She lived in Kyoto, Japan for three years, where she studied Shinto and learned the Japanese folk song “Tamuke”. This song is supposed to connect her to “the souls of the spirit realm”. Nani used to be able to play it on a Japanese flute, but does not remember how anymore, nor does she have a flute.
Category Archives: Musical
Morocco-Spain: Lullaby
Informant: The following is a song my grandmother used to sing to me when I was little. Her mother, so my great grandmother, used to sing it to her and then she started singing it to me when I was born. The song in Spanish goes like this:
Caminando por un caminito
Me canse de andar
Debajo de una sombra me puse a descansar
Estando descansando por ahí paso
Una niña muy bella de ella enamoré
In English, it basically translates to “While I was resting on the road, I saw a very beautiful girl and fell in love with her.” The song then goes on to describe the appearance of the girl, saying she was thin and blond.
Analysis:
Malak went on to explain how the song used to be sung to her as a nursery rhyme, almost like a lullaby. It is interesting because even though she is Moroccan, the song is not originally from Morocco but has instead been passed done through generations. While the song first begun being sung by her great grandmother, who was from Spain, Malak does not remember any one else who knew the song or where it originated from. She claimed that the only person who ever sung it to her was her grandmother.
This demonstrates how folklore passes down from generation to generation. Furthermore, it demonstrates how folk music is different from other forms of music; Malak was insistent on how the rhythm and beat of the song are the a crucial factor in allowing her to remember how it went.
I think it is very interesting that it is a song about love that is used as a lullaby. Even more interesting is the fact that the narrator of the song, presumably a guy, falls in love with the girl solely based on her looks. The song literally tells the story of how he saw a beautiful girl and was instantly captured by her beauty. In my opinion, this shows a very shallow and physical type of love. There is no emotional connection between the lovers, it is just physical attraction. Maybe this speaks to a generational issue? Malak mentioned how both her great grandmother and grandmother got married extremely young and without knowing very well their future husbands. Therefore, this might have been a song in which they found solace and felt related too, which would explain why they have kept on singing it for years. Nevertheless, I still think that it is a catchy and simple song. It is heartwarming to see how it has been passed down from generation to generation.
Russia: Snail Song
Informant: There’s this song me and my childhood friends used to sing in order to get a snail to come out of its shell. It went something like “snail snail bring your bull horns out, and go to the puddle and drink warm water and then go to the river and drink cloudy water.” We used it as kind of a game. Like we would go to the garden and find snails and then sing to them. Whoever could get their snail to come out first would win. It was very entertaining and fun. I remember doing this since I was a child and I think I learned the song at the playground in school.
Analysis:
I thought this piece of folklore was really cute and relatable. It demonstrates how folk music is often used as a way of entertainment and as a way to create games. It also delineates the social power of folk music. In the informant’s case, it was a way to make friends at school during the playground. Therefore, there is definitely a social factor involved in folk music that creates a sense of community. Furthermore, folk music can also help establish relationships. It it a shared experience, and this example proves that by demonstrating how music transcends and becomes an activity.
I also think it is interesting how the lyrics of the song is coherent with the activity. The point is to get a snail to come out of its shell, and the lyrics reflect such a goal. This would explain why the informant was so specific when explaining when she would sing the song. There is a specific purpose to the song that encourages kids to participate in the ensuing activity.
Mexico: La Papa Caliente
Informant: The following is a song I used to sing as a child with my friends. We would sing this song and play it at school all the time. There was a game that went along with it where you had to hold a potato, or a ball, and pass it around while you sang the song. Whoever had the potato in their hands when the song was over would lose. The song went like this:
La papa caliente estaba en el sartén
Tenía mucho aceite, quien se quemo?
Uno, dos, tres.
This roughly translates to:
The hot potato was in the pan
It had a lot of oil, who got burn?
One, two, three.
Analysis:
This is yet another example of how folk music is often times used to accompany children games. The song being sung has a specific game and action involved with it. Again, we can see how this is used in a social setting and as a way to establish relationships; the informant claims that he would play this with his friends at school. In a way, this song is a game in and of itself.
I find it very interesting that the song uses potatoes. Potatoes are a really big part of people’s diets in Mexico. They can be found anywhere in the city and are a very common ingredient. I wonder if this is why the song makes use of potatoes. Aside from that, I think this song is really cute and funny. I love the idea of a bunch of kids passing each other potatoes and singing a song to see who loses.
Mexico: La Cucaracha
Informant: There is this one song in Mexico that everyone knows and everyone sings. It’s really silly but or some reason its very popular. I have been hearing it all my life and all my friends know it but I think the first person I ever heard it from was my grandmother. She would sing it all the time. The song goes something like this:
“La cucaracha, la cucaracha
Ya no puede caminar
Porque le duele, porque le faltan
Las dos patitas de atrás.”
This roughly translates to this:
“The cockroach, the cockroach
Can´t walk
Because it hurts, because he’s missing
His both legs from the back.”
Collector: Was there any special ritual or game that went along with singing this song?
Informant: Not really. I think people would just sing it because it was catchy but there was nothing specifically involved with it.
Analysis:
This song seems to be a type of folkloric rhyme that has been passed down through the years. It is interesting that it has no specific meaning or activity involved but is still so popular. That goes to show that folklore thrives on popularity; the more widespread and popular a piece of folklore is, the better chances it has of surviving throughout the years.
I thought that this song was funny and I can understand why such humor would make it so popular. The song is literally about a cockroach that can’t walk because it loses its legs. Even though there isn’t necessarily any meaning to it, it still paints a very vivid image of what is happening. Such imagery is a recurring trend in Mexican folklore; the language gives way to very strong visuals. Such imagery might be part of the song’s appeal.
The informant also mentioned that the first person he ever heard this song from was his grandmother. Moreover, he said that everyone he knew was familiar with the song because of how widespread it was. This would help explain the song’s popularity. If the song is being passed down from parent to child, then it would make sense that the popularity of the song is due to its involvement in family life. In other words, the song may be a source of comfort due to how familiar it is.