Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt

Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt
Weiß, was ich leide!
Allein und abgetrennt
Von aller Freude,
Seh ich [ans]1 Firmament
Nach [jener]2 Seite.

Ach! der mich liebt und kennt,
Ist in der Weite.
Es schwindelt mir, es brennt
Mein Eingeweide.
Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt
Weiß, was ich leide!

View original text (without footnotes)
¹ Schubert: "am"
² Lang: "jeder"

Input by Lawrence Snyder

Authorship

by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) , title unknown, from Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)

by Johann Anton André (1775-1842) , "Sehnsucht", c1818/9.
by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) , "Sehnsucht. Gedicht von Goethe viermal in Musik gesetzt von L. van Beethoven", WoO. 134 (1808), note: four different settings
by Bernhard Dessau , "Sehnsucht", op. 2 (Sechs Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 1, published 1884 [voice and piano], Berlin, Paez
by Catharinus Elling (1858-1942) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt"
by Zdenko Antonín Václav Fibich (1850-1900) , "Lied der Mignon (Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt)", H. 134 no. 2 (1871), published 1893, first performed 1914, from Aus Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahren, no. 2.
by Hans Fleischer (1896-1981) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt", op. 78 (8 Lieder für mittlere Singstimme und Klavier) no. 7 (1923). [medium voice and piano]
by Carl Theodor Flodin (1858-1925) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt" [voice and piano]
by Friedrich Theodor Fröhlich (1803-1836) , "Mignon", published 1830.
by E. von Hettersdorf , "Sehnsucht", c1811/2.
by Carl August Heymann-Rheineck (1854-1922) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt", op. 2 (Sechs Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianofortebegleitung) no. 2, published 1882 [voice and piano], Berlin, Schlesinger
by Ferdinand von Hiller (1811-1885) , "Mignon", op. 129 (Zwölf Gesänge für Altstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 3, published 1867 [alto and piano], Bremen, Cranz
by Gustav Jenner (1865-1920) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt", op. 7 (Sechs Lieder für eine Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 2, published 1900 [voice and piano], Leipzig, Breitkopf und Härtel
by Ernst Jonas , "Sehnsucht", op. 29 (Zwei Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 2, published 1879 [voice and piano], Berlin, Bote & Bock
by Johann Christoph Kienlen (1783-1829) , "Lied der Mignon und des Harfenspielers", published 1810, from Zwölf Lieder von Goethe, no. 3.
by Bernhard (Joseph) Klein (1793-1832) , "Mignon", published c1820. [voice and piano]
by Joseph Klein (1802-1862) , "Mignon", published 1836 [voice and piano], from Sechs Gedichte aus Wilhelm Meister's Lehrjahren, von Goethe, no. 2.
by Josephine Lang (1815-1880) , "Mignons Klage", op. 10 (Sechs Lieder) no. 2 (1835).
by Leopold Lenz (1803-1862) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt", op. 12 no. 7, published 1832 [duet for 2 voices and piano], from Mignon der Harfner und Philine ein Cyclus von acht Gesaengen aus "Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre", no. 7.
by Johann Karl Gottfried Loewe (1796-1869) , "Sehnsucht", op. 9, Heft 3 no. 5 (1818?)
by Nikolai Karlovich Medtner (1880-1951) , "Mignon", op. 18 no. 4 (1908-9), from Sechs Gedichte von Goethe, no. 4.
by Fanny Mendelssohn-Hensel (1805-1847) , "Mignon", 1826.
by Heinrich Meyer , "Lied der Mignon", op. 12, published 1881 [voice and piano], Hamburg, Thiemer
by Emanuel Moór (1863-1931) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt", op. 13 (Sechzehn Lieder) no. 14, published 1890 [voice and piano], Mainz, Schott
by Ignaz von Mosel (1772-1844) , "Sehnsucht", published c1820/1 [voice and piano], from Sechs Gedichte, no. 3.
by Emil Naumann (1827-1888) , "Sehnsucht", op. 31 (Sechs Gesänge) no. 3, published 1878 [voice and piano], from Nachklänge. Sechs Gesänge für 1 Singstimme mit Pianofortebegleitung, no. 3, Berlin, Bote & Bock
by Heinrich Proch (1809-1878) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt", op. 79 no. 2.
by Wenzeslaus Rafael Gottfried, Graf von Purgstall (1798-1817) , "Das Lied der Sehnsucht", published 1821, Wien: A. Strauß ; appeared in Denkmal auf das Grab des beyden letzten Grafen von Purgstall. Gesetzt von ihrem Freunde Joseph von Hammer
by Johann Friedrich Reichardt (1752-1814) , "Sehnsucht", published 1795-6.
by Johann Friedrich Reichardt (1752-1814) , "Sehnsucht", published 1805-6.
by Bernard Reichel (1901-1992) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt", published 198-? [voice and piano], from Lieder-Gedichte von Goethe, no. 2, Monthey : Cantate Domino
by Karl Gottlieb Reissiger (1798-1859) , "Mignons Gesang", op. 79 (Gesänge und Lieder von Förster, Göthe und Pulvermacher für eine Sopran, Mezzo-Sopran, Tenor oder Bariton-Stimme mit Begleitung des Pianoforte) no. 2, published [1832] [voice and piano], Leipzig: Bei C. A. Klemm
by Anton Grigoryevich Rubinstein (1829-1894) , "Mignon und der Harfner", op. 91 no. 7, from Die Gedichte und das Requiem fur Mignon aus Goethe's "Wilhelm Meister's Lehrjahre", no. 7.
by Malvina Schnorr von Carolsfeld, née Malvina Garrigues (1825-1904) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt", published 1880 [voice and piano], from Mignon's vier Lieder von Goethe, für 1 Singstimme mit Pianoforte, no. 3, Berlin, Bote & Bock
by Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828) , "Sehnsucht", D. 310 (1815), published 1895, note: there are two versions of this setting
by Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828) , "Lied der Mignon", D. 359 (1816), published 1872.
by Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828) , "Lied der Mignon", D. 481 (1816), published 1895.
by Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt", alternate title: "Sehnsucht", D. 656 (1819), published 1867. [vocal quintet for male voices]
by Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828) , "Mignon und der Harfner", op. 62 (Gesänge aus Wilhelm Meister) no. 1, D. 877 no. 1 (1826). [vocal duet]
by Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828) , "Lied der Mignon", op. 62 (Gesänge aus Wilhelm Meister) no. 4, D. 877 no. 4 (1826).
by Robert Alexander Schumann (1810-1856) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt", op. 98 no. 3 (1849) [voice and piano], from Requiem für Mignon aus Goethes "Wilhelm Meister", no. 3.
by F(erdinand?) Stein , "Sehnsucht"
by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) , "Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt", op. 6 (Шесть романсов = Shest' romansov (Six romances)) no. 6 (1869), note: also set in Russian
by Fabio Vacchi (1949-) , "Mignon (Über die Sehsucht)", 1995.
by Wendelin Weißheimer (1838-1910) , "Mignon" [voice and piano]
by Hugo Wolf (1860-1903) , "Mignon II", from Goethe-Lieder, no. 6.
by Karl Friedrich Zelter (1758-1832) , "Sehnsucht", 1795, published 1821, rev. 1812.

by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) , "Pesn' Min'ony: Net, tolko tot, kto znal", op. 6 (Шесть романсов = Shest' romansov (Six romances)) no. 6 (1869), note: also set in German

ITA Italian (Paolo Montanari) , "Solo chi conosce la nostalgia", copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Guy Laffaille) , "Chant de Mignon", copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Lawrence Snyder) , "Only one who knows longing", copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
POR Portuguese (Ana Vargas) , "Somente quem conhece a saudade", copyright © 2006, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
DUT Dutch [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "Slechts wie de hunk'ring kent", copyright © 2007, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ITA Italian (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , "Solo chi conosce la nostalgia", copyright © 2007, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
SPA Spanish (Mercedes Vivas) , title unknown, copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English [singable] (David Paley) , "Only my yearning shows", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
TUR Turkish (Gül Sabar) , "Mignon’un Şarkısı", copyright © 2012, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Text added to the website: 2003-10-13.

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