Der Erlkönig Lyrics in English Franz Schubert

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Below, I translated the lyrics of the song Der Erlkönig by Franz Schubert from German to English.

Who rides so late through night and wind?

It's the father with his child

He holds the boy snugly in his arm

He grips him safely, he keeps him warm

"My son, why do you hide your face so anxiously?"

"Father, don't you see the Erlking?

The Erlking with crown and train?"

"My son, it's a strip of mist."

"Dear child, come, go with me!

Such pretty games I'll play with you

Many colored flowers are on the shore

My mother has many golden gowns."

"My father, my father, don't you hear

What the Erlking softly promises me?"

"Stay calm, keep calm, my child

The wind is rustling in dry leaves."

"Fine boy, will you come with me?

My daughters shall wait on you well

My daughters lead the nightly round

And rock and dance and sing you to sleep."

"My father, my father, don't you see there

The Erlking's daughters in that gloomy place?"

"My son, my son, I see it clear

The old gray willows appear so."

"I love you, your fair shape entices me

And if you're unwilling, I'll use force."

"My father, my father, now he's touching me!

The Erlking has hurt me!"

The father shudders, he rides swift

He holds the gasping child in his arms

He reaches the courtyard with strain and effort

Within his arms the child was dead

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SONG MEANING

Imagine a stormy night, a frantic ride, and whispers in the wind. In Franz Schubert’s dramatic art-song Der Erlkönig, a father gallops through the dark forest, clutching his little boy while the wind howls around them. The terrified child keeps spotting the Erlkönig – a mischievous, other-worldly “Elf King” wearing a crown and trailing a cloak. The spirit sweet-talks the boy with promises of games, flowers, and dancing daughters, yet only the child can hear these silky invitations. Every time the boy cries out, the father tries to calm him, blaming fog, rustling leaves, and the moonlit trees for what his son thinks he sees.

As the ride grows more desperate, the Erlkönig’s tone darkens: “I love you… come with me, or I will use force!” The child feels the phantom’s icy grip, and his panic finally rattles the father, who spurs the horse even faster toward safety. They reach the courtyard at last, but the nightmare wins; the father looks down to find his son lifeless in his arms. Der Erlkönig is a spine-chilling tale about the thin line between reality and imagination, parental protection and helplessness, and the eerie power of folklore lurking in the shadows of night.

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Franz Schubert Der Erlkönig Lyrics