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Since some of us are in a Branduardi frame of mind: Alla fiera dell'est (At the Eastern Fair)
"The Italian song “Alla fiera dell’est” (At the Eastern Fair) is a bit reminiscent of the kids’ song “The Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly”. Both songs feature a repetitive tale that recounts a growing string of events that all start with one act (in the Italian, song buying a mouse at the Fair of the East, in the English song, swallowing a fly)..
Much-loved Italian folk singer Angelo Branduardi recorded “Alla fiera dell’est” in the 1970s, and it remains a popular folk song to this day among Italians of every age. The folk song 'features themes and patterns from ancient music, especially Renaissance and early Baroque, and showcases Branduardi himself on violin. It is based on an old Jewish song in Aramaic (“Chad Gadya”–One Kid Goat, sung at the end of the Passover Seder night service)."
http://italianowithjodina.com/2010/10/alla-fiera-dellest-italian-music-musica-italiana/
I was sung any number of lullabys by my mother built on a similar structure. My favorite was about a father going to the market and bringing home a golden ring for his beautiful daughter.
The Italian lyrics were written by his wife. It's become a children's song. Great for long car rides!
These are the lyrics in English:
At the Eastern Fair
for two coins
my father bought a mouse.
And the cat came
that ate up the mouse
that my father bought at the market.
At the Eastern Fair
for two coins
my father bought a mouse.
And the dog came
that bit the cat
that ate up the mouse.
that my father bought at the market.
At the Eastern Fair
for two coins
my father bought a mouse.
And the stick* came (*also cane or club)
That hit/beat the dog
that bit the cat
that ate up the mouse
that my father bought at the market.
At the Eastern Fair
for two coins
my father bought a mouse.
And the fire came
that burned the stick
that beat the dog
that bit the cat
that ate up the mouse
that my father bought at the market.
At the Eastern Fair
for two coins
my father bought a mouse.
And the water came
that put out the fire
that burned the stick
that beat the dog
that bit the cat
that ate up the mouse
that my father bought at the market.
At the Eastern Fair
for two coins
my father bought a mouse.
And the bull came
that drank the water
that put out the fire
that burned the stick
that beat the dog
that bit the cat
that ate up the mouse
that my father bought at the market.
At the Eastern Fair
for two coins
my father bought a mouse.
And the butcher came
who killed the bull
that drank the water
that put out the fire
that burned the stick
that beat the dog
that bit the cat
that ate up the mouse
that my father bought at the market.
At the Eastern Fair
for two coins
my father bought a mouse.
And the Angel of Death
on the butcher
who killed the bull
that drank the water
which extinguished the fire
that burned the stick
that beat the dog
that bit the cat
that ate up the mouse
that my father bought at the market.
At the Eastern Fair
for two coins
my father bought a mouse.
And finally the Lord
on the Angel of Death
on the butcher
who killed the bull
that drank the water
that put out the fire
that burned the stick
that beat the dog
that bit the cat
that ate up the mouse
that my father bought at the market.
At the Eastern Fair
for two coins
my father bought a mouse.
Good for children in its simple vocabulary and repetitiveness (good for learning Italian too!) but it also has a very catchy, sweet tune.
Orieta Berti :heart:
...I could die of nostalgia.
Thats how I feel too and surely lift mood . Thats another nice tune, there are so many more I can go on all night...........
My sister sung this by Rita Pavone at the parish hall many moons ago and won first price
La Bella Polenta was a big one. How much polenta I've eaten in my life...
What do they call these kinds of songs in English...where you add a new line and then repeat the whole thing over again from the beginning? Like The Twelve Days of Christmas. I'm having a synapse freeze.This is how you plant it, how it grows, how it flowers, how you stir it, how you slice it, and on and on...
My roomate when was studing liked and was famnatic with Italian songs,
he even travel to a San Remo festival.
I remember one song I was used or 'forced' to hear
Let's add some rock to this playlist
This song tastes like fog, cold winter mornings and 'underground' passions digging inside. Very northern italian mood, if one actually exists
Holy crap, nordicism, no! :embarassed: Nuotando nell'aria has very refined lyrics. Cristiano Godano, the author, associated the memory of a lost love - still hurting him - to a general wintry 'feeling'. One of the lyrics for example states "intanto, l'aria intorno è più nebbia che altro, l'aria, è più nebbia che altro" that I can roughly translate as "meanwhile, air around here is mostly fog, air is mostly fog" or stuff like that. The band is from Cuneo, Piedmont, fog is omnipresent there during winter, so it probably inspired their poeticMy goodness, stereotypical thinking, much? Are you quite sure you haven't taken to spending time on Nordicist dominated anthrofora? Be careful, your IQ is likely to drop 20 points in a month!
Holy crap, nordicism, no! :embarassed: Nuotando nell'aria has very refined lyrics. Cristiano Godano, the author, associated the memory of a lost love - still hurting him - to a general wintry 'feeling'. One of the lyrics for example states "intanto, l'aria intorno è più nebbia che altro, l'aria, è più nebbia che altro" that I can roughly translate as "meanwhile, air around here is mostly fog, air is mostly fog" or stuff like that. The band is from Cuneo, Piedmont, fog is omnipresent there during winter, so it probably inspired their poetic
P.S. It's the second time today I read about Lomax... I'm reading a book written by David Byrne speaking about him (among others). I'm checking those link out.
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