from my dreams.
 .