Lluna de pau, germana dels estels, viatgera tranquil·la dels espais infinits, tu que has obert la porta dels abismes, mirall nocturn de la llum fosca del sol.
Lluna de pau, de la casa de cendres enmig del cel, enmig de l'univers, que saps parlar el llenguatge dels astres, que fas el cant del silenci absolut.
Lluna de pau, coloma d'ales negres, si et crido lluny, acudeixes a mi enmig de l'ombra, amb les crineres blanques a cavall sempre de la llum i del vent.
Lluna de pau, vestida d'oliveres, en quart creixent, enmig dels tarongers, la que es condorm a l'entrecuix de les dunes i reneix a la platja, entre pins i xiprers.
Lluna de pau, aparta'ns de la ira, de la desesperança, que no les trobem mai, del desamor, de l'última venjança. Lluna de pau, fes peu a casa nostra, no ens abandonis mai.
Moon of peace, sister of the stars, gentle wanderer of endless skies, you who have opened the gates of the deep, night's mirror, reflecting the sun's hidden light.
Moon of peace, from the house of ashes, suspended in the heavens, adrift through the universe, you who speak the ancient language of the stars, you who give voice to the song of perfect silence.
Moon of peace, dark-winged dove, whenever I call from far away, you come, through the shadows, with flowing white manes, riding forever on the wind and the light.
Moon of peace, crowned with olive branches, a crescent rising among the orange trees, you who sleep in the cradle of the dunes and awaken again by the shore, among pines and cypresses.
Moon of peace, shield us from anger, from despair, may it never find us; from hatred and from the final act of revenge.
Moon of peace, dwell among us,
and never abandon us.
Lluna de pau, aparta'ns de la ira, de la desesperança, que no les trobem mai, del desamor, de l'última venjança. Lluna de pau, fes peu a casa nostra, no ens abandonis mai.
Moon of peace, shield us from anger, from despair, may it never find us; from hatred and from the final act of revenge.
On the anniversary of PereQuart's death, TheGrandma, from Santanyí,has beenrereading and remembering another greatwriter, Blai Bonet.
The islanders have a character very marked by the sea. It is normal. Entire generations have lived without ever leaving their island and this marks the local idiosyncrasy. The Mallorcans are no exception and this is because Mallorca isone of the largest islands in the Mediterranean, but like all islands it is finite.
Mallorcan culture is of enormous majesty, rooted in the land, its people and this blue and infinite horizon that can always be seen from any part of the island.
Mallorcan artists have painted the island, sung about it and written about it and it is through art that they have expressed states of mind, illusions and disappointments, dreams, hopes and fears.
One of the best Mallorcan poets of the 20th century was Blai Bonet, born in Santanyí. He was a novelist and poet who captured the colors of the island like few others and who wrote one of the most beautiful poems ever written about the island, a poem that sheds light, not so much because it speaks of light, but because its language seems to illuminate what it describes. It is a poetry that does not argue or explain: it makes a vision appear. It is the union between matter and transcendence. In many religious poets, spirituality tends to distance itself from the physical world; however, Blai Bonet does just the opposite. Faith passes through colors, through animals, through the earth, through the Mediterranean light.
Blai Bonet (1926-1997) was a Mallorcan poet, novelist and art critic.
Bonet released El Mar (The Sea) in 1958. In 1962, his collections of poems L'Evangeli segons un de tants (The Gospel According to One of Many) was awarded the Carles Riba Poetry Prize, but it was not published due to Spanish Francoist censorship, delaying it for more than five years.
In 1990, he was awarded the Creu de Sant Jordi by the Catalan Government.
He was a member of the Association of Catalan Language Writers. He was a participant in the resurgence of Catalan literature in the 1960s.
Blaus i sol de roses blanques. El pati verd i blanc de primavera, ple de bels astorats davant la Pasqua.
Blues and sunlight of white roses. The green-and-white courtyard of spring, filled with lambs' bewildered bleating before Easter.
With the arrival of summer, in a few days, the Mallorcan squares will be filled with ball de bot, glosses, castanets and ximbombes. Enjoying Mallorcan popular culture,so threatened by densification and globalization, is a privilege that we must protect and preserve and that TheGrandma loves a lot.
The ximbomba is a musical instrument belonging to the family of friction membranophones, or indirectly rubbed drums, with either a single or multiple rod, fixed or movable.
The instrument consists of three main parts: a vessel that acts as a resonating chamber, a membrane, and a rod, which together produce sound when set into vibration. In the present example, the vessel is made of ceramic, the membrane is of animal hide, and the rod is a reed cane. The membrane is stretched and secured by means of cords and fitted over the mouth of the ceramic vessel. A hole in the membrane allows the cane rod to be inserted. The membrane vibrates when the rod is rubbed rhythmically up and down by hand, preferably with a moistened hand. The sound produced by the ximbomba is of indeterminate pitch, low, and monotonous.
The ximbomba originated in Africa, specifically in the region of present-day Congo. It reached the Iberian Peninsula around the fifteenth century, brought by enslaved people from the Congo area. In the sixteenth century, the Spanish Tercios stationed in Flanders introduced the instrument into the Low Countries. It is believed that the ximbomba was played in rituals associated with the winter solstice. For this reason, throughout the Iberian Peninsula and in other parts of Europe, it became associated with the Christmas season.
In the Balearic Islands, particularly in Mallorca, the instrument has traditionally been used by rural communities to accompany cançons de fadrinalla (popular songs sung by young people), especially during Carnival celebrations.
The instrument is known by different names according to the region: simbomba in Catalonia, ximbomba in Mallorca and Menorca, pandorga in the Valencian Country, etza-gor in the Basque Country, and zambomba in Andalusia.
I sa ximbomba ja no sona, ni sona, ni sonarà i perquè té sa pell de ca
i sa canya qui no és bona.
I jo que volia tocar...
I en anar a segar es canyar coiràs una canyeta
i per sa meva ximbombeta
i pes darrers dies sonar.
Sa ximbomba ja és passada,
i jo que volia ballar i mumare em fa filar i cada vespre una fusada.
And my ximbomba sings no longer, nor today nor yet again And or its skin is made of doghide And its reed is weak and thin.
And I wanted to play...
And when you cut the reeds tomorrow, bring a little one to me And for my tiny ximbomba's music
And through the last days yet to be.
Now the ximbomba is worn and silent,
And though I longed to dance and play
And but my mother has me spinning And every evening of the day.
After a few very intense weeks with TheMorgans, The Grandma continues with other trainings, but this time online. Online training has its pros and cons like anything, but one of the interesting things is that it allows you geographic mobility because you only need a good internet connection, so The Grandma has decided to escape the big city for a few days and recharge her batteries in one of her most beloved places, Mallorca,before it is invaded by foreigners in need of an easy party and a crazy life.
Enjoying the most wonderful places on this beautiful island in the company of good music and good reading is a pleasure that should never be given up, so TheGrandma has chosen the poetry collection of one of her most admired classical poets, Aλκμάν.
Alcman, in Ancient Greek Aλκμάν or Alkmán, (7th century BC) was an Ancient Greek choral lyric poet from Sparta.
He is the earliest representative of the Alexandrian canon of the Nine Lyric Poets. He wrote six books of choral poetry, most of which is now lost; his poetry survives in quotation from other ancient authors and on fragmentary papyri discovered in Egypt. His poetry was composed in the local Doric dialect with Homeric influences. Based on his surviving fragments, his poetry was mostly hymns, and seems to have been composed in long stanzas made up of lines in several different metres.
Some fragments of Alcman's poetry reflect early cosmological ideas, where he poetically describes the origins of the universe and natural phenomena. His works blend mythological narratives with reflections on the cosmos, a characteristic feature of early Greek thought before the emergence of formal philosophy. Alcman's hymns suggest an interest in the order of the natural world, the role of primordial forces, and the creation of the cosmos; themes later explored more systematically by Presocratic philosophers like Thales, Anaximander, and Leucippus.
Scholars argue that Alcman's poetic cosmogony represents an important step toward the philosophical inquiry that developed in ancient Greece. While he did not formulate scientific theories, his lyrical exploration of the cosmos contributed to the broader intellectual tradition of early Greek cosmology.
Dormen els cims de les muntanyes I el fons de la mar I el promontori llunyà I el precipici
Dorm tota casta de bèsties Que la terra fosca nodreix I animals salvatges del món I la família de les aus I els monstres d'estances profundes Del mar violeta
Dorm la nissaga d'aucells de les ales molt grans I els monstres d'estances profundes Del mar violeta
Aquesta nit dormiran Aquesta nit jo també dormiré
Dins els boscos i selves llunyanes On viuen les flors
Dormen petites abelles Dins el rusc amagat
Aquesta nit dormiran Aquesta nit jo també dormiré
Asleep are the mountain heights, And the deep places of the sea; Asleep the distant promontory, And the sheer cliff.
Asleep are all the tribes of living things Whom the dark earth sustains; The wild creatures that roam the world, And every brood of birds.
Asleep the creatures of the violet sea, In their profound abodes; Asleep the race of mighty-wingèd birds.
This night shall they sleep; This night shall I also sleep,
In forests and in far-off jungles, Where flowers have their dwelling.
Small bees lie sleeping Within the hidden hive.
This night shall they sleep; This night shall I also sleep.
The language of equality is international, so today, from Malmö in Sweden, The Grandma, who is Andorran/Catalan, wants to remember EdithSödergran, a poet who was born in Saint Petersburg in the Russian Empire, of Finnish nationality who wrote in Swedish, author of one of the most wonderful poems ever written about women, Vikvinnor, which was translated into Catalan by Mariadel Mar Bonet in an excellent way, even though we all know that in literature 'to translate is to betray'.
We must work so that equality is not just a slogan, nor a topic to win votes when there are elections, nor marketing without content to be politically correct, nor a business that distorts all the work, effort and sacrifice of so many women over so many centuries, a work that must continue to dignify the lives of so many women from theocratic regimes to consolidated false democracies, because as EdithSödergran wrote you looked for a woman and you found a person, and the day we all see each other as equals, that day we will be able to call ourselves a real society.
Vi kvinnor, vi äro så nära den bruna jorden. Vi fråga göken, vad han väntar av våren, vi slå våra armar kring den kala furan, vi forska i solnedgången efter tecken och råd.
Vi kvinnor, vi äro så fattiga på ord, vi veta endast så mycket som träden, vi kunna endast tiga och vänta som de mörka skogarna vänta på våren.
Jag älskade en gång en man, han trodde på ingenting. Han kom en kall dag med tomma ögon, han gick en tung dag med glömska över pannan.
Jag väntade ett barn av honom. Men barnet dog i mitt sköte, och jag bar dess lilla lik i mitt hjärta länge.
Om mitt barn icke lever, är det hans.
Nosaltres, les dones Som molt a prop de la terra Demanàvem als ocells Que esperen de la primavera
Acollim al pi despullat Dins els nostres braços Cerquem en la posta de sol Senyals i consells
Vaig estimar un cop un home Ell no creia en res Arribà un dia gelat Amb els ulls buits Se n'anà un dia feixuc Amb l'oblit sobre el front
Si el meu fill neix mort És seu
Tu cercaves una flor I vares trobar un fruit Cercaves una font I vares trobar un riu Volies una dona I trobares una persona I et sents Desenganyat
We women, we are so close to the brown earth. We ask the cuckoo what he expects from spring, We wrap our arms around the bare pine, We search the sunset for signs and advice. We women, we are so poor in words, We only know as much as the trees, We can only be silent and wait As the dark forests wait for spring.
I once loved a man, He believed in nothing. He came one cold day with empty eyes, He left one heavy day with forgetfulness over his forehead.
I expected a child from him. But the child died in my womb, And I carried its little corpse In my heart for a long time. If my child does not live, it is his.
Last hours on the island. Last farewells, wishes of good luck and health and, not having left yet, there is already a desire to return.
With Mallorca always in her heart, The Grandma flies to Marselha, where she will meet Joseph de Ca'th Lon and Claire Fontaine next weekend,knowingthatthose of them who have half Catalan and half Mallorcan hearts will always have Mercè and her beach.
Mercè Palma n'és llunyana Sóc lluny dels carrers Lluny dels ametllers I d'aquells carrers que clou la murada Que clou la murada
Mercè Lluny del teu esguard Lluny del teu esguard I del vent tranquil I del vent tranquil De la casa clara De la casa clara
Lluny d'aquells terrats Lluny d'aquells terrats On els gorrions s'estimen i canten I les monges estenen Els pecats del món i la roba blanca I la roba blanca
I un frare balla I un frare balla Arran de teulada Esperant prendre el vol Cap al cel tan blau Cap al cel tan blau Faldilles enlaire Faldilles enlaire
Mercè Taronges i flors Taronges i flors damunt de la taula Les gavines t'acompanyin El lent caminar cap a l'hora baixa
Sempre tornaré A la nostra platja Les ones no em deixen, mumare Allunyar-me'n massa Allunyar-me'n massa
Mercè, Mercè, Mercè Mercè
Mercè Palma is far away I am far from the streets Far from the almond trees And from those streets that close the wall That close the wall
Mercè Far from your gaze Far from your gaze And from the calm wind And from the calm wind From the clear house From the clear house
Far from those rooftops Far from those rooftops Where the sparrows love and sing And the nuns spread The sins of the world and the white clothes And the white clothes
And a monk dances And a monk dances Arrival from the roof Waiting to take flight Towards the sky so blue Towards the sky so blue Skirts in the air Skirts in the air
Mercè Oranges and flowers Oranges and flowers on the table May the seagulls accompany you The slow walk towards sunset
I will always return To our beach The waves they won't let me, my mother Too far away Too far away
Mercè, Mercè, Mercè Mercè
Sempre tornaré A la nostra platja Les ones no em deixen, mumare Allunyar-me'n massa.
I will always return To our beach The waves they won't let me, my mother Too far away.
Ara m'escrius molt més sovint i és sempre trist el missatge sent allunyar-se aquells matins que em duien les teves cartes.
Si vols escriure un cant d'ocells, entre les teves lletres, a mi m'arriba un mocador enllagrimat d'absències.
Anem a escriure't tot el món posarem flors al sobre: un poc d'espígol, de fonoll, tres margarides blanques, un glop de mar i un tros de cel, un tremolor dels arbres, una misèria, uns records: tots els que tu em deixares.
Un glop de mar i un tros de cel, un tremolor dels arbres, una misèria, ja ho sabem, el que podem donar-te.
Nu schrijf je me veel vaker en de boodschap is altijd droevig het gevoel dat die ochtenden die me jouw brieven brachten, langzaam verdwijnen.
Als je een vogelzang wilt schrijven, bereikt tussen je brieven een zakdoek met tranen van gemis mij.
Laten we jullie over de hele wereld schrijven we doen bloemen in de envelop: een beetje lavendel, venkel, drie witte madeliefjes, een slokje zee en een stukje hemel, een trilling van de bomen, een treurigheid, wat herinneringen: al die je me hebt nagelaten.
Een slokje zee en een stukje hemel, een trilling van de bomen, een treurigheid, we weten, wat we je kunnen geven.
Now you write to me much more often and the message is always sad feeling those mornings that brought me your letters are fading away.
If you want to write a bird song, among your letters, a handkerchief with tears of absences reaches me.
Let's write to you all over the world we'll put flowers in the envelope: a little lavender, fennel, three white daisies, a sip of the sea and a piece of sky, a tremor of the trees, a misery, some memories: all the ones you left me.
A sip of the sea and a piece of sky, a tremor of the trees, a misery, we know, what we can give you.
Only solitary men know the full joys of friendship. Others have their family; but to a solitary and an exile, his friends are everything.
Un exèrcit al costat d'un país sense fronteres, molts soldats que jo he estimat són a les files primeres, un exèrcit d'un país que té llum com a bandera, és l'amor del seu encís, utopia presonera, un exèrcit d'un país que té llum com a bandera.
Són arreu els núvols com trinxeres, no se'ls veu i lluiten com a feres, si s'abracen s'enamoren, el poder miren i passen. El que fan és molt més que fer guerres, van sembrant tresors d'amor per terra, i somien, s'equivoquen, en l'amor trencat rumien.
Un exèrcit al costat que fa guerra a la guerra i jo entre ells m'he iniciat a estimar aquesta terra, un exèrcit ben armat de tristeses i de gestes que està sembrant llibertats que són per l'amor grans festes, un exèrcit ben armat de tristeses i de gestes.
Van morint quan mor una esperança, van vivint la mort sense recança, tots ells saben que a la vida sense somnis ells no hi caben. Van ben sols i fràgils com onades, tu que vols?, s'enfonsen a vegades, és molt dura aquesta guerra per fer més neta la terra.
Un exèrcit al costat d'un país sense fronteres, molts soldats que jo he estimat són a les files primeres. Un exèrcit al costat, que fa guerra a la guerra i jo entre ells m'he iniciat a estimar aquesta terra.
Un exèrcit al costat d'un país sense fronteres, molts soldats que jo he estimat són a les files primeres, un exèrcit d'un país que té llum com a bandera, és l'amor del seu encís, utopia presonera, un exèrcit d'un país que té llum com a bandera.
El sol que no surti avui I que tornin els estels Que jo t'he de mester a prop Per jugar amb els teus cabells Que jo t'he de mester a prop Per jugar amb els teus cabells
Si tu toques i jo cant Vol dir que mos entenem I tot el camí que feim Serà per anar endavant I tot el camí que feim Serà per anar endavant
A València hi ha un carrer Que té geranis i sombres Humitats i tenebror Saliva i enteniment Si voleu saber quin és El carrer de Cavallers Si voleu saber quin és El carrer de Cavallers
Tres portes tinc a ca meva Obertes a tots els vents La que està oberta per tu L'altra per la bona gent La tercera per la mort Que la tancarà el meu temps
Àngel caigut Principi del foc Magrana oberta Tot això ets tu per mi Jo n'estic certa Tot això ets tu per mi Jo n'estic certa
Adéu lluna de nit Adéu sol de migdia Adéu a tots els estels Qui me féreu companyia
Adéu als que heu escoltat La meva veu per amiga Jo he cantat en nom vostro La vostra veu és la mia Jo he cantat en nom vostro La vostra veu és la mia
Adéu lluna de nit Adéu sol de migdia
Adéu lluna de nit Adéu sol de migdia Adéu a tots els estels Qui me féreu companyia
Today, Claire Fontaine and TheGrandma have visited Sant Feliu deGuíxols, in the Baix Empordà to listen to Maria del Mar Bonet and BorjaPenalba, two of the artists who participate in the Porta FerradaFestival during this summer.
Porta Ferrada is a Catalan, Mediterranean and Europeanfestival.
The Porta Ferrada Festival, born in1958 in Sant Feliu de Guíxols, is theoldestsummer festival in Catalonia.
It is unique in the Costa Brava for its wide range of artistic disciplines, features consolidated artists and new talents of the international and local scene.
Rooted in Sant Feliu de Guíxols, the festival fills up every corner of the Catalan town with the best cultural activities in an incomparable scenario to fully enjoy all their proposals. In the streets, squares and venues; music, theater, workshops and many more complementary activities become essential players in the summer of the town.
Sant Feliu de Guíxols is a municipality in the comarca of the Baix Empordà in Catalonia. It is situated on the Costa Brava and is an important port and tourist centre. The district abuts to the north, the upmarket s'Agaró resort built round the Sant Pol Beach. In addition to tourism and the port the cork industry is a traditionally local industry. The town contains a large monastery which now houses the town museum and is a protected historico-artistic monument.
The name Sant Feliu goes back to the martyred saint, Felix of Girona (d. August 31, 304), who came from Carthage in North Africa. Guíxols is a word derived from the former word iecsalis from a tenth-century document that mentions the monastery and seems to mean rope-maker.
An Iberian settlement was already present in the 5th century B.C. in the hill where the Salvament lies today. From the 1st century B.C. onwards, the population started moving to the plains surrounding the Riera de les Comes, where, in the Middle Ages, the Monestir de Sant Feliu de Guíxols was built. The settlement grew, and soon dwellings started to spring up on the other side of the watercourse, which would become the nucleus of the medieval town, centered on the market.
Maria del Mar Bonet i Verdaguer (born 1947 in Palma de Mallorca) is a Majorcan singer.
Bonet studied ceramics in the school of arts, but eventually decided to dedicate herself to music. She arrived in Barcelona in 1967, where she began to sing with the group Els Setze Jutges.
She has published many folk music albums in Catalan, in spite of the ban on the Catalan language and its music during Francisco Franco's dictatorship. She has performed throughout China as well as in Japan, the former USSR, Tunisia, Netherlands, Poland, Belgium, France, United Kingdom, Brazil, Sweden, Switzerland, Venezuela, Mexico, and the United States.
In 1981, Bonet recorded Jardí Tancat in Paris, along with accompaniment by Jacques Denjean and noted Breton harpist Alan Stivell. She has worked with the Ensemble of Music Traditionelle di Tunis and Brazilian musician Milton Nascimento. She earned the French Charles Cross Academy Prize and the Catalan Creu de Sant Jordi and the National Prize awarded by the Catalan government.
In 1984, the French Government gave her the Charles Cross Academy Award for the best foreign record released in France. That same year Bonet was awarded the Cross of Saint George, the highest distinction of the Generalitat de Catalunya, the Catalan Government.
In 1985, as a result of her interest and research into North African music, she recorded Anells d’aigua with the Ensemble de Musique Traditionelle of Tunisia, and then toured with the group throughout France and Spain.
In 2001, Bonet recorded a Jackson Browne tribute album, Sing My Songs. The album was recorded live in July 2001 in the Gothic district of Barcelona.
Today, Claire Fontaine and The Grandma have enjoyed Mariadel Mar Bonet and Big Band Begues in the Palau de la Música Catalana in Barcelona.
It has been a wonderful night full of beautiful music, great professionals and an unforgettable environment.
Claire and The Grandma have been talking about jazz and its origins in the United States almost two centuries ago.
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, UnitedStates, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime.
Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major form of musical expression in traditional and popular music, linked by the common bonds of African-American and European-American musical parentage.
Jazz is characterized by swing and blue notes, complex chords, call andresponse vocals, polyrhythms and improvisation.
Jazz has roots in West African cultural and musical expression, and in African-American music traditions.
As jazz spread around the world, it drew on national, regional, and local musical cultures, which gave rise to different styles.
New Orleans jazz began in the early 1910s, combining earlier brass-band marches, French quadrilles, biguine, ragtime and blues with collective polyphonic improvisation. In the 1930s, heavily arranged dance-oriented swing big bands, Kansas City jazz, a hard-swinging, bluesy, improvisational style and gypsy jazz (a style that emphasized musette waltzes) were the prominent styles.
Bebop emerged in the 1940s, shifting jazz from danceable popular music toward a more challenging musician's music which was played at faster tempos and used more chord-based improvisation.
Cool jazz developed near the end of the 1940s, introducing calmer, smoother sounds and long, linear melodic lines.
The mid-1950s saw the emergence of hard bop, which introduced influences from rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues, especially in the saxophone and piano playing.
Modal jazz developed in the late 1950s, using the mode, or musical scale, as the basis of musical structure and improvisation, as did free jazz, which explored playing without regular meter, beat and formal structures.
Jazz-rock fusion appeared in the late 1960s and early 1970s, combining jazz improvisation with rock music's rhythms, electric instruments, and highly amplified stage sound.
In the early 1980s, a commercial form of jazz fusion called smooth jazz became successful, garnering significant radio airplay. Other styles and genres abound in the 2000s, such as Latin and Afro-Cuban jazz.
The origin of the word jazz has resulted in considerable research, and its history is well documented. It is believed to be related to jasm, a slang term dating back to 1860 meaning pep, energy.
The earliest written record of the word is in a 1912 article in the Los Angeles Times in which a minor league baseball pitcher described a pitch which he called a jazz ballbecause it wobbles and you simply can't do anything with it.
The use of the word in a musical context was documented as early as 1915 in the Chicago Daily Tribune.
Its first documented use in a musical context in New Orleans was in a November 14, 1916, Times-Picayune article about jas bands.
In an interview with National Public Radio, musician Eubie Blake offered his recollections of the slang connotations of the term, saying: When Broadway picked it up, they called it 'J-A-Z-Z'. It wasn't called that. It was spelled 'J-A-S-S'. That was dirty, and if you knew what it was, you wouldn't say it in front of ladies. The American Dialect Society named it the Word of the 20th Century.
Jazz is difficult to define because it encompasses a wide range of music spanning a period of over 100 years, from ragtime to the rock-infused fusion. Attempts have been made to define jazz from the perspective of other musical traditions, such as European music history or African music.
But critic Joachim-Ernst Berendt argues that its terms of reference and its definition should be broader, defining jazz as a form of art music which originated in the United States through the confrontation of the Negro with European music and arguing that it differs from European music in that jazz has a special relationship to time defined as 'swing'.
Today, Claire Fontaine and The Grandma have gone to the Teatre Joventut in Hospitalet to listen to one of the most beautiful voices and one of the best guitarists, Maria del Mar Bonet and Borja Penalba.
Previously, Claire and TheGrandma have read some interesting words written by Maria del Mar Bonet,some words that they want to share in this post:
Coincidentally, we met Borja in Sueca in 2013. He
accompanied me on guitar in a recital. I didn't know him and at the beginning
he was discovering a person with a beautiful voice, a very good guitarist, an
artist with a great creativity. From then on, we could see that our chemistry
on stage was growing and weaving a repertoire of songs that were loved and also
very well-received by an accomplice and enthusiastic audience.
For a couple of
years now, we've been commenting more and more, that we need to record this
show on a record.
At the beginning of 2020, he decided to give recitals at the
Teatre Micalet in Valencia. But as spring approached, the coronavirus appeared
in a brutal way, despite the ups and downs coming from the pandemic, with all
that means the uncertainty of being able to celebrate or not the recitals and
the consequences so negative that there would be if they closed again home,
territorial... finally we could have the dates to be able to sing in the Teatre Micalet of Valencia a few days in a row.
And little by little, too, the
idea of recording a live album in that theatre. This fact would have a very
important meaning for me, because I had sung a lot there. The first recital was
in 1970, and then I was also given an award in 2011.
And a bit beyond
that, I must say that since I started stepping on stage, from the Valencian
Country they have never stopped asking me to go and sing there. This country
that always makes me feel like I'm at home! So this record is deeply dedicated
to him.
I am very grateful to the Teatre Micalet for maintaining the proposal
to go and sing there despite these moments of such a serious epidemic that we
are going through. The Micalet has given us the opportunity, to us and to the
public that has come every day, to see that CULTURE IS SAFE.
I would like to
tell you about Antonio Sánchez, who has put on his percussion and especially
his magic accompanying the songs and recitals that are part of this repertoire.
He has been by my side on many recitals and records. He is an endearing and
indispensable companion, a great musician with an exquisite sensibility.
From
time to time, Yanire, Borja's companion, and Sam, his little girl, came to see
us at rehearsals, at the Micalet, in the studio… Then, joy and spring came with
their blue eyes. Thanks! Borja, Antonio
and I put a lot of madness and passion into this record. We hope you like it!
Maria del Mar Bonet (extracted from Maria del Mar Bonet amb Borja Penalba)
Jo parlo en la meva llengua, i com a tal exerceixo amb les meves cançons, amb la meva de ser, d'escriure, de promocionar-la, perquè és la meva.
I speak my language, and as such I exercise with my songs, with my being, of writing, of promoting it, because it is mine.
Today, The Grandma is relaxing at home. Following the recommendations of the Health Department se does not go out and she is confined reading and listening to music. She has chosen Mikis Theodorakis. She loves this Greek composer and she adores all his songs, especially Tha Simanoun I Kabanes(When The Bells Will Ring) and To YelastoPedi(The laughing boy), two hymns against the dictatorship of the Colonels in Greece.
Mikis Theodorakis was born on a day like today in 1925 and TheGrandma wants to pay homage to him talking about his life and his music.
Michael Mikis Theodorakis, in Greek Μιχαήλ Θεοδωράκης, born 29 July 1925, is a Greek composer and lyricist who has contributed to contemporary Greek music with over 1000 works.
He scored for the films Zorba the Greek (1964), Z (1969), and Serpico (1973). He composed the Mauthausen Trilogy, also known as The Ballad of Mauthausen, which has been described as the most beautiful musical work ever written about the Holocaust and possibly his best work. He is viewed as Greece's best-known living composer. He was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize.
Politically, he is associated with the left because of his long-standing ties to the Communist Party of Greece. He was an MP for the KKE from 1981-90. Nevertheless, in 1989 he ran as an independent candidate within the centre-right New Democracy party, in order for the country to emerge from the political crisis that had been created due to the numerous scandals of the government of Andreas Papandreou, and helped establish a large coalition between conservatives, socialists and leftists.
In 1990 he was elected to the parliament, as in 1964 and 1981, became a government minister under Constantine Mitsotakis, and fought against drugs and terrorism and for culture, education and better relations between Greece and Turkey.
He continued to speak out in favor of left-liberal causes, Greek–Turkish–Cypriot relations, and against the War in Iraq. He has consistently opposed oppressive regimes and was a key voice against the 1967–74 Greek junta, which imprisoned him and banned his songs.
Mikis Theodorakis
Mikis Theodorakis was born on the Greek island of Chios and spent his childhood years in different provincial Greek cities such as Mytilene, Cephallonia, Patras, Pyrgos, and Tripoli.
His father, a lawyer and a civil servant, was from the small village of Kato Galatas on Crete and his mother, Aspasia Poulakis, was from an ethnically Greek family in Çeşme, in what is today Turkey. He was raised with Greekfolk music and was influenced by Byzantine liturgy; as a child he had already talked about becoming a composer.
His fascination with music began in early childhood; he taught himself to write his first songs without access to musical instruments. He took his first music lessons in Patras and Pyrgos, where he was a childhood friend of George Pavlopoulos, and in Tripoli, Peloponnese, he gave his first concert at the age of seventeen.
He went to Athens in 1943, and became a member of a Reserve Unit of ELAS, and led a troop in the fight against the British and the Greek right in the Dekemvriana.
During the Greek Civil War he was arrested, sent into exile on the island of Icaria and then deported to the island of Makronisos, where he was tortured and twice buried alive.
During
the periods when he was not obliged to hide, not exiled or jailed, he
studied from 1943 to 1950 at the Athens Conservatoire under Filoktitis
Economidis.
In 1950, he finished his studies and took his last two exams with flying colours. He went to Crete, where he became the head of the Chania Music School and founded his first orchestra. At this time he ended what he has called the first period of his musical writing.
In 1954 he travelled with his young wife Myrto Altinoglou to Paris where he entered the Conservatory and studied musical analysis under Olivier Messiaen and conducting under Eugene Bigot. His time in Paris, 1954–1959, was his second period of musical writing.
In 1960, Theodorakis returned to Greece and his roots in genuine Greek music: With his song cycle Epitaphios he started the third period of his composing and contributed to a cultural revolution in his country.
Mikis Theodorakis with Maria Farantouri
His most significant and influential works are based on Greek and worldpoetry -Epiphania (Giorgos Seferis), Little Kyklades (Odysseas Elytis), AxionEsti (Odysseas Elytis), Mauthausen (Iakovos Kambanellis), Romiossini(Yannis Ritsos), and Romancero Gitano (Federico García Lorca)- he attempted to giveback to Greek music a dignity which in his perception it had lost. He developed his concept of metasymphonic music.
He founded the Little Orchestra of Athens and the Musical Society ofPiraeus, gave many, many concerts all around Greece and abroad... and he naturally became involved in the politics of his home country. After the assassination of Gregoris Lambrakis in May 1963 he founded the LambrakisDemocratic Youth (Lambrakidès) and was elected its president.
Under Theodorakis's impetus, it started a vast cultural renaissance movement and became the greatest political organisation in Greece with more than 50.000 members. Following the 1964 elections, Theodorakis became a member of the Greek Parliament, associated with the left-wing party EDA.
Because of his political ideas, the composer was black-listed by the cultural establishment; at the time of his biggest artistic glory, a large number of his songs were censored-before-studio or were not allowed on the radio stations.
During 1964, he wrote the music for the Michael Cacoyiannis film Zorba the Greek, whose main theme, since then, exists as a trademark for Greece. It is also known as Syrtaki dance; inspired from old Cretan traditional dances.
On 21 April 1967 a right wing junta, the Regime of the Colonels, took power in a putsch. Theodorakis went underground and founded the Patriotic Front(PAM).
On 1 June, the Colonels published Army decree No 13, which banned playing, and even listening to his music.
Theodorakis himself was arrested on 21 August, and jailed for five months.
Following his release end of January 1968, he was banished in August to
Zatouna with his wife Myrto and their two children, Margarita and
Yorgos. Later he was interned in the concentration camp of Oropos.
Mikis Theodorakis
An international solidarity movement, headed by such personalities as Dmitri Shostakovich, Leonard Bernstein, Arthur Miller, and Harry Belafonte demanded to get Theodorakis freed. On request of the French politician Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber, Theodorakis was allowed to go into exile to Paris on 13 April 1970.
Theodorakis's flight left very secretly from an Onassis owned private airport outside Athens. Theodorakis arrived at Le Bourget Airport where he met Costa Gavras, Melina Mercouri and Jules Dassin. Theodorakis was immediately hospitalized because he suffered from lung tuberculosis. Myrto Theodorakis, Mikis's wife and two children joined him a week later in France. They arrived from Greece to France via Italy on a boat.
While in exile, Theodorakis fought during four years for the overthrowof the colonels. He started his world tours and gave thousands of concerts on all continents as part of his struggle for the restoration of democracy in Greece.
He met Pablo Neruda and Salvador Allende and promised them to compose his version of Neruda's Canto General. He was received by Gamal Abdel Nasser and Tito, Yigal Allon and Yasser Arafat, while François Mitterrand, Olof Palme and Willy Brandt became his friends. For millions of people, Theodorakis was the symbol of resistance against the Greek dictatorship.
After the fall of the Colonels, Mikis Theodorakis returned to Greece on 24 July 1974 to continue his work and his concert tours, both in Greece and abroad.
He was committed to raise international awareness of human rights, ofenvironmental issues and of the need for peace and, for this reason, he initiated, along with the Turkish author, musician, singer, and filmmaker ZülfüLivaneli the Greek–Turkish Friendship Society.
Now he lives in retirement, reading, writing, publishing arrangements of his scores, texts about culture and politics. On occasions he still takes position: in 1999, opposing NATO's Kosovo war and in 2003 against the Iraq War.
In 2005, he was awarded the Sorano Friendship and Peace Award, the Russian International St.-Andrew-the-First-Called Prize, the insignia of Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of Luxembourg, and the IMC UNESCO International Music Prize, while already in 2002 he was honoured in Bonn with the Erich Wolfgang Korngold Prize for film music at the International Film Music Biennial in Bonn.
In 2007, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the distribution of the World Soundtrack Awards in Ghent.
Mikis Theodorakis has been versionated by lots of artists. One of the most popular has been Maria del Mar Bonet, the voice of the Mediterranean, who adapted some Theodorakis's songs to Catalan.
Με τόσα φύλλα σου γνέφει ο ήλιος καλημέρα με τόσα φλάμπουρα λάμπει, λάμπει ο ουρανός και τούτοι μέσ' τα σίδερα και κείνοι μεσ' το χώμα. Σώπα όπου να 'ναι θα σημάνουν οι καμπάνες. Αυτό το χώμα είναι δικό τους και δικό μας.
The sun beckons 'good morning' to you with his leaves The sky shines from all these flags These people behind bars and those buried Be silent, in some minutes the bells will ring This soil is their soil, is our soil.
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