Tango Time Machine — Tango Decoder

Subtitled Video #1: ¡QUÉ HACÉS, QUÉ HACÉS! ("What's up, what's up?") Donato/Gutiérrez, 1933

"Just because four bucks have rained on you, God knows how, you're deluding yourself. You fancy yourself an M.P., though you’re nothing but a fool in a checkered suit.... What's up, what's up with these big-shot pretensions?"

Qué hacés, qué hacés! (What's up, what's up?)*
Tango, 1933
Music: José Di Clemente
Words: Jesús Fernández Blanco

On YourTube:
• Felix Gutiérrez with Orquesta Típica Edgardo Donato
• Tita Merello with Orquesta Francisco Canaro

[Illus.: "See you tomorrow, Novarro!" Ramón Novarro (1899-1968), the quintessential "Latin lover."]

¡Qué hacés, qué hacés, que de repente te has parao, y no querés saber de amigos del pasao! Será tal vez que tu patrón se descuidó, o puede ser que alguna herencia te tocó... ¡Qué hacés, qué hacés! que de la barra disparás y te creés el "nene lindo de mamá"... ¡Qué plato, che, cuando te gritan en el barrio: Adiós, Novarro, Qué hacés, qué hacés! Por cuatro mangos que han llovido, Dios sabe cómo, te has engrupido... Pensás que sos un diputao, y sólo sos un gil a cuadros empilchao... Por esos locos berretines también cambiaste de apellidos... ¡Ya no sos Pérez Gilines! ¡Sos Nito Anchorena Unzué! ¡Qué hacés, qué hacés con ese dique de bacán! Te la has piyao que hasta las uñas te pintás... Si todos, che, te vimos siempre laburar bien engrasao, vendiendo cachos de fainá... ¡Qué hacés, qué hacés! que en vez de chao decís "gut nai", y "madmossells" a las pebetas vos llamás... ¡Qué plato, che, cuando te dice alguna chica: Adiós, Mojica, ¡Qué hacés, qué hacés!

What's up, what's up? that suddenly you're done, and you don’t want to know about your old friends? Maybe your boss wasn't watching, or it could be that some inheritance fell into your lap... What's up, what's up? that you distance yourself from the old gang and you believe you're “Mama’s sweet darling”... What a joke, eh, when they greet you in the barrio: "See you tomorrow, Novarro,"* What's up, what's up? Just because four bucks have rained on you, God knows how, you're deluding yourself... You fancy yourself an M.P.,* though you’re nothing but a fool in a checkered suit... On account of these crazy whims you also changed your name... You’re no longer Peréz Gilines! You’re Nito Anchorena Unzué! What's up, what's up with these big-shot pretensions?* You’ve got it so bad you even paint your fingernails... But all of us, eh, we’ve seen you working, all greasy, selling slices of pizza...* What's up, what's up? that instead of chao you say “good night,” and you call the girls “mademoiselle”... What a laugh, eh, when some girl says to you: “Hey, Mojíca,”* What's up, what's up?

English-language version, Copyright © 2014 Michael Krugman / Tango Decoder

* Qué hacés, qué hacés: Literally, "What are you doing?" or more colloquially, "What's up?"

* Novarro: Ramón Novarro (1899-1968) Mexican leading man in silent films, the quintessential “Latin lover.”

* M.P.: diputao/diputado, literally, "deputy," i.e., any sort of elected or appointed official: congressman, assemblyman, M.P., etc.

* Nito Anchorena Unzué: A pretentious assumed name. The Anchorenas and the Unzués had been prominent families in Argentine society since the eighteenth century. Tita Morello renders the line as Decís ser un noble ingles, "You claim to be an English nobleman."

* big-shot pretension: dique de bacán. The phrase darse dique means to put on airs, to brag.

* pizza: Fainá, a savory flatbread made of chickpea flour, common to Argentina and Uruguay. Today it is often sold in pizzerias, and served a caballo ("on horseback"), that is, atop a slice of pizza. [TD's note: Beer accompaniment mandatory!]

* Mojíca: Fray José de Guadalupe Mojica  (1896-1974) was a wildly popular tenor and film actor successful in the American film industry before entering religious life.

MARION: Paris past, passion persists

"In memory my heart dreams again, and the dream is you, Marión... Youthful passion that one never forgets. Passion that fills my whole life with light. Shadows of yesterday, with its sadness of song, will always say to me: Marión...."

Luis Rubistein (1908-1954) was a tango composer and musician whose many titles include Charlemos, Ya sale el tren, Cadenas, Nada más, Tarde Gris, and CUATRO PALABRAS. There's an extensive bio of Luis Rubistein at TodoTango.com. Worth a read.

YouTube: Orquesta Miguel Caló, canta Raúl Iriarte

Marión
Tango, 1933
Words and music: Luis Rubistein
English version: Tango Decoder, Copyright © 2014 All Rights Reserved. Dedicated to Marión Cajori (1950-2006).

En la evocación

vuelve a soñar
mi corazón,

y el sueño eres tú, Marión...

Amor de mi juventud

que no se olvida.

Amor que llena de luz

toda mi vida.

Sombras del ayer,

con su tristeza de canción

siempre me dirán: Marión...

In memory
my heart
dreams again,
and the dream is you, Marión...
Youthful love
that one never forgets.
Love that fills
my whole life with light.
Shadows of yesterday
with its sadness of song
will always say to me: Marión....



Marión,

sé que a tu lado fui feliz

cuando te di mi corazón

en el viejo París.

Recuerdo

la angustia del adiós

y el cielo

llorando por los dos...

Marión,

amor lejano que dejé,

quiero que sepas, corazón,

que jamás te olvidé.

Marión,
I know I was happy at your side
when I gave my heart to you
in old Paris.
I remember the anguish of our goodbye
and the sky
crying for us both...
Marión,
distant love I left behind,
I want you to know, dearest,
that I never forgot you.



Sueño de París

que se enredó con la emoción

de tu amor sin fin, Marión...

Hoy sólo queda el albor

de tu fragancia

y el perfumado rumor

de la distancia.

Sombras del ayer,

con tono gris de evocación

siempre me dirán: Marión.

Dream of Paris
merged with the feeling
of your undying love, Marión...
Today all that remains is the dawn
of your fragrance
and the perfumed rumor
of the distance between us.
Shadows of yesterday
with gray tone of memory
will always say to me: Marión.

Tango Decoder's Top Ten Tango Lyrics 2014

It's been a fun year at Tango Decoder. We published more than 50 new tango translations. We hope they enhanced your appreciation of the songs as you listened and as you danced.

Here, in no particular order, are the translations that received the most views during 2014. Thanks to all our readers for making 2014 a great year!

[Illustration: Indecipherable rongorongo tablet in the museum of Museo de la Concepción, Santiago de la Merced, Chile.]

• NINGUNA
• CONDENA
• UNO
• SORBOS AMARGOS
• MAÑANA IRÉ TEMPRANO
• LLUEVE OTRA VEZ
• LARGA LAS PENAS
• TU LLAMADO
• CANCIÓN DE RANGO
• NO VENDRÁ
• ARRABALERO

We'll be back in 2015 with lots of new translations and lots of new ideas! See you next year!

--Michael Krugman, a.k.a. Tango Decoder

 

UNA EMOCION: Simple songs stir a sentimental soul

"Its accent is the song of sentimental voice, its rhythm is the beat that lives in my city. It has no pretense, no desire to show off; it’s called tango and nothing more."

I know, I know--this lyric's been translated before. But it's such a beautiful melody, the lyrics are so complex and evocative, that I thought it worthy of yet another version. I hope Tango Decoder's version will add something to your appreciation of the song as you listen and as you dance.

On YouTube:
• Raul Berón with Orquesta Lucio Demare
• Enrique Campos with Orquesta Ricard Tanturi

[Illus: Raúl Berón]

Una emoción (An emotion) 1943
Music: Raúl Kaplún
Lyric: José María Suñé

Vengan a ver que traigo yo
en esta unión de notas y palabras,
es la canción que me inspiró
la evocación que anoche me acunaba.

Come see what I bring
in this union of notes and words;
it’s the song that inspired me
the memories that rocked me to sleep last night.

Es voz de tango modulado en cada esquina,
por el que vive una emoción que lo domina,
quiero cantar por este son
que es cada vez más dulce y seductor.

It is the rising and falling voice of tango on every corner
sung by he who lives under the spell of an emotion.
I want to sing in that tone,
sweeter and more charming each time.

Envuelto en la ilusión anoche lo escuché,
compuesta la emoción por cosas de mi ayer,
la casa en que nací,
la reja y el parral,
la vieja calesita y el rosal.

Enfolded in a dream, I heard it last night
the emotion composed of my yesterdays
the house I was born in,
the window grates and the grape arbor,
the old carousel and the rosebush.

Su acento es la canción de voz sentimental,
su ritmo es el compás que vive en mi ciudad,
no tiene pretensión,
no quiere ser procaz,
se llama tango y nada más.

Its accent is the song of sentimental voice
its rhythm is the beat that lives in my city. 
It has no pretense, 
no desire to show off; 
it’s called tango and nothing more.

Esta emoción que traigo yo,
nació en mi voz cargada de nostalgia.
Siento un latir de rebelión cuando a este son
sus versos le disfrazan.
Si es tan humilde y tan sencillo en sus compases,
porque anotarle un mal ejemplo en cada frase.
Con este resto de emoción
muy fácil es llegar al corazón.

This emotion that I bring 
was born in my voice charged with nostalgia.
My senses rise in rebellion when this tone 
is disguised by the verses.
If it is so humble and simple in its rhythms,
why does it set a bad example with each phrase? 
With what remains of the emotion
it’s very easy to get to the heart.

TU LLAMADO: The wrong kind of rings

"When I drop by the café at night, the owner already answers without my asking, 'She didn’t call today either.' And heartbroken, I keep waiting...."

Tu llamado (Your call)
Tango, 1945
Words and Music: Enrique Cadícamo

YouTube: Orquesta Ricardo Tanturi w/ Roberto Videla (1945-11-09)

танго декодер thanks Zhanna Rabinska for bringing this song to our attention!

Compare with NO ESTÁ (1942).

Sin mandarme cuatro líneas ni un adiós Sin una sola palabra, sin hablar, Mi cariño lo rompiste Y no comprendo por qué lo hiciste. Cuando caigo por las noches al café Ya me contesta el patrón sin preguntar, “Hoy tampoco lo ha llamado” Y acongojado, vuelvo a esperar. Siempre espero tu llamado Y el teléfono no suena, Y si suena algún llamado, Es de algún afortunado Pero que olvida su pena. Siempre espero tu llamado Como cuando me querías, En mi mesa, arrinconado, Voy a esperar tu llamado Por si te acuerdas de mí. Todo el mundo me pregunta dónde estás Y para colmo de mi hondo padecer, Hoy trajeron los anillos Con el cintillo que te encargué.

Without sending me four lines nor even a goodbye Without a single word, without speaking, My darling, you broke it off And I don’t know why!   When I drop by the café at night The owner already answers without my asking “She didn’t call today either.” And heartbroken, I keep waiting. I’m always waiting for your call though the phone never rings, and when a call does come in, it’s for some lucky guy, so that he forgets his sorrow. I’m always waiting for your call As I did when you loved me, At my table, in a corner, I’m going to wait for your call In case you're thinking of me.   Everybody asks me where you are And to top off my deep suffering, Today they delivered the rings With the wedding band I ordered for you. English-language version Copyright © 2014

Arganaraz: Wild nights of tango

AQUELLAS FARRAS (ARGAÑARAZ*)
(Those wild parties)
Words: Enrique Cadícamo
Music: Roberto Firpo
Tango, 1930

On YouTube:
Carlos Gardel
Tino García w/ Orq. Angel D'Agostino (1952)
Ricardo Tanturi (Instr., 1940)
Orq. Adolfo Pérez "Pocholo" (Instr., 1949)

[Photo: (Translation) "I'M ON A BENDER!... I request of whoever finds me sloshed, tie this tag to the buttonhole of my jacket.... SEND ME HOME!.... Name: Mayol, Manuel.... Address: Avenue de Mayo 1334, 3rd fl..... Please, do not knock! Just ring the bell and wait for them to come and get me.]

Tiempos viejos y compadres
de mi vida cadenera*
que ya no volverán
mis años a gozar.
¿Qué habrá sido de esa barra
bravucona y trencillera
que tanto dio que hablar
por su guapear?

Old times and the pals
of my vigorous days,*
my years to enjoy,
that will never return.
What’s become of that
rowdy, quarrelsome gang
that caused so much talk
by its swaggering about?

(Recitado)
Adiós, amigos de entonces,
ya estamos viejos de tanto andar.

Marcando una candombeada
fue luciendo medias lunas
y entre cortes y quebradas
iba el tango provocador.
Me acuerdo de aquellas farras
Que entre fuelles dormilones,
Ritmaban los corazones
Un pasaje sentimental.

(Spoken)
Goodbye, friends of yesteryear,
we’re old now from all that running around.

Leading a candombeada
and showing off the media lunas,*
between cortes and quebradas,
the tango raised a ruckus.
I remember those wild parties where,
among sleepy bandoneons,
a soulful riff
set the rhythm of our hearts.

Siglo de oro de ese tiempo
donde el Ñato Monteagudo
borracho de pernó
se quiso suicidar,
Y del loco Puentecito
y del viejito Lossano...
¡No los he vuelto a ver...!
¿Dónde estarán...?

That golden age, that time
when Pug-nose Monteagudo,*
drunk on pernod,
wanted to kill himself,
and crazy Little Puente,
and my old buddy Rossano...
I haven’t seen them around!
Where can they have gone?

(Adiós, amigos de entonces,
ya estamos viejos de tanto andar.

Goodbye, friends of yesteryear,
we’re old now from all that running around.

NOTES:

* my ruffian life: mi vida cadenera. The word cadenero is a Lunfardo term for a pimp or rufián, also valiente (brave or valiant) or esforzado (vigorous, energetic). The latter interpretation seems more apt here.

* leading a candombeada and showing off media lunas, between cortes and quebradas, the tango raised a ruckus: As my Uruguayan correspondent Lucia Figueroa has pointed out below, a candombeada is a parade (cumparsa) of dancers and drummers performing candombe music, a custom which is still observed every February in Uruguay in a series of high-spirited gatherings called llamadas. Half-moons (media lunas) and stars are important symbols of African derivation that are prominently displayed on these occasions (see illustration, and here). Cortes and quebradas are typical figures of the early, candombe-inflected tango (canyengue). Thus the passage alludes to the historical importance of the candombe in the development of tango and milonga. (Revised 7 April 2015.)

* Argañaraz: A very short street (one block only) in Buenos Aires, probably named in honor of Francisco de Argañaraz y Murguía (1563-1602), a Spanish conquistador who founded the city of San Salvador de Jujuy in the Túcuman Territory. Calle Argañaraz is in the barrio of Palermo, running from Calle Lavalleja to the Avenida del Estado de Israel. It is just a few blocks from present day tango clubs like Club Malcolm, La Viruta, and Salon Canning. Perhaps it was the location of one of the condombeadas the song memorializes.

* Pug-nose Monteagudo: The identity of this character is revealed in the article "Muchachos que andan paseando."

 

VOLVAMOS A EMPEZAR: Let's start over again...

"With the shadows of prison I cleansed my sins, if prison can be said to cleanse anything. Those stone-faced judges never could understand that sometimes life forces you to kill."

VOLVAMOS A EMPEZAR
(Let's start over again)
Tango, 1953
Música: Daniel Alvarez 

Letra: Eduardo Maradei

Tango Decoder's version of VOLVAMOS A EMPEZAR is dedicated to Astrid S., a gracious lady and a marvelous dancer.

Oscar Larrocca w/ Orquesta Alfredo De Angelis

Now I’m at your side once again,
Happy like never before, eager for home.
The kids already know what's happened,
and now they can show they have a father.

Look at the gifts I’ve bought for all of you:
Toys, clothes, some liquor, too,
and a wedding veil more beautiful than the sky,
since I know that our darling daughter already has sweetheart.

Look....our kids as they were yesterday!
Look...how they hug me once again!
Who knows how many times
They needed my affection
And in their deprivation
They called me with their sobbing?

Today I’m lucky to have a home
and I know that you suffered more than I did.
Come, set the table and hide that big tear.
Don’t cry, let’s start over again.

With the shadows of prison I cleansed my sins,
If prison can be said to cleanse anything.
Those stone-faced judges never could understand
That sometimes life forces you to kill.

Look....our kids as they were yesterday!
Look...how they embrace me once again !
Who knows how many times
They needed my affection
And in their deprivation
They called me with their sobbing...

Today I’m lucky to have a home
and I know that you suffered more than I did.
Come, set the table and hide your tears
Don’t cry, let’s start over again!

Hoy vuelvo por tí otra vez a tu lado
feliz como nunca, con ansias de hogar
los chicos ya saben que es lo que ha pasado
y ahora hay un padre que pueden mostrar.

Mirá que regalos compré para todos:
juguetes y ropas, también un licor
y un velo de novia más lindo que el cielo
pues sé que la nena ya tiene un amor.

Mirá...
nuestros cachorros como ayer
mirá...
como me abrazan otra vez
quién sabe cuantas veces
precisaron mi calor
y en esta desnudez
me habrán llamado con su llanto.

Hoy tengo la dicha de mi hogar
y sé que vos sufriste más que yo.
Vení, poné la mesa y escondé ese lagrimón,
no llores, volvamos a empezar.

Con sombras de carcel lavé mi pecado
si acaso la cárcel lo puede lavar
los jueces de mármol nunca comprendieron
que a veces la vida te obliga a matar.

Mirá...
nuestros cachorros como ayer
mirá...
como me abrazan otra vez
quién sabe cuantas veces
precisaron mi calor
y en esta desnudez
me habrán llamado con su llanto.
Hoy tengo la dicha de mi hogar
y sé que vos sufriste más que yo.
Vení, poné la mesa y escondé ese lagrimón,
no llores, volvamos a empezar.

CUALQUIER COSA: She did whatever it took...

Cualquier cosa (Whatever it took)
Tango, 1927
Words and music: Herminia Velich / Juan Velich

Listen on YouTube:
• Ignacio Corsini (1929)
• Raúl Berón w/ Aníbal Troilo (1952)
• Mario Alonso w/ Francisco Canaro (1952)
• Angel Vargas w/ Armando Lacava (1952)

Cualquier cosa resultaste para que un hombre derecho tu maldad tomara a pecho entregándose al "splin". Con tu acción me comprobaste lo que de ti suponía que tu amor me sonreía para lograr otro fin. Loca mía, alma cruel y atravesada por tu artera puñalada toda mi dicha perdí. Quién diría que tu pensamiento terco te volviera flor de cerco y no encanto para mí. Tus divinos ojos verdes mezcla de mar y de cielo han dejado un desconsuelo que amargó mi corazón. Quiera Dios que no te acuerdes de volver ya que te fuiste porque el daño que me hiciste no merece mi perdón.

You did whatever it took so that an honest man would take your wickedness to heart, surrendering to spite. By your actions you confirmed what I suspected all along: that your love smiled upon me to gain some other end. Wanton woman,* cruel and treacherous soul, through your cunning betrayal I lost all my happiness. Who would have known that your obstinate thoughts would turn you into a noxious weed* and not a spell over me. Your divine green eyes mixed of sea and sky have left me with a grief that embittered my heart. Now that you’ve left I pray to God you don’t think of coming back because the damage you did me doesn’t deserve my pardon.

* O, wanton woman: Loca mía. The word loca means "crazy woman," but the alternate reading, "whore," is probably more apt here. "Wanton woman" is intended to cover both senses.

* noxious weed: flor de cerco, literally "fence flower." Possibly a reference to the Cardo común (Carduus acanthoides), a thistle-like flowering plant in the sunflower family, a relative of the artichoke, that is an invasive weed of Latin America. Its stalk bears tiny spines that may cause considerable pain when touched, not unlike the lady in the song.

QUE FALTA QUE ME HACES: Absence makes the heart go bonkers....

Que falta que me hacés
(You’ve got me missing you so!)
Music: Armando Pontier & Miguel Caló
Lyrics: Federico Silva [Bio at todotango.com]

Tango Decoder version by the same lyricist: Hasta siempre amor

Listen on YouTube: Alberto Podesta w/ Miguel Caló

No estás!
Te busco y ya no estás.
Espina de la espera
que lastima
más y más…
Gritar

tu nombre enamorado.

Desear
...
tus labios despintados,

como luego de besarlos…
¡No estás!

Te busco y ya no estás.
¡Qué largas son las horas
ahora que no estás!…

You’re not here!
I look for you and still you’re not here.
Thorn of hope
that pains me
more and more...
Crying out...
your name, lovestruck.
Desiring...
your lips, smeared
like after kissing them.
You’re not here!
I look for you and still you’re not here.
An hour seems to go on forever
now that you’re not here!

Qué ganas de encontrarte

después de tantas noches.

Qué ganas de abrazarte,

¡qué falta que me haces!…
Si vieras que ternura

que tengo para darte,

capaz de hacer un mundo
y dártelo después.
Y entonces, si te encuentro,

seremos nuevamente,

desesperadamente,

los dos para los dos.

Such desire to find you
after so many nights.
Such desire to embrace you,
you’ve got me missing you so!
If you could only see what tenderness
I have to give you:
I would dare to create a world,
then give it to you.
And then, if I find you,
we’ll be once again,
desperately,
for each other alone.

LA PIBA DE LOS JASMINES: Sunny seamstress succumbs to seductive scoundrel

"She was the shop’s hardest worker, industrious, happy, and honest, who stole her blush from the red clouds of the sky at dawn." 

LA PIBA DE LOS JASMINES
(The Girl with the Jasmines)
Tango, 1943
Words : Julio Plácido Navarrine 
Music : Ricardo Malerba / Dante Smurra

There are two very fine English-language versions of La piba de los jasmines, one by my esteemed colleague and friend Sasha Vicente-Grabovetsky, and the other by the good folks over at Tanguito.co.uk. In my own reading of the lyrics, a few ideas came up that were not reflected in either of those versions, so I decided to do one of my own. I hope that my attempt is worthy of its predecessors. I'd like to think it sheds some small ray of new light on this classic tango verse.

Tango Decoder's notes follow the text. Our subtitled Spanish-English video of La piba de los jasmines is below the notes.

No hubo piba tan hermosa Desde el Bajo a la Barranca, Como aquella que llegaba Y se iba con el sol. Del taller fue la hormiguita Laboriosa, alegre y franca, Que a la aurora le robaba Todo el “rouge” de su arrebol. Más de un guapo prepotente Hizo ronda en su ventana, Quién la viera, los domingos Hacer guardia en el portón. Esperando, presintiendo Y ostentando muy ufana, Un jazmín prendido al pecho Custodiando al corazón. Culpa fue de aquel soñado Malandrín de sus amores, Que diciendo “triunfo” él sólo Las cuarenta le acusó.* Doctorado en amoríos Le hizo ver los esplendores, De otra vida y de otro mundo Y ella, ciega, sonrió. Él le dijo: “Margarita del suburbio tan lozana, sos la estampa más porteña de Griseta y de Mimí.” Y en el pecho tembloroso De la reina suburbana, Un jazmín agonizaba Cuando ella dijo: “Sí...”

From El Bajo to La Barranca, there was none so beautiful as the girl who came and went with the sun. She was the shop’s hardest worker,* industrious, happy, and honest, who stole her blush from the red clouds of the sky at dawn.* More than one puffed-up romeo took a turn at her window, though he might have seen her on Sundays, standing watch at the church gate,* waiting, hoping, putting on a cheerful face, a jasmine clutched to her breast, protecting her heart. It was the fault of that dreamy scoundrel* she fell for, who, declaring triumph, he alone won her heart.* Well-versed in love affairs, he got her used to the glitter of another life, another world, and she blindly, smiled assent. He said to her: “Margarita of the slums so charming, you are the image, more porteña, of Griseta or Mimí.” And on the tremulous breast of the queen of the suburbs a jasmine withered when she said: “Yes...”

NOTES:

* shop’s hardest worker: Del taller fue la hormiguita. Virtually the only jobs available to working-class women were prostitute or seamstress. A seamstress usually worked in a taller, a sewing workshop, which was a small factory equipped with machines: a "sweatshop." An hormiguita is literally a worker ant, but the term is commonly used to denote a hard-working person. The song's heroine is "the little worker ant of the factory/workshop," meaning she's the hardest worker in the place.

* stole her blush...dawn: The implication is that the heroine is so lovely that she needs no makeup.

* scoundrel: Malandrín. Alternate meanings: thief, ruffian, scrounger, delinquent, a person with ill intentions.

* standing watch at the church gate: A portón in this context is not just a big gate, but the front gate of a church. The malandrín has promised our heroine marriage, then left her waiting at the altar. She continues to await him at the church every Sunday, a jasmine clutched to her breast. Hence, the bell-like piano notes heard at 1:56 and 2:26 are echoes of the wedding bells that failed to toll for her. This is the central image of the song, though it may take a bit of decoding to understand.

* ...declaring triumph...won her heart: Triunfo means both "triumph" and "trumps." In the card-game trute a player who holds a king and a horse of the same suit scores extra points by declaring or "singing" them. The king and horse of the "trump" suit are worth the most, forty points. In the song, the scoundrel metaphorically holds the trump suit, and as a result, he "declares forty." His seductive wiles trump the heroine's virtue.

* Griseta or Mimí:  Grisette refers to the inexpensive grey fabric worn by working class girls. The name Griseta appears in several tango songs, most notably the 1924 composition by same name, recorded by Gardel, Di Sarli, Biagi, and others. Mimí is the heroine of Puccini’s La bohème. Like the piba of the song, she is a seamstress; she dies of tuberculosis at the opera's climax. The line suggests that the piba is the equal of the French Grisette or Mimí, but more porteña in appearance and/or affect.

CANCION DE RANGO: Tango, a song of distinction

"I sing because I feel the emotion of the tango... rhythmic and proud. I sing whenever someone shouts out that there’s a cheeky tango looking for a heart."

Canción de rango (Pa' que se callen)
A song of distinction (To shut them up)
Tango, 1942
Music: Raul Kaplún
Lyrics: José M. Suñe

Lucio Demare w/ Roberto Arrieta
Rodolfo Biagi w/ Jorge Ortiz
Miguel Caló w/ Roberto Rufino
Ricardo Tanturi w/Alberto
Danced by Natalia Bianchi & Natán Lima
Danced by Amanda & Adrian Costa

 

Que bailen los que vienen pa' bailar. Que escuchen los que quieran escuchar. Pa' todos hay un tango acompasado, pretencioso y retobado reinando en mi ciudad. Yo canto porque vivo la emoción del tango... cadencioso y compadrón. Yo canto cuando alguno pega el grito que hay un tango compadrito buscando un corazón. Pa' que se callen los que andan divulgando que el tango es triste, que es danza y son del fango; pa' que se callen les voy pasando el dato: mi tango es danza triste pero es canción de rango. Pa' que se callen les mando en dos por cuatro esta cadencia viril que se hace canto. Si son sensibles, verán que no es del fango aquél que envuelve en tangos su corazón. Que bailen los que vienen pa' bailar. Que sigan escuchando los demás. Hoy tengo la emoción envuelta en tango y es por eso que me agrando al son de su compás. Yo canto porque vivo la emoción del tango cadencioso y compadrón. Yo canto cuando alguno pega el grito que hay un tango compadrito buscando un corazón.

Let those who come to dance, dance. Let those who want to listen, listen. There's a tango for everyone, rhythmic, showy, and rebellious, reigning in my city. I sing because I feel the emotion of the tango... rhythmic and proud.* I sing whenever someone shouts out that there’s a cheeky tango* looking for a heart. To shut them up, those who go about saying that tango is sad, that it’s a dance and a sound of dishonor;* to shut them up, I‘m spreading the word: My tango is a sad dance but it’s a song of distinction.* To shut them up, I send them in dos por cuatro,* this virile cadence in the form of a song. If they’re sensitive, they'll see that he who wraps his heart in tangos is not dishonorable. Let those who come to dance, dance. Let the rest keep on listening. Today my soul is immersed in tango and that is why I stand tall at the sound of its beat. I sing because I feel the emotion of the proud, rhythmic tango. I sing whenever someone raises the cry that there’s a cheeky tango looking for a heart.

NOTES:

* rhythmic and prideful: cadencioso y compadrón. Cadencioso means melodious, rhythmic or swinging. Compadrón is a Lunfardism meaning a boastful, arrogant person, prone to excessive pride or bragging, prideful. 

* a cheeky tango: un tango compadrito. The compadrito was a typical figure of the arrabal, known for his highly affected style of dress and movement; disdain for regular employment; petulant, unpredictable, sometimes violent behavior; vainglory and braggadocio. Several sources mention a tendency to take credit for deeds that were not his own. The compadrito was regarded with suspicion among other segments of society and played no constructive social role except insofar as they may have influenced the early development of the tango dance and set the sartorial style for would-be tangueros of subsequent generations. Applied to a tango, the term would seem to indicate a more limited set of compadrito-like qualities: pride, impulsiveness, emotionality, marked stylization, and non-conformism.

* a dance and a song of dishonor: danza y son del fango. The word fango, literally "mud," connotes disgrace or dishonor. Fango was a prominent feature of the unpaved streets of the arrabal. Therefore a dance, a song, or a person that is del fango, "of/from the mud, " is one standing "low" in the hierarchy of Argentine society. The word fango and its synonym, barro, appear often in tango lyrics. For examples, see CHAPALEANDO BARRO, MONEDA DE COBRE, COMPADRÓN and others.

* a song of distinction: un canción de rango. Rango means rank, standing, social status. The lyric counterposes the idea that tango is a song of fango, dishonor, to the assertion that it is a dance of rango, status or distinction.

* dos por cuatro: Literally, "two by four." Refers to the putative two-four time signature of early tango, which is sometimes considered to be its distinguishing rhythmic feature. Tango is performed with accents on the first and third beat of each measure, i.e., dos por cuatro (2/4). Musically speaking, however, the time-signature is 4/4, not 2/4.

ALMA DE BANDONEON: Bandoneon soul

"Just like you, I dreamed; just like you, I lived without achieving my ambition. Bandoneón soul—soul that I carry within myself—voice of misfortune and passion, I’ll search for you until death, I’ll call for you with my last breath, to beg your pardon and, squeezing you in my arms, to give you the pieces of my heart."

Alma del bandoneón
a.k.a. Alma de bandoneón
(Soul of the bandoneón/Bandoneón soul)
Tango, 1935
Composer: Enrique Santos Discépolo
Lyricist: Luis César Amadori, Enrique Santos Discépolo

Enrique Santos Discépolo wrote this song for the film by the same name starring Libertad Lamarque. You can watch it in its entirety here. It was a big production. In one scene Lamarque sings the title song before an orchestra of fifty bandoneones in the Teatro Colón (as seen in the movie poster, above). 

On YouTube:
Orquesta Típica Victor con Alberto Gomez
Orquesta Típica Sinfonia Francisco Canaro con Roberto Maida
Libertad Lamarque sings the title song of the film, "El alma del bandoneón."

Yo me burlé de vos porque no te entendí ni comprendí tu dolor. Tuve la sensación de que tu canto cruel lo habías robao, bandoneón... Recién comprendo bien la desesperación que te revuelve al gemir ¡Sos una oruga que quiso ser mariposa antes de morir! Fue tu voz, bandoneón, la que me confió el dolor del fracaso que hay en tu gemir; voz que es fondo de la vida oscura y sin perdón, del que soñó volar y arrastra su ilusión llorándola... Igual que vos soñé... Igual que vos viví sin alcanzar mi ambición. Alma del bandoneón --alma que arrastro en mí-- voz de desdicha y de amor, te buscaré al morir, te llamaré en mi adiós, para pedirte perdón, y al apretarte en mis brazos, darte en pedazos mi corazón. ......................................................

I mocked you because I neither knew nor understood your pain. I had the perception that your cruel song, you had stolen it, bandoneón... Lately I understand very well the despair that you keep moaning about. You are a caterpillar that wanted to be a butterfly before dying! It was your voice, bandoneón,  that confided in me the pain of failure that's there in your moan; your voice that is background of the gloomy life without forgiveness of he who dreams of flying,  and carries on with his dream, mourning it. Just like you, I dreamed, just like you, I lived  without achieving my ambition. Bandoneón soul --soul that I carry in myself-- voice of misfortune and passion, I’ll search for you until death, I’ll call for you with my last breath, to beg your pardon, and squeezing you in my arms, to give you the pieces of my heart. ........................................................

SORBOS AMARGOS: Best buddies, bitter booze

"If I could cry blood, I’d have to open up a hundred eyes to relieve myself of this sorrow that consumes me still."

SORBOS AMARGOS (Bitter gulps)
Letra de Agustín Irusta
Letra de Roberto Fugazot
Musica de Lucio Demare

For Theresa Faus

• Trio Argentino w/ Agustín Irusta (n/d)
• Orquesta Lucio Demare w/ Juan Carlos Miranda (1942)
• Francisco Lomuto w/ Fernando Díaz (1932)
• Osvaldo y Coca dance Sorbos Amargos
• Osvaldo y Coca otra vez!

[Photo: Fugazot, Demare, & Irusta]

The scene: A seedy bar down in the El Bajo district of Buenos Aires, down by the docks, ca. 1928. Two men, old friends, sit at a corner table, drinking quietly for a couple of hours. At last, one of them begins to lament the loss of his great love. From time to time he pauses, raises his glass to his lips, and takes a gulp of bitter booze....

!Viejo!...
si vos supieras cuantas noches,
desde mi lecho, contemplo
la puerta por donde salió,
aquella tarde
que amorosa y con un beso,
para un mentido paseo
con un adiós se marchó.

Old pal!...
if you only knew how many nights,
from my bed, I stare at the door
she shut behind her
that evening
when lovingly, with a kiss,
and pretending to go for a walk,
she said goodbye and left me for good.

Nunca...
recuerdo haber sufrido tanto
como esa noche, que, en vano,
mi corazón la esperó,
tu, que me viste acariciarla,
viejo amigo...
ya sabrás lo que he sufrido yo.

Never...
do I remember having suffered so much
as that night when
my heart waited for her in vain.
You, who saw how I cherished her,
old friend...
now you must know what I’ve gone through.

Cada cosa es un recuerdo,
cada recuerdo un sollozo,
tanto cariño le tengo,
que hasta en mis venas está.

Each thing is a memory,
each memory a sob,
so much affection I had for her,
that it still runs in my veins.

Si pudiera llorar sangre,
habría de abrirme cien ojos,
para sacarme esta pena,
que consumiéndome va.

If I could cry blood,
I’d have to open up a hundred eyes
to relieve myself of this sorrow
that consumes me still.

Cuantas auroras me vieron,
con la muerte en el semblante,
la esperanza en las pupilas,
y en los labios murmurar,
una palabra de amor,
que me arrancara, el dolor de recordar.

How many dawns saw me,
with a ghastly expression on my face,
hope in my eyes,
and on my lips a muttered
word of love,
that rekindled the pain of memory.

Cuando retorne por aquella puerta,
que tal vez ha de ser nunca,
ha de volver mi corazón a sentir ansia,
de gozar en esta vida,
los placeres que ella brinda,
cuando se ama con pasión.

Should she return by that door,
which probably never will be,
my heart will have to yearn again,
will have to enjoy in this life,
the pleasures it offers
when one loves passionately.

Sueño con imposibles realidades,
viejo amigo y es pasada,
esta cruz de sinsabor,
que nunca sepa mi buena madre,
que la vida me brindó,
caricias de dolor.

I dream of impossible realities,
old friend, and it's gone sour,
this burden of sorrow.
May my loving mother never know
that life gave me
such painful caresses.

LA COLEGIALA: Poor little (rich) student

"She’s a poor little student whose dedication never flagged. Always and everywhere she had the elegance to be the mistress of her own heart."

La Colegiala (The student)
Foxtrot, 1938

Words: Enrique Rodriguez
and Roberto “Chato” Flores
Music: Enrique Rodriguez

This song is interesting from a class point of view. Most tangos are about people of the working-class and the underworld, but LA COLEGIALA is about a young woman from a family wealthy enough to send her to college. In the Argentina of 1938 there was no middle class; only very wealthy families could send their sons to college. And to send a daughter? Very unusual. Enrique Rodriguez's "All-Rhythms Orchestra"—so-called because they played pasodobles, foxtrots, pasodobles, etc., thus obviating the need to hire a second orchestra, as was the custom—must have had some rather high-toned private clients; songs with upper-class heroines like this and the vals "Isabelita" would have appealed to them, and encouraged lucrative engagments for the orchestra. Just a guess, but it makes sense, no?

Thanks to Dr. Martha Santos of Buenos Aires for her generous assistance, advice, and all-round tanguera wisdom. Thanks also to mi viejo amigo Dmitry Pruss for post-pub translation support! Dmitry made several key corrections to the text. Please be sure to visit his fascinating blog, tango links & lists.

Ella es una pobre colegiala que jamás salió de su pasión por doquier y siempre tuvo ganas de ser la dueña de su corazón. estudió la físiografía retórica cursó en un mes del violín conoce la armonía y además un poquito de francés nunca tuvo amores ni un amargo sinsabor pero busca un hombre que le diga qué es amor yo no sé por qué cupido enseña la desgracia de una gran pasión  a una niña que inocente sueña y que tiene miedo de un ratón.

She’s a poor little student whose dedication never flagged. Always and everywhere she wanted* to be the mistress of her own heart. She studied physiography;* rhetoric she read in a month. On the violin she knew harmony and even a little French. She never had lovers nor a bitter breakup,* but she’s looking for a man who’d tell her what love is. I don’t know why Cupid teaches the misfortune of a great passion to a girl who naively dreams and is afraid of a mouse.

NOTES:

* she wanted to be the mistress of her own heart: All the available transcriptions of the lyrics give this phrase as tuvo gala de ser la dueña de su corazón (she had the elegance to be mistress of her heart).As Dmitry Pruss points out, "Chato" clearly sings, gana(s).

* Physiography: Dmitry again: The transcriptions say fisigeographía; Chato sings the much more sonorous fisiografía.

* breakup: sinsabor. The word doesn't usually carry the connotation of an amorous breakup; it's more like a painful moment, trouble, sorrow, uneasiness, worry. Dmitry suggested breakup; I checked it out with Martha de Buenos Aires, and she agreed that in this context, it could be taken to suggest an actual breakup rather than mere trouble. 

LLUEVE OTRA VEZ: It's raining again

Llueve otra vez (It's raining again)
Tango 1944
Words and music: Juan José Guichandut

YouTube:
Carlos Di Sarli w/Alberto Podestá
Pedro Laurenz w/ Carlos Bermudez

Escucha corazón

el eco de su voz...

Escucha, corazón,
está lloviendo

y la lluvia va tejiendo

los recuerdos de su amor.

¡Qué pena, corazón!
No es ella, ni es su voz.
Tan sólo es la obsesión que me domina,

el recuerdo que castiga

desde su adiós.

Listen, heart,
the echo of her voice...
Listen, heart, it’s raining
and the rain keeps on weaving
the memories of her love.
What a pity, heart!
It’s not her, not her voice.
It's only the obsession that rules me,
the memory that afflicts at me,
since she said goodbye.



Llueve...

y un látigo de luz me azota,

relámpago de fiebre loca.
La lluvia, sin cesar,

golpeando en el cristal,
 
renueva la emoción perdida.

Y entre la bruma creo ver su imagen,
igual que entonces, diciendo adiós.

Llueve...
y el cielo se llenó de sombras,
lo mismo que mi corazón.

It's raining...
and a lash of light scourges me,
lightning flash of mad frenzy.
The rain, unceasing,
beating on the glass,
rekindles the lost emotion.
And amidst the fog I think I see your image,
just as it was then, saying farewell.
It rains...
and the sky is filled with shadows,
the same as my heart.



Tristeza que dejó

el eco de su voz.

Tristeza de esperar inútilmente

y creer que nuevamente

con la lluvia volverá.

¡No esperes, corazón!
¡No penes por su amor!

Mañana cuando el sol radiante asome

al calor de otros amores,

olvidarás.

Sadness that left behind
the echo of your voice.
Sadness of waiting hopelessly
and believing that once again,
with the rain, she’ll return.
Don’t hope, heart!
Don’t pine for her love!
Tomorrow when the radiant sun appears,
with the warmth of other loves,
you’ll forget.

CORNETIN: Blasts from the past

Cornetín (The Cornet)*
Tango, 1942
Music: Pedro Maffia
Lyrics: Homero Manzi/Cátulo Castillo

This charming period piece takes us back to the late 19th or very early 20th century when Buenos Aires streetcars were still pulled by teams of horses. A somewhat girl-crazy streetcar driver by the name of Roque Barullo blows merrily on his cornet, hoping to attract the attention of any cute girl who might happen to step out of her doorway as he passes. There's more to it than that, but I don't want to spoil the fun for you!

Lyrics are by two towering giants of tango poetry, Homero Manzi (this is the sixth of his songs decoded here; the others are NINGUNA, ARRABAL, LA GAYOLA, VENTARRÓN, and ORGANITO DE LA TARDE), and Catúlo Castillo, author of ESTAMPA FEDERAL and many other great tangos. The song's composer Pedro Maffia needs no introduction. Suffice it to say he's one of the greatest tango musicians of all time, "the idol," according to Pedro Laurenz. The song was written for the 1942 film Eclipse de sol. 

By the way, the film (see clip below) presents a deliberately idealized, comical, but quite charming arrabal street scene; the canny viewer will notice a stereotypical compadrito leaning against the corner of a building in the background! And: Is it just me, or does anyone think Libertad Lamarque in closeup looks remarkably like Julie Andrews? Uncanny.

On YouTube:
Roberto Grela w/ Nelly Omar (TD's favorite—not danceable, but terrific singing and guitar!)
Carlos Di Sarli w/ Roberto Rufino 
Francisco Canaro w/ Roberto Roldán 
Libertad Lamarque: "Cornetín" (from the 1942 film Eclipse de sol)

At Tango.info

Tará, Tarí! Lo apelan Roque Barullo*   conductor del Nacional. Con su tramway, sin cuarta ni cinchón, sabe cruzar el barrancón de Cuyo. El cornetín, colgado de un piolín, y en el ojal un medallón de yuyo. Tarí, tarí. y el cuerno listo al arrullo si hay percal en un zaguán. Calá, que linda está la moza, calá, barriendo la vereda, Mirá, mirá que bien le queda, mirá, la pollerita rosa. Frená, que va a subir la vieja, frená porque se queja, si está en movimiento. Calá, calá que sopla el viento, calá, calá calamidad. Tarí, tarí, trota la yunta,* palomas chapaleando en el barrial. Talán, tilín, tilín resuena el campanín del mayoral picando en son de broma y el conductor castiga sin parar para pasar sin papelón la loma Tarí, tarí, que a lo mejor se le asoma, cualquier moza de un portal. Qué linda esta la moza, barriendo la vereda, mirá que bien le queda, la pollerita rosa. Frená, que va a subir la vieja, Frená porque se queja si está en movimiento, calá, calá que sopla el viento, calá, calá, calamidad. Tarí, Tarí... Conduce Roque Barullo de la línea Nacional.

Tará, Tarí!* They call him Roque Barullo,  driver for the Nacional Line. He knows how to get his streetcar across the big gorge at Cuyo without riding crop or saddle strap.* His cornet hangs by a cord, and in his buttonhole, a medallion of herbs.*   Tará, Tarí! and the horn ready to coo*  in case there’s “percale”* in an entrance hall.* Calá! Check it out, how pretty the girl is, Calá! Check it out, she's sweeping the sidewalk, Mirá! Look how well it suits her, Mirá! Look, the nice pink skirt. Frená! Hit the brakes! The old lady is gonna get on, Frená! Hit the brakes! She’ll complain if the car's in motion. Calá, calá! See how the wind blows, calá, calá...calamity! Tarí, tarí, so the team trots, pigeons splashing in the muck. Ding-a-ling-a-ling,  the conductor's  little bell resounds, jokingly spurring the driver on;  he whips the horses non-stop to get over the hill without shame. Tarí, tarí, perhaps some girl will come out of a gate. How pretty this girl is, sweeping the sidewalk. See how well it suits her, the little pink skirt. Frená! Hit the brakes, 'cos the old lady is about to get on. Frená! Hit the brakes, because she complains if the car's moving. Look, look how the wind blows, calá, calá, calamity. Tarí, Tarí... So drives Roque Barullo  of the Nacional line.

NOTES:

* Cornetín/Cornet: The instrument in question is a small brass horn, similar to a modern cornet, but smaller and lacking the three brass valves of its cousin. Like the more-familiar bugle, it was used for military communication. The 1870 addition of horse-drawn streetcars to Buenos Aires' narrow streets caused traffic and safety problems. The sounding of the cornetín was used to warn oncoming traffic, both wheeled and pedestrian, of the streetcar's approach. In the song, the driver of the streetcar blows the horn; other sources suggest it was blown by a man or boy called a postillón or coronetero who walked forty metres ahead of the car. 

* Tará, Tarí... Calá... Mirá... Frená... : The central poetic conceit of the song is that the Barullo's cornet "speaks"; each of the rhythmic, binary phrases he blows has a meaning in Lunfardo or in popular speech. Tará Tarí, is the sound of the cornet itself; some sources suggest this was also an onomotopoetic nickname for the drivers themselves. Calá (Eng.: cahl-AH) is a Lunfardism, a command meaning "look here," or a"check it out." Mirá (mee-RAH) means more or less the same thing, but in standard Spanish. Frená (fray-NAH), from frenar, "to slow down or apply a brake"—the brakes on a modern vehicles are frenos—hence, "hit the brakes!" or simply "stop!" (I like "hit the brakes!" for greater impact, but to be honest I'm not sure whether horse-drawn streetcars had any brakes to hit.)

* riding crop...saddle strap: A reference to the practice of the cuarteador, a wandering towman with a stout horse who provided extra pulling power for wagons and carriages that got stuck in the abundant muck of Buenos Aires steets. This was especially needed by vehicles climbing a hill or, as in this case, the steep banks of a gorge. A cuarta was a riding crop used by the cuarteador and the cinchón was the stout, reinforced saddle strap to which he affixed his tow rope. (The term cuarta also refers to the service provided, so a cuarta is what we would call a tow.) For a complementary view of the cuarteador, see Tango Decoder's version of the song EL CUARTEADOR, by another outstanding tango poet, Enrique Cadícamo. You can see the saddle strap clearly in the accompanying illustration.

* medallion of weeds: medallón de yuyos. In Eclipse de sol the Barullo character wears a carnation in his lapel; she tenderly touches it as she sings the line. So maybe a medallion of weeds is somehow another name for a carnation? Hard to fathom. 

* serenade: Arrullo, from arrullar, "to whisper sweet nothings; to lull to sleep; to bill and coo." 

* percale: Percal was a slang term for a working-class girl; refers to the low-quality percale, a cotton fabric worn by working women and school girls. The tramway did not necessarily stop at a particular corner; it stopped at the doorway of a house. That explains Barullo's somewhat voyeuristic inclinations.

TARAREANDO: Numbing by humming?

"The experience that the years bring, how many things they have taught me! Hardened by disappointments, I take things as they are. And to no one do I tell my sorrows, my grief or my resentment, I just keep on with my song. Humming I go through life because that way I live it better."

On YouTube:
Miguel Caló w/ Raúl Berón
Carlos Di Sarli w/ Roberto Rufino

Tarareando (Humming)
Tango, 1942
Words and Music: Juan José Guichandut & Oscar Rubens  

Tarararí, tarará,

tarararí, tarararí, tarará.

Tarareando voy por la vida,

tarareando... tarareando...

Y aunque sangre por una herida

a flor de labios tengo un cantar.

Si es que me muerde el corazón,

la pena o el rencor,

olvido
con mi canción.

Tarareando voy por la vida

porque así la vivo mejor.

(Humming:) Ta-ra-ra-ree, ta-ra-ra-ra,
Ta-ra-ra-ree, ta-ra-ra-ree, ta-ra-ra-ra

Humming I go through life,
humming... humming...
And though I may be bleeding from a wound,
I’ve always got a song at the ready.
Should sorrow or resentment
nip at my heart,
I forget
with my song.
Humming I go through life
because that way I live it better.


Tarareando... tarareando...

las penas voy ocultando...

y aunque me esten lastimando

con mi tarareo

las voy olvidando.

Si me ha engañado un amor

tarararí...

o algun amigo falló

tararará...

Aunque yo viva sufriendo

nunca sabrán mi dolor.

Humming.... Humming....
My sorrows I keep on hiding...
and although they may pain me,
with my humming
I keep on forgetting.
If a lover has deceived me
ta-ra-ra-ree,
Or a friend has died, 
ta-ra-ra-ra, 
Although I may live in suffering
they’ll never see my pain.

La experiencia que dan los años

¡cuántas cosas me ha enseñado!

Yo curtido de desengaños

tomo las cosas tal como son.

Y a nadie cuento mi amargor,

mi pena o mi rencor

y sigo

con mi canción.

Tarareando voy por la vida

porque así la vivo mejor.

Si me va bien, tararí...
 
Si me va mal, tarararí, tarará...

The experience that the years bring:
How many things they have taught me!
Hardened by disappointments,
I take things as they are.
And to no one do I tell my sorrows,
my grief or my resentment,
I just keep on
with my song.
Humming I go through life
because that way I live it better.



If things go well, tarararí....
if things go badly, tararará....

Orquesta Donato Racciatti

Orquesta de Donato Racciatti en la fonoplatea de Radio Carve, ubicada en lacalle Lorenzo Carnelli. Década de 1960 (aprox.). (Foto: Colección Horacio Loriente) Donato Racciatti (1918-2000). Badoneonista, compositor y director, contribuyó a la vigencia del tango bailable y popular, no sólo en las capitales del Plata sino también en las provincias Argentinas y en el interior de Uruguay. Fue una de las orquestas de tango que más viajó a Japón. Sus mayores éxitos de su autoría fueron “Hasta siempre amor” y “Tu corazón”.

Hasta siempre amor (Forever more, my love)

"You'll look everywhere for that friendly hand I gave you, and only then will you understand that by loving you, I lost you."

Hasta siempre, amor
(Forever More, My Love)
Tango, 1953
Composer: Donato Racciatti 
Lyricist: Federico Silva
At tango.info

Lyricist Federico Silva (1920-1986) was the author of more than 150 tango lyrics, including Qué falta que me haces! and Marol. 

On YouTube:
Juan D'arienzo/Jorge Valdez (1958)
Carlos Di Sarli/Horacio Casares (1958, danced by Gabriel Missé & Analia Centurion)
Olga Del Grossi (television appearance, N/D, beautiful!)
Donato Racciatti/Olga Del Grossi (1958)

Requested by Nata Lia, one of Tango Decoder's loyal readers at Tango Lyrics & Translations on Facebook. This is dedicated to you, tanguera!

Hasta siempre, amor, pasarás de otro brazo y dolerá el fracaso igual que hoy. Hasta siempre, amor, corazón como el mío, que compartió tu hastío, no encontrarás. Y entre la gente buscarás la mano amiga que te di y sólo así comprenderás que por quererte te perdí. Hasta siempre, amor, pasarás de otro brazo y dolerá el fracaso igual, igual que hoy. Hoy me sangra el recuerdo como una espina nueva del corazón. Hasta siempre, amor, cuando sueñes conmigo en las noches de frío ya no estaré. Y no me llames, si me ves a mi también con otro amor, porque es inútil esperar si la esperanza ya murió. Hasta siempre, amor, pasarás de otro brazo y dolerá el fracaso igual, igual que hoy.

Forever more, love,*  you’ll pass by on someone else’s arm and the failure will hurt just like it does now. Forever more, love, a heart like mine that shared your ennui  you will never find. And you’ll look everywhere*  for that friendly hand I gave you and only then will you understand that by loving you, I lost you. Forever more, love, you’ll pass by on someone else’s arm and the failure will hurt just the same, the same as it does now. Now the memory draws blood like a fresh thorn from the heart.  Forever more, love,  when you dream of me in the cold nights  I'll no longer be there. And don’t call out to me, if you see me too  with another love, because it’s useless to hope  if hope already died. Forever more, love, you’ll pass on someone else’s arm and the failure will hurt just the same, the same is it does now.

NOTES:

* Until always: The literal meaning of hasta siempre is "until always." The phrase is an idiomatic expression meaning "farewell," used especially in cases where one doesn't expect to see the person again; it's often heard at funerals/wakes. However, as I understand the lyric, the phrase is also meant in its literal sense, with explicit reference to future time (siempre). I have rendered the phrase as "forever more" in order to preserve the temporal integrity of the original text.

* look everywhere: Entre la gente buscarás. Literally, "among the people you will look." 

One orchestra, two configurations

Orquesta Donato–Zerrillo. S. f. (Foto: Museo y Centro de documentación AGADU) Edgardo Donato y Roberto Zerrillo crean la orquesta, que toca entre 1927 y 1931. Juntos escriben el famoso tango “Se va la vida”. Resulta interesante destacar la presencia en esta formación de los hermanos uruguayos de Edgardo, Ascanio y Osvaldo Donato, así como la presencia de Héctor Gentile, quien fuera una de las figuras más destacadas del tango del Uruguay.

Orquesta Donato-Zerrillo en en los bailes de carnaval del teatro San Martin de la ciudad de Buenos Aires. Año 1930. (Foto: Museo y Centro de documentación AGADU) La orquesta uruguayo-argentina, es una síntesis de la hermandad de los músicos de ambas ciudades. Por la musicalidad, por la profundidad de un concierto, al tango siempre le calzó muy bien el ámbito del teatro. En este caso la orquesta esta reforzada con muchos músicos para lograr una correcta amplificación.