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Ach Gott, wie weh thut Scheiden! Hat mir mein Herz verwundt; So trab' ich [über die]1 Heiden Und [traur']2 zu aller Stund, Der Stunden der sind [also viel]3, Mein Herz trägt [heimlich]4 Leiden, Wiewol ich oft fröhlich bin. [Hatt' mir ein Gärtlein bauet]5, Von Veil und grünem Klee, Ist mir zu früh erfroren, Thut meinem Herzen weh; Ist mir erfrorn bei Sonnenschein, Ein Kraut: Je länger je lieber, Ein Blümlein: Vergiß nicht mein. Das Blümlein das ich meine, Das ist von edler Art, Ist aller Tugend reine, Ihr Mündlein das ist zart, Ihr' Äuglein die sind hübsch und fein, [Wann]6 ich an sie gedenke, [Wie gern ich bei ihr wollt' sein]7! 8 Sollt [meinen Buhlen aufgeben]9 [Als oft ein Andrer]10 thut, Sollt [führen]11 ein fröhlich's Leben, [Darzu ein']12 leichten Mut? Das kann und mag doch [nicht gesein]13; [Gesegn']14 dich Gott im Herzen! Es muß geschieden sein.
P. Eben sets stanzas 1-3
L. Keller sets stanzas 1, 3-4
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)Confirmed with Deutsche Volkslieder gesammelt von Georg Scherer, Leipzig, Verlag von Gustav Mayer, 1851, pages 121-122.
Note: modern German would change the following spellings "thut" -> "tut", "Wiewol" -> "Wiewohl", etc.
Note provided by Johann Winkler for von Sahr's setting, which uses the word "erwegen" in stanza 4 line 1 (see below): Grimm dedicates more than 4 columns to this word. It has two different meanings: 1st: to make a decision, 2nd: to forego something. It seems likely the text means the 2nd alternative: "Should I forego my beloved ... in order to lead a merry (because unbound) life? ... No, that must not be." The word "erwehren", found in at least three scores (Brahms Eben, Keller), doesn't make any sense and was probably written by someone who didn't understand the word "erwegen", which flourished -- according to Grimm -- in the 16th century and disappeared in the 18th.
1 Brahms, Eben: "üb'r die"; Keller: "über d'"2 Keller: "trauer"
3 Brahms, Eben, Keller, Sahr: "allsoviel"
4 Keller: "heimlich's"
5 Eben: "Tät mir ein Gärtlein bauen"
6 Brahms, Eben, Keller: "Wenn"
7 Keller: "So wollt' ich gern bei ihr sein", Sahr: "Wie gern wollt' ich bei ihr"
8 Brahms, Eben, Keller:
Mich dünkt in all mein Sinnen Und wenn ich bei ihr bin, Sie sei ein Kaiserinne Kein lieber ich nie gewinn; Hat mir mein junges Herz erfreut Wenn ich an sie gedenke, Verschwunden ist all mein Leid.9 Brahms, Eben, Keller: "mich meins Buhln erwehren"; Sahr: "mich meins Buhln erwegen"
10 Brahms, Eben, Keller: "Als oft ein Ander"; Sahr: "Wie oft ein Ander"
11 Brahms, Eben, Keller, Sahr: "führ'n"
12 Brahms, Eben, Keller: "Dazu ein'n"; Sahr: "Dazu einen"
13 Sahr: "so nicht sein"
14 Sahr: "Gesegne"
Text Authorship:
- from Volkslieder (Folksongs) , "Ach Gott, wie weh thut Scheiden!" [author's text checked 1 time 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 Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), "Scheiden", WoO. 32 no. 16 (1858), published 1926 [ voice and piano ], from Deutsche Volkslieder, no. 16, Leipzig, Breitkopf & Härtel [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), "Ach Gott, wie weh tut Scheiden", WoO. 33 no. 17, published [1894], from Deutsche Volkslieder, no. 17, Berlin, N. Simrock [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), "Scheiden", WoO. posth. 37 no. 12 (1859-62) [ SSAA chorus a cappella ], from 16 Deutsche Volkslieder, no. 12 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), "Scheiden", WoO. posth. 35 no. 1 (1863/4?) [ SATB chorus ], from Deutsche Volkslieder für gemischten Chor, no. 1 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Albert Hermann Dietrich (1829 - 1908), "Ach Gott, wie weh thut scheiden", op. 13 (6 Lieder für tiefe Stimme mit Pianoforte) no. 6, published 1861 [ low voice and piano ], Köln, Schloss [sung text not yet checked]
- by Petr Eben (1929 - 2007), "Ach Gott, wie weh tut Scheiden", stanzas 1-3 [ voice and guitar ], from Písně k loutně, no. 4, confirmed with a CD booklet [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Benjamin Hamma (1831 - 1911), "Ach Gott, wie weh thut das Scheiden", published 1868 [ men's chorus ], from Sechzehn Männerquartette und Chöre, no. 4, Königsberg, Jabukowski [sung text not yet checked]
- by Carl Hirsch (1858 - 1918), "Ach Gott, wie weh thut Scheiden", op. 20 (Drei Lieder für Männerchor) no. 2, published 1890 [ men's chorus a cappella ], Berlin, Fr. Luckhardt [sung text not yet checked]
- by Ludwig Keller (1847 - 1930), "Ach Gott, wie weh tut scheiden", stanzas 1,3-4, from Zwei altdeutsche Volkslieder, no. 1 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Johann Christoph Kienlen (1783 - 1829), "Altdeutsches Lied", published 1810 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Franz Josef Löwenstamm (1843 - 1903), "Volkslied", op. 3 (Fünf Gesänge für gemischten Chor) no. 1, published 1876 [ mixed chorus ], München, Falter [sung text not yet checked]
- by Carl Piutti (1846 - 1902), "Scheiden", op. 17 (Acht Lieder für S., A., T. und B.) no. 4, published 1880 [ SATB chorus a cappella ], Leipzig, Forberg [sung text not yet checked]
- by Alfred Richter (1846 - 1919), "Wie weh thut Scheiden", op. 11 (Acht Volkslieder für vier Männerstimmen) no. 3, published 1876 [ vocal quartet for male voices a cappella ], Leipzig, Forberg [sung text not yet checked]
- by Heinrich von Sahr (1821 - 1874), "Ach Gott, wie weh tut Scheiden", op. 6 (Neun Lieder für eine Tenorstimme mit Begleitung des Pianoforte) no. 9 [ tenor and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by (Philipp) Friedrich Silcher (1789 - 1860), "Erfrorene Blumen" [sung text not yet checked]
- by Gustav Weber (1845 - 1887), "Scheiden", published 1900 [ men's chorus ], from [Neun] Altdeutsche Volkslieder für Männerchor gesetzt, no. 2, Leipzig, Hug & Co. [sung text not yet checked]
- by Rudolf Weinwurm (1835 - 1911), "Scheiden", op. 50 (Vier Gesänge auf altdeutsche Texte für gemischten Chor) no. 1, published 1900 [ mixed chorus ], Leipzig, Rob. Forberg [sung text not yet checked]
- by Erich J. Wolff (1874 - 1913), "Scheiden", Lieder no. 2, published 1914 [sung text not yet checked]
Set in a modified version by Julius Hagemann, Gustav Hasse, Louis Victor Franz Saar, Julius Schäffer.
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in German (Deutsch), adapted by Friedrich Konrad Müller von der Werra (1823 - 1881) , "Ach Gott, wie weh thut Scheiden", subtitle: "Nach einem alten Volkslied", written 1865, appears in Das Buch der Lieder, in 4. Liebe und Leid [an adaptation] ; composed by Gustav Heinrich Graben-Hoffmann.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Michael P Rosewall) , copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Malcolm Wren [Guest Editor] , Johann Winkler
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 28
Word count: 146
Ah God, how painful is parting, It has wounded my heart, Therefore, I wander across the moors And lament at all hours. For far too many hours, My heart secretly bears sorrows, Though I often appear happy. I built myself a little garden, With violets and green clover, Which, for me, froze too early, Bringing grief to my heart. For me, frozen in the sunshine, Was an herb, honeysuckle, A little flower, forget-me-not. The little flower that I refer to Is a noble one Having the purest virtue, Her tiny mouth is so tender, Her little eyes are handsome and fine. When I think about her, How much I would love to be with her!1 If my love should resist me As others often have, Should I pursue a carefree life Affecting a lighthearted attitude? That cannot and must not be, God bless your heart, We must be parted.
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)1 Brahms, Eben, Keller:
I believe with all my being That when I am near her She is an empress, A dearer one I have never known. She makes my young heart rejoice When I think about her All of my sorrow disappears.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2022 by Michael P Rosewall, (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) from Volkslieder (Folksongs) , "Ach Gott, wie weh thut Scheiden!"
This text was added to the website: 2022-08-26
Line count: 28
Word count: 149