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Gott! welch' Dunkel hier! - No. 11, Introduction and Aria
from Act II, Scene 1 of the German opera Fidelio by Ludwig van Beethoven
Libretto: Joseph Sonnleithner

Role: Florestan, a prisoner, the husband of Leonora
Voice Part: tenor       Fach: dramatic tenor/heldentenor
Setting: The dungeon of a prison near Seville
Synopsis: Imprisoned and close to death, Florestan sings that even though his life is now joyless, he can find solace because he has done his duty and he knows that what he did was right. He then thinks that he sees a vision of his wife Leonora coming as an angel to lead him to heaven.
Range: Tessitura:
D#/Eb3 - A#/Bb5G#/Ab3 - A4
Translations/Aria Texts:
Translation into English by Colleen Knix (added 1997-09-27)
Gott! welch' Dunkel hier! Florestan's aria from Fidelio

Gott! welch' Dunkel hier! 		God! What darkness here!
O grauenvolle Stille.			O somber silence!
Od' ist es um mich her: 		My surrounding deserted;
Nichts lebet ausser mir.		No living thing apart from me,
O schwere Prüfung! - 			O heavy trial!
Doch gerecht ist Gottes Wille!		Yet righteous is God’s will!
Ich murre nicht!  			I don’t grumble
Das Mass der Leiden steht bei dir.	The measure of misery stands with you.

In des Lebens Frühlingstagen		In life’s springtime days
Ist das Glück von mir geflohn!		Happiness has escaped me.
Wahrheit wagt' ich kühn zu sagen,	the truth, I dared speak it, 
Und die Ketten sind mein Lohn.		and these chains are my reward.
Willig duld' ich alle Schmerzen,	Readily I endure all afflictions, 
Ende schmählich meine Bahn;		a shameful end is my fate,
Süsser Trost in meinem Herzen;		Sweet comfort in my heart;
Meine Pflicht hab' ich getan!		I’ve done my duty!

Und spür' ich nicht linde, 		And don’t I sense a gentle, 
Sanft säuselnde Luft?			soft-whispering air
Und ist nicht mein Grab mir erhellet?	And isn’t my grave lit up?
Ich seh', wie ein Engel im rosigen Duft	I see, like, an angel in a rosy haze
Sich tröstend zur Seite mir stellet,	who stands comfortingly by my side,
Ein Engel, Leonoren, der Gattin, 	An angel Leonore! Leonore so like my wife,
	so gleich,
Der führt mich zur Freiheit ins 	who’ll lead me to freedom in the 
	himmlische Reich.			heavenly kingdom!

Translation by Colleen Knix, (knix@hotmail.com)
Sounds:
none
Sheet Music/Scores:
none
Recordings:
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