Subtitled Tango #43: CASCABELITO (Pugliese/Maciel, 1955)

Cascabelito ("Little Jingle Bell")
Tango, 1924
Music: Jose Bohr
Lyrics: Juan Andrés Caruso

Our subtitled video of CASCABELITO ("Little Jingle Bell") as recorded by Orquesta Típica Osvaldo Pugliese with vocal by Jorge Maciel, 1955. Spanish lyrics plus our English-language version and explanatory notes follow the video. We hope our video and text versions will enhance your enjoyment of the song as you listen and as you dance!

Entre la loca alegría volvamos a darnos cita misteriosa mascarita de aquel loco Carnaval. Donde estás Cascabelito, mascarita pizpireta, tan bonita y tan coqueta con tu risa de cristal. Cascabel, Cascabelito; ríe, ríe y no llores que tu risa juvenil tenga perfumes de tus amores. Cascabel, Cascabelito; ríe, no tengas cuidado que aunque no estoy a tu lado te llevo en mi corazón. Mascarita misteriosa, por tener mi alma suspensa me ofreciste en recompensa tu boca como un clavel. Y cuando nos despedimos llenos de dulce embeleso, el ruido de nuestro beso lo apagó tu cascabel.

Amidst the wild celebration, let's meet again mysterious little masquerader of that crazy Carnaval! Where are you, Little Jingle Bell,* flighty* little masquerader, so pretty, so flirtatious, with your crystal laugh? Bell, Little Jingle Bell; Laugh, laugh, don’t cry, may your childish laughter hold the perfume of your romances. Bell, Little Jingle Bell; laugh, don’t have a care, Though I’m not beside you, You’re always in my heart. Mysterious little masquerader, for holding my soul in suspense, you rewarded me with the carnation of your lips. And as we parted, full of sweet delight, the sound of our kiss drowned out your jingling bell.

NOTES

* Cascabel, cascabelito: A cascabel is a bell, a sleigh bell, or more particularly a jingle-bell. (Note the sheet music, with the lovers’ kiss reflected on the surface of a jingle-bell.) Girls sometimes sewed one or more jingle-bells into the hem of their skirts to make a flirty jingling sound when they moved—that fact is not directly referenced in the lyric, but it is suggested. However, cascabel also has a negative connotation as in ser un cascabel, to be scatter-brained, flaky, or flighty, which the girl in the song does seem to be. Finally, a cascabel is a rattlesnake, although that doesn’t seem to be at issue here. The girl in the song isn’t venomous; she’s just young, flirtatious, and possibly a bit of a tease. "Cascabelito," then, has a double meaning. It is a term of endearment, but it's also a veiled comment on the girl's character, depending on how it's taken.
    In our English-language subtitles, Cascabel and Cascabelito are translated more or less literally. We leave it to the reader to ponder exactly how the terms ought to be interpreted in context.

*flighty: pizpireta, meaning high-spirited, also fickle or provocative. I used flighty, which to my mind says all of that in a word.