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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: GUEST,Stim Date: 19 Aug 12 - 05:31 PM The ritual being prepared in the song is a funeral that is being offered to Babalu. It is a Voudou/Santaria ritual, though, so singing it as a prayer would be a whole different thing that what we learned in Sunday school. In that tradition, from what I can garner, Babalu Aye is the divinity of disease and illness (particularly smallpox), also of healing. He brings both healing and death, and apparently, must be thanked for which ever of them them occurs. Here is a clip: Babalù Ayè orisha della santeria You will notice at the end that they are smoking a cigar, which would be the "cabo di tobacco", and drinking a clear liquid which one assumes is the "jarrito di aguadienta", so the lyrics describe the ritual. One is inclined to guess that this song is either a prayer for healing the girl, or, if it is literally a funeral ritual, an appeal for her eternal life. From what I understand, the ritual use of aguadiente is continuous for the course of these rituals, which can go on for quite a few days. Also, the music and religion are connected to the Afro-Cuban revival, which was a cultural and intellectual movement in the 20's-30's that sought to reawaken the Afro-Cuban identity by reconnecting with cultural and artistic traditions. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 19 Aug 12 - 07:14 AM And another thing: This song is a prayer, so I have to sing it as one. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 19 Aug 12 - 07:01 AM So far I think the trick with this song is to sing the words close together, with very short pauses. That helps keep the rhythm. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 19 Aug 12 - 05:47 AM Addition to the above: This song is written from the perspective of a man preparing for a ritual to Babalu Aye, a Santeria god, with seventeen candles in the shape of a cross, and aguardiente. It's his prayer that the god give him the love of his girlfriend, (a black woman=negra) luck, and protection for them both. It's a religious song (but not a hymn). |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 19 Aug 12 - 04:15 AM Joe: Thanks for those tips. I am familiar with French. 2. Know what the song is about. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: Joe Offer Date: 19 Aug 12 - 04:04 AM Hi, Morwen -
-Joe- |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 19 Aug 12 - 03:18 AM And I think (emphasis on think) I may have figured it out. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 19 Aug 12 - 03:09 AM I have an MIDI for the song on my computer. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 19 Aug 12 - 12:48 AM And for the record, I did know about the Lazarus connection. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 19 Aug 12 - 12:36 AM Stim: Thanks. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: GUEST,Stim Date: 19 Aug 12 - 12:35 AM I did a bit of googling--I did know that Babalu Aye was an African/Voudou/Santaria god, but I didn't know that in that he was equated with St. Lazarus, and that the Santaria worshippers make an pilgrimage to his shrine in the Cuban village of El Rincon on December 17 each year. Hmm. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: GUEST,Stim Date: 19 Aug 12 - 12:26 AM It's been a while, but some of the numbers I remember hearing a lot were the Tito Puente tunes Oye Como and Va,Ran Kan Kan, (whlch people tended to do together), Black Magic Woman(and a lot of the more familar Santana stuff, because it was very popular at the time) Mambo No.5(long before the Lou Bega version), a more serious song called Traigo La Salsa (you may recognize when you hear it). They would know Guantanamera and love it. None of that "that's a 60's pop song and I only do traditional" music" stuff goes on. Celia Cruz did it with an up tempo, more danceable feel, and that is very well known too. I love this kind of music (and a lot of other music from cultures not my own) and am always aware of, and frustrated by the language/cultural barrier. I am never going to understand this stuff like someone who has grown up speaking the language, and who has shared the cultural experiences that are reflected in the lyrics. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 18 Aug 12 - 09:11 PM Although the song is Cuban- it was composed in 1933 by Margarita Lecuona. Stim: The people you know wouldn't happen to have done "Guantanamera", did they?Would that be a good choice? It's certainly got a good tune, and it's slower. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 18 Aug 12 - 08:51 PM Addition to the above post: I wouldn't know for sure, but I'd guess the reason is something like that. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 18 Aug 12 - 08:34 PM Stim: Probably because of the image that it evokes. It was a common standard for Desi Arnaz and was originally done by Miguelito Valdes, who got his start singing in Havana nightclubs. It's basically a cabaret standard. Can you tell me what songs the people you knew did? I'd like to learn some Afro-Cuban songs. Gibb Sahib: Thanks! |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: GUEST,Stim Date: 18 Aug 12 - 08:16 PM That was me. It looks like you've got the lyrics. One more thing: I used to know a number of people who played in Afro-Cuban type bands, and this is not a song that they did. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: Gibb Sahib Date: 18 Aug 12 - 08:09 PM Morwen, I think it means "Give me 17 candles." dame - give me diez y siete = 10 and 7 = 17 The only way to do it is to do it. Spanish is relatively easy, from an English perspective. The "rules" of pronunciation are relatively simple. Learn the pronunciation rules first, then read the text with your best pronunciation. Nowadays, you can plug phrases into Google Translate. Not only will you see the translation, but you can play back a little robot voice to hear what it should sound like. You can put your mouse over specific words to see what means what (so you know how to emphasize). Then it's memorize, memorise, memorize. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: GUEST Date: 18 Aug 12 - 08:09 PM Lyrics to Babalu : Babalu Babalu Babalu aye Babalu aye Babalu Ta empezando lo velorio Que le hacemo a Babalu Dame diez y siete velas Pa ponerle en cruz. Dame un cabo de tabaco mayenye Y un jarrito de aguardiente, Dame un poco de dinero mayenye Pa' que me de la suerte. Yo Quiere pedi Que mi negra me quiera Que tenga dinero Y que no se muera Av! Vo le quiero pedi a Babalu 'na negra muy santa como tu que no tenga otro negro Pa' que no se fuera. Babalu a ye! Babalu a ye! Babalu a ye! Babalu a ye! Babalu a ye! Babalu a ye! Babalu a ye! Babalu a ye! Babalu a ye! Babalu a ye! Babalu Babalu Babalu aye Babalu aye Babalu As to how to learn it, once you can say "Babalu Aye" you've got about half. If you were me, or I was you, I'd read through the words a few times, locate the ones that had problems with (either with pronounciation or with the scan) and study my recording till I could recite them smoothly. Given that it is a conga, one thinks that it would be next necessary to acquire a conga drum and learn the basic beat, and then begin trying to fit the lyrics to the beat. Once you've got that, the world is your oyster. I would be wary, as a performer, of using this as my first foray into Cuban territory. It lacks a strong melody (or much of a melody at all) and doesn't have a compelling lyric, so there is not a lot to work with, except the drum. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 18 Aug 12 - 08:00 PM "Dame diez y siete velas" means "The lady of the seven candles" |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 18 Aug 12 - 07:55 PM Has anyone here ever attempted to sing the above song, or have any tips for me? (I like to learn songs I like, and I like this one.) |
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Subject: Lyr Add: Babalu (Margarita Lecuona) From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 18 Aug 12 - 07:31 PM Thanks, Rob! The lyrics: from: http://tropicananightclub.tripod.com/babalu.html (an I Love Lucy fansite) 1st VERSE Babalu Babalu Babalu aye Babalu aye Babalu Ta empezando lo velorio Que le hacemo a Babalu Dame diez y siete velas Pa ponerle en cruz. Dame un cabo de tabaco mayenye Y un jarrito de aguardiente, Dame un poco de dinero mayenye Pa' que me de la suerte. Yo CHORUS Quiere pedi Que mi negra me quiera Que tenga dinero Y que no se muera Av! Vo le quiero pedi a Babalu 'na negra muy santa como tu que no tenga otro negro Pa' que no se fuera. 2nd VERSE (CONCLUSION) [Repeated 10 times:] Babalu a ye! |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: skarpi Date: 18 Aug 12 - 07:29 PM try Icelandic .good luck ... |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: GUEST,mando-player-91 Date: 18 Aug 12 - 07:26 PM It's best to start of with slower songs though. There's many that I would love to sing too but can't manage to do so |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: Rob Naylor Date: 18 Aug 12 - 07:25 PM "Guest" was me with a dead cookie. OK, so the song is fast....but you'll need to learn it slow. Like playing an instrument....when I learned "St Anne's Reel" on the guitar I had to play it initially at less than 1/4 speed, until I'd got it sorted, and then could speed up. Vocals are the same...you need to imprint them, even if it means singing them horribly under-tempo until they're in your brain. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 18 Aug 12 - 07:21 PM @GUEST: The song is [i]fast[/i]. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: GUEST Date: 18 Aug 12 - 07:14 PM Slowly! I know a couple of songs in other languages, and I found the only way to learn them was to get a written lyrics set PLUS a translation (a "sense" translation rather than a transliteration) and then start very slowly. Knowing the "story" of the song via the translation helped me a lot with both of them. |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: GUEST,mando-player-91 Date: 18 Aug 12 - 07:07 PM I've been wanting to sing in other language since I heard Pete Seeger and The Weavers as a kid.It takes practice start slow or maybe get together with someone who knows the language to help you out.for some reason I always found Spanish the hardest to sing |
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Subject: RE: How to learn a song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 18 Aug 12 - 07:05 PM Anyone? |
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Subject: How to learn a fast song in another language? From: MorwenEdhelwen1 Date: 18 Aug 12 - 08:44 AM So a few minutes ago I was listening to Desi Arnaz sing "Babalu" and thought I'd like to learn it myself. I've sung in Spanish before- I can sing "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps" in the original Spanish. The problem is "Babalu" is really fast so I can't catch all the words. I do know what it's about though, a man who's calling on Babalu Aye for help with his love problems and good health and luck for them both. How does everyone handle fast songs in another language? I'd really like to learn this one. |
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