Ruhe Sanft

[Anne Matassa]

Could anyone please provide a translation of the aria "Ruhe Sanft" from
"Zaide" by Mozart?

Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben,
schlafe, bis dein Glück erwacht;
da, mein Bild will ich dir geben,
schau, wie freundlich es dir lacht:
Ihr süssen Träume, wiegt ihn ein,
und lasset seinem Wunsch am Ende
die wollustreichen Gegenstände
zu reifer Wirklichkeit gedeihn.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Maurice Matassa

[Graham Sanders]

Post by Anne Matassa
Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben,
schlafe, bis dein Glück erwacht;
da, mein Bild will ich dir geben,
Ihr süssen Träume, wiegt ihn ein,
und lasset seinem Wunsch am Ende
die wollustreichen Gegenstände
zu reifer Wirklichkeit gedeihn.

Sweet Peace, my lovely life,
Sleep, until your luck wakes;
There, I will give you my picture,
Look, how friendly it laughs at you,
Your sweet dreams, lulls you
And allows his wish in the end
The (word must have a mistake, it's an adj) things
To fuller substance prospers

Graham

[HelenMynrd]

Ah....how I love this beautiful aria!!!!! Absolutely one of my very most
favorites! Love and Sing





!>Sweet Peace, Ruhe Sanft......
(All the good it does to post this song on this site.....Peace????????)

[Mark D Lew]

Post by Graham Sanders

Post by Anne Matassa
[...]
die wollustreichen Gegenstände
zu reifer Wirklichkeit gedeihn.

[...]
The (word must have a mistake, it's an adj) things
To fuller substance prospers

I don't know much German, but it seems clear enough to me that
"wollustreichen" is one of those made up compounds that German poets
like to invent, like Schiller's "Götterfunken".

Take it apart and it would be something like "voluptuousness-offering",
right?

Maybe the original poem has a hyphen in it: wollust-reichen

mdl

[Britta]

Post by Mark D Lew

Post by Graham Sanders

Post by Anne Matassa
[...]
die wollustreichen Gegenstände
zu reifer Wirklichkeit gedeihn.

[...]
The (word must have a mistake, it's an adj) things
To fuller substance prospers

I don't know much German, but it seems clear enough to me that
"wollustreichen" is one of those made up compounds that German poets
like to invent, like Schiller's "Götterfunken".
Take it apart and it would be something like "voluptuousness-offering",
right?
Maybe the original poem has a hyphen in it: wollust-reichen

No, it's an absolutely normal word. You've made the perfectly understandable
and logical mistake of thinking of "reichen" as coming from the verb. Instead
it is a form of the adjective "reich" meaning "rich." If we translate "Wollust"
as voluptuousness (what a hard word to spell), it becomes something like
"voluptuousness-rich."


Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben,

"Mein holdes Leben" is in this case a term of endearment; she is addressing the
man directly. Rest peacefully, my dear life (my sweetheart or whatever).

schlafe, bis dein Glück erwacht;
da, mein Bild will ich dir geben,
schau, wie freundlich es dir lacht:

Alles klar, right? Sleep and wake up to happiness; here, I'll give you my
picture; look how sweetly it is smiling at you.

Ihr süssen Träume, wiegt ihn ein,

You sweet dreams, rock him to sleep. She's now addressing the dreams, and
speaking of the guy in the third person, OK?

und lasset seinem Wunsch am Ende
die wollustreichen Gegenstände
zu reifer Wirklichkeit gedeihn.

This is where it gets hard; it's almost impossible to translate word-for-word.
What it means, auf Deutsch gesagt, is "let all his dreams come true" or "may his
desires become reality" or something along those lines. Literally it's a mess
in English:

and let according to his wish, in the end,
the voluptuous(ness-rich) things (the things he's dreaming about)
mature to full reality.

The trick is to understand the dative case in "seinem Wunsch." It's "seinem
Wunsch gedeihen."

Britta

[susurrus]

"Britta" <***@hotmail.com> wrote

< Excellent post snipped.>

Britta, what a joy it is to have you back! You are the best, girl! The best!

susurrus

[Mark D Lew]

Post by Britta
No, it's an absolutely normal word. You've made the perfectly understandable
and logical mistake of thinking of "reichen" as coming from the verb. Instead
it is a form of the adjective "reich" meaning "rich." If we translate "Wollust"
as voluptuousness (what a hard word to spell), it becomes something like
"voluptuousness-rich."

Thanks so much for setting me straight. Of the main opera languages,
German is the one I'm weakest at figuring out for myself, but I always
love having it properly explained to me.

Good to see you back. Your hiatus was much longer than mine.

mdl

[David7Gable]

Excellent post, Britta.

-david gable

[Graham Sanders]

Post by Britta
No, it's an absolutely normal word.

Thanks, now I see it. At 7:00 am I could not see the compound Wollust and
reichen.

Graham

[Hans Christian Hoff]

Post by Graham Sanders

Post by Anne Matassa
Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben,
schlafe, bis dein Glück erwacht;
da, mein Bild will ich dir geben,
Ihr süssen Träume, wiegt ihn ein,
und lasset seinem Wunsch am Ende
die wollustreichen Gegenstände
zu reifer Wirklichkeit gedeihn.

Sweet Peace, my lovely life,
Sleep, until your luck wakes;
There, I will give you my picture,
Look, how friendly it laughs at you,
Your sweet dreams, lulls you
And allows his wish in the end
The (word must have a mistake, it's an adj) things
To fuller substance prospers
Graham

The word Wollust is probably best translated into English as "lust". A
"Gegenstand" is not only a thing but also an object.

I believe the last three lines may be translated thus:

and let the lustful object of his wishes advance into ripe reality.

(which I believe is a very poetic way to say "let him have his will" !)

Regards


Hans

[Britta]

Post by Hans Christian Hoff

Post by Anne Matassa
Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben,
schlafe, bis dein Glück erwacht;
da, mein Bild will ich dir geben,
Ihr süssen Träume, wiegt ihn ein,
und lasset seinem Wunsch am Ende
die wollustreichen Gegenstände
zu reifer Wirklichkeit gedeihn.

The word Wollust is probably best translated into English as "lust". A
"Gegenstand" is not only a thing but also an object.
and let the lustful object of his wishes advance into ripe reality.
(which I believe is a very poetic way to say "let him have his will" !)

OK, I didn't want to say this before, because Helen (who is a very nice person)
was so happy about this so-called lovely piece, I didn't want to disillusion
her. But the truth is that this is a VERY suggestive poem. One could say, it's
almost obscene. Here's what the girl is really saying:

Go to sleep, my darling. Have horny dreams. Here's my picture to help you
along. I hope, a lot, that when you wake up, you'll be ready to make those
dreams hard (sic) reality.

The girl is PANTING after the guy.

Britta, blushing but forced to tell the truth

[Sailbad Sinner]

... But the truth is that this is a VERY suggestive poem ...
Britta, blushing but forced to tell the truth

This is not an isolated case of suggestive wording in Mozart's operas.
When don Giovanni offers Zerlina his little house, he is supposed to
say ‘casetta' but "accidentally" says ‘casinetto' which means little
brothel, thus slipping out that instead of the promised marriage, sex
is what he actually has in mind. (Or so says Jack Sacher in "Opera, a
Listener's Guide", I do not speak Italian). And when Anna told Ottavio
how she fought don G, her actions ("vincolarmi", etc.) can be
interpreted as writhing with disgust or with pleasure.

[REG]

Yes, but are those "double entrendres" (or should I say, semantically
drenched language") meant to convey the ambiguity to the other characters on
stage, or to us as listeners. I suspect that the ambiguity of this nature,
of which Mozart was a master (at least if you follow Hildsheimer (?sp), as I
do), is intended more for the audience than for the characters. I think the
opera really only "works" if you assume a lack of that second level of
sophistication on the part of the characters; otherwise, we get into
post-modernism and deconstruction, and I don't see the opera working that
way. Those plays on words, as I see them, were meant for the audience in a
subversive way.

Post by Sailbad Sinner

... But the truth is that this is a VERY suggestive poem ...
Britta, blushing but forced to tell the truth

This is not an isolated case of suggestive wording in Mozart's operas.
When don Giovanni offers Zerlina his little house, he is supposed to
say 'casetta' but "accidentally" says 'casinetto' which means little
brothel, thus slipping out that instead of the promised marriage, sex
is what he actually has in mind. (Or so says Jack Sacher in "Opera, a
Listener's Guide", I do not speak Italian). And when Anna told Ottavio
how she fought don G, her actions ("vincolarmi", etc.) can be
interpreted as writhing with disgust or with pleasure.

[David7Gable]

Post by Sailbad Sinner
When don Giovanni offers Zerlina his little house, he is supposed to
say ‘casetta' but "accidentally" says ‘casinetto' which means little
brothel, thus slipping out that instead of the promised marriage, sex
is what he actually has in mind.
And when Anna told Ottavio
how she fought don G, her actions ("vincolarmi", etc.) can be
interpreted as writhing with disgust or with pleasure.

This is modern mischief. It doesn't have anything to do with the original as
Da Ponte, Mozart, and the audiences of their day apprehended them.

-david gable

[Hans Christian Hoff]

Post by Britta

Post by Hans Christian Hoff

Post by Anne Matassa
Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben,
schlafe, bis dein Glück erwacht;
da, mein Bild will ich dir geben,
Ihr süssen Träume, wiegt ihn ein,
und lasset seinem Wunsch am Ende
die wollustreichen Gegenstände
zu reifer Wirklichkeit gedeihn.

The word Wollust is probably best translated into English as "lust". A
"Gegenstand" is not only a thing but also an object.
and let the lustful object of his wishes advance into ripe reality.
(which I believe is a very poetic way to say "let him have his will" !)

OK, I didn't want to say this before, because Helen (who is a very nice person)
was so happy about this so-called lovely piece, I didn't want to disillusion
her. But the truth is that this is a VERY suggestive poem. One could say, it's
Go to sleep, my darling. Have horny dreams. Here's my picture to help you
along. I hope, a lot, that when you wake up, you'll be ready to make those
dreams hard (sic) reality.
The girl is PANTING after the guy.
Britta, blushing but forced to tell the truth

I think that the contemporary public did not react in this way at all, and
that the rather explicit erotic character of the poem would not in any way
diminish the same publics appreciation of the exquisite beauty of the aria.
Similar thoughts as expressed in the aria were probably omnipresent in
Mozart's mind at the time (re the Basle letters) as it would in most byoung
men's (Mozart was 23 when he wrote the aria).

It is the late romantic age (which coincides with late Victorian age) that
has made us think otherwise ! The same age also had problems with fully
appreciating Cosi (as had Beethoven) and even with Don G.

Regards

Hans

Regards

[Britta]

Post by Hans Christian Hoff
I think that the contemporary public did not react in this way at all

I think you're wrong.

Post by Hans Christian Hoff
(Mozart was 23 when he wrote the aria).

I rest my case.

Britta

[Andante teneramente]

Post by Britta

Post by Britta

Post by Hans Christian Hoff

Post by Anne Matassa
Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben,
schlafe, bis dein Glück erwacht;
da, mein Bild will ich dir geben,
Ihr süssen Träume, wiegt ihn ein,
und lasset seinem Wunsch am Ende
die wollustreichen Gegenstände
zu reifer Wirklichkeit gedeihn.

The word Wollust is probably best translated into English as
"lust". A "Gegenstand" is not only a thing but also an object.
and let the lustful object of his wishes advance into ripe
reality.
(which I believe is a very poetic way to say "let him have his will" !)

OK, I didn't want to say this before, because Helen (who is a
very nice

person)

Post by Britta
was so happy about this so-called lovely piece, I didn't want to

disillusion

Post by Britta
her. But the truth is that this is a VERY suggestive poem. One
could

say, it's

Post by Britta
Go to sleep, my darling. Have horny dreams. Here's my picture
to help

you

Post by Britta
along. I hope, a lot, that when you wake up, you'll be ready to
make

those

Post by Britta
dreams hard (sic) reality.
The girl is PANTING after the guy.
Britta, blushing but forced to tell the truth

I think that the contemporary public did not react in this way at
all, and that the rather explicit erotic character of the poem

---snip--

<cough> Explicit erotic character of the poem???
Till now I thought it was all in fun...
Do I really have to remind you that "Wollust" in the 18th century (and
even later) meant "pleasure" in a very broad sense. Only in modern
times the meaning has been reduced to the sexual aspect ("lust").

[Mark D Lew]

Post by Andante teneramente
<cough> Explicit erotic character of the poem???
Till now I thought it was all in fun...

It was Hans who used the phrase "explicit erotic character". Britta
called the poem "VERY suggestive" -- in other words, erotic but *not*
explicit.

Post by Andante teneramente
Do I really have to remind you that "Wollust" in the 18th century (and
even later) meant "pleasure" in a very broad sense. Only in modern
times the meaning has been reduced to the sexual aspect ("lust").

I'm not sure why reading pleasure as erotic pleasure is a "reduction".

If the poem is outwardly innocent but has an erotic message by virtue
of suggestive language, I think that richens the piece.

Among other things, it gives the singer a variety of interpretations to
choose from. Her character might be oblivious to what she is
suggesting (as I like to imagine "Nel cor più non mi sento"); she might
know exactly what she's suggesting (as I imagine Musetta does in
"Quando m'en vo'"); or she might know what she's suggesting while
pretending that she doesn't.

mdl

[Andante teneramente]

Post by Mark D Lew

Post by Andante teneramente
<cough> Explicit erotic character of the poem???
Till now I thought it was all in fun...

It was Hans who used the phrase "explicit erotic character".
Britta called the poem "VERY suggestive" -- in other words, erotic
but *not* explicit.

Post by Andante teneramente
Do I really have to remind you that "Wollust" in the 18th century
(and even later) meant "pleasure" in a very broad sense. Only in
modern times the meaning has been reduced to the sexual aspect
("lust").

I'm not sure why reading pleasure as erotic pleasure is a
"reduction".

Maybe I chose the wrong word. What I wanted to express is this:
In the 18th century it was possible to say:
a) ... the "Wollust" I felt when I was eating the apple pie...
b) ... the "Wollust" when I met my sister whom I had not seen for so
many years... c) ... the "Wollust" of a half hour nap after lunch...
d) ... the "Wollust" I felt when I was sleeping with the beautiful
man (or woman)...

In modern use only d) survived. So the range of the word "Wollust"
has become smaller.

I've taken a glance at the libretto. A noble-woman meets a slave who
is tired from his work and is at last sleeping. IMO she is
sympathetic and generally wishing him well: that his sleep may
refresh him and that whatever would make him happy will come true.

The question is how far this sympathy goes. If you would like to
hear an erotic message here, OK, but IMO you hear it because you
want to hear it.
(So maybe *I* am the prude one in this thread, not Helen <g>. Maybe.)

[HelenMynrd]

Post by Britta

Post by Britta
OK, I didn't want to say this before, because Helen (who is a very nice

person)

Post by Britta
was so happy about this so-called lovely piece, I didn't want to

disillusion

Post by Britta
her. But the truth is that this is a VERY suggestive poem.

Well......sexual or not...Horney or no......it is beautiful and I loved singing
this song when I was younger....It certainly is a marvel of a
work..........Little did I know....but I would have still sung it....for
sure.......Hugs and I am not that much of a prude........HelenM....

Post by Britta
Go to sleep, my darling. Have horny dreams. Here's my picture to help
you along. I hope, a lot, that when you wake up, you'll be ready to make

those
dreams hard (sic) reality.

Post by Britta

Post by Britta
The girl is PANTING after the guy.
Britta, blushing but forced to tell the truth

I think that the contemporary public did not react in this way at all, and
that the rather explicit erotic character of the poem would not in any way
diminish the same publics appreciation of the exquisite beauty of the aria.
Similar thoughts as expressed in the aria were probably omnipresent in
Mozart's mind at the time (re the Basle letters) as it would in most byoung
men's (Mozart was 23 when he wrote the aria).
It is the late romantic age (which coincides with late Victorian age) that
has made us think otherwise ! The same age also had problems with fully
appreciating Cosi (as had Beethoven) and even with Don G.
Regards
Hans
Regards

[gerberk]

http://www.jcarreras.homestead.com/WebAdvice.html#anchor_13329


(translation machines but only a little helpfull with poetry with normal
text they work fine, not perfect but good enough to understand)

(babelfish translation)

peace gently, mine holdes lives, sleeps, until your luck awakes;
there, my picture I want to give you, schau, how friendly it laughs
you: Their sweet dreams, weighs it in, and leave to his desire at
the end the wollustreichen articles to ripe reality gedeihn


Something like:

Rest peacefully my beloved
sleep untill your bliss awakes
there my picture i will give you
look how friendly it smiles

Let it be taken away by
sweet dreams
and make all
its wishes and desires
come to full reality.

The last part is not very easy and i better leave it to a german speaker.

Post by Anne Matassa
Could anyone please provide a translation of the aria "Ruhe Sanft" from
"Zaide" by Mozart?
Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben,
schlafe, bis dein Glück erwacht;
da, mein Bild will ich dir geben,
Ihr süssen Träume, wiegt ihn ein,
und lasset seinem Wunsch am Ende
die wollustreichen Gegenstände
zu reifer Wirklichkeit gedeihn.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Maurice Matassa