"" (To sing on the water), D. 774, is a Lied composed by Franz Schubert in 1823, based on the poem of the same name by Friedrich Leopold zu Stolberg-Stolberg.[1]
The text describes a scene on the water from the perspective of the narrator who is in a boat, and delves into the narrator's reflections on the passing of time. The song's piano accompaniment recreates the texture of the shimmering waves () mentioned in the third line of the poem and its rhythmic style in the 6/8 meter is reminiscent of a barcarole. Harmonically, the song as a whole and within each stanza traces a movement from the minor mode to the major mode: the song begins in A-flat minor and ends in A-flat major.[2]
Franz Liszt transcribed the piece for solo piano, S. 558.
Über den Wipfeln des westlichen HainesWinket uns freundlich der rötliche Schein;Unter den Zweigen des östlichen HainesSäuselt der Kalmus im rötlichen Schein;Freude des Himmels und Ruhe des HainesAtmet die Seel' im errötenden Schein.
Ach, es entschwindet mit tauigem FlügelMir auf den wiegenden Wellen die Zeit.Morgen entschwindet mit schimmerndem FlügelWieder wie gestern und heute die Zeit,Bis ich auf höherem, strahlenden FlügelSelber entschwinde der wechselnden Zeit.
Above the tree-tops of the western grovethe red glow beckons kindly to us;beneath the branches of the eastern grovethe reeds whisper in the red glow.The soul breathes the joy of heaven,the peace of the grove, in the reddening glow.
Alas, with dewy wingstime vanishes from me on the rocking waves.Tomorrow let time again vanish with shimmeringwings, as it did yesterday and today,until, on higher, more radiant wings,I myself vanish from the flux of time.[3]