Tag Archives: music

Arrorró mi niño

Context:

A is a Mexican immigrant and learned this lullaby from their mother and used it on his children. He now uses it as a lullaby for his grandchildren when they become restless.

The context of this piece was when A was babysitting their grandson and sang this lullaby to put him to sleep.

Text:

Arrorró mi niño,
arrorró mi sol,
arrorró pedazo,
de mi corazón.

Este niño lindo
ya quiere dormir;
háganle la cuna
de rosa y jazmín.

Háganle la cama
en el toronjil,
y en la cabecera
pónganle un jazmín
que con su fragancia
me lo haga dormir.

Arrorró mi niño,
arrorró mi sol,
arrorró pedazo,
de mi corazón.

Esta leche linda
que le traigo aquí,
es para este niño
que se va a dormir.

Arrorró mi niño,
arrorró mi sol,
arrorró pedazo,
de mi corazón.

Este lindo niño
se quiere dormir…
cierra los ojitos
y los vuelve a abrir.

Arrorró mi niño,
arrorró mi sol,
duérmase pedazo,
de mi corazón.

//Translation:

Hush-a-bye my baby
Hush-a-bye my sun
Hush-a-bye oh piece
of my heart.

This pretty child
Wants to sleep already
Make him a cradle
of rose and jasmine.

Make him a bed
On the lemon balm
And at the head
Put jasmine
With its fragrance
To put him to sleep for me.

Hush-a-bye my baby
Hush-a-bye my sun
Hush-a-bye oh piece
of my heart.

This beautiful milk
That I bring him here
Is for this baby
Who is going to sleep.

Hush-a-bye my baby
Hush-a-bye my sun
Hush-a-bye oh piece
of my heart.

This lovely baby
Wants to sleep
He closes his eyes
And opens them again.

Hush-a-bye my baby
Hush-a-bye my sun
Hush-a-bye oh piece
of my heart.

Analysis:

This is a common musical piece that is used throughout the Mexican culture. I had heard this lullaby frequently as a child but I had only heard of a few portions of it so it was nice to hear A recite it in its entirety. This was a learning experience for me as although I thought I had already known about this lullaby but A introduced me to more of it. This made it clear that this lullaby continues to spread throughout the generations. It also suggests that there are variations of the lullaby itself; thus, it demonstrates how musical pieces like this one change to cater to its audience.

Why Conductors Use Batons

Background:

Informant (M) is a student at USC who plays the trumpet.

Main Piece:

M: So the way that conductors used to conduct was like with a big stick, and they used to bang it against the ground to conduct, literally, like for the beats, and someone hit the stick, and it hit his foot, and contracted like, a disease and died from it—

I: Like tetanus?

M: It was probably tetanus, and yeah they stopped doing that.

I: So I guess that’s why they wave it now?

M: I guess, yeah, I think so.

Context:

“That’s also I think something I recall from a story told by my conductor…”

I asked my informant whether she knew of any composer-related folklore, which she couldn’t think of, but did know about this story.

Analysis:

This folk narrative gives explanation as to why a baton, perhaps the most symbolic object tied to conductors, is used in conducting, which is an essential part of any orchestra. As a legend, it is very much based in the real world, with the exact specifics of who this conductor is and what disease they contracted remaining as unknowns. As a simple narrative, this story has been passed down to my informant orally, and the conductor that told my informant this story most likely had a different performance. Since the story deals with conducting, it makes sense that my informant heard it from a conductor. While this story probably isn’t the singular reason why conductors now use batons, the aspect of death would be enough to convince people it is, or at least a primary reason why.

The Dangers of Playing the Flute at Night

Nationality: Korean
Age: 49
Occupation: Counselor
Residence: California
Performance Date: 4/21/22
Primary Language: Korean
Language: English

“밤에 피리를 불거나 휘파람을 불면 뱀이 나온다”

Context: I was in band during high school, and I would sometimes practice until the late hours. Whenever I played the flute at night, my mom would say this proverb.

Romanization:

bahm-eh piri-reur boor-guh-nah h-we-param ir boor-myun bem-ee na-own-da

Transliteration:

At night, to play the flute or to blow a whistle a snake will come out

Translation:

A snake will come out if you play the flute or whistle at night.

This is a proverb that my mom has heard growing up, and it is one that I have heard many times from her. She grew up in a more rural area of South Korea, so there were many snakes near her home. Controlling or taming snakes with a flute is quite common in many other areas of the world, which is where this proverb most likely originated. Where it seems to diverge is in the inclusion of whistling, which is surprising. The phrase seems to warn that even such a commonplace, harmless act can lead to something much more dangerous or deadly down the line.

Though this is a proverb warning against playing at night for fear of summoning a snake, she most likely said it to me to save the neighbors from the shrill notes of my flute at night.

Boots & Cats in Beat-Boxing

Main Piece:

Informant: “So, a friend of mine told me the way to start beat-boxing is to go “boots and cats” and speed it up, so: “Boots and cats and boots and cats.” But, uh, I can’t do it, but you get the idea.”

Context:

Taken from a voice memo sent in a group chat with two of my classmates in my Forms of Folklore class at USC.

Analysis:

I had heard this piece of folklore before and am always impressed with how surprisingly well it works. It’s perfect for the average passer-by for recreational use, and serves as a really vital gateway for those getting into professional beat-boxing. By simplifying an entire art form into a short saying, it really widens the range of people this folklore can reach. It allows outsiders to be integrated into the ‘inside’ of the industry and helps them be less self-conscious, now that they have an actual strategy. I wish my classmate would have delved into it more; it would surely make for a hilarious transcription. But, go ahead and try it! Mix it up a little, and you’ll see how fun it is!

Per Spelmann

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Nationality: American
Age: 52
Occupation: General Contractor
Residence: Cloverdale, California
Performance Date: May 3, 2021
Primary Language: English

Background:

My informant for this piece is an American of Scandinavian descent. He lived in Norway for a time during high school and learned the language while he was there. He also still keeps in contact with his host family from his time living there, and his son recently spent a year abroad there as well. he recalls this song fondly because “we used to sing [it] when our daughter was upset or crying, and it was the only thing that could get her to sleep.”

Context:

Per is a common older name in Norway, and Spelmann is a name too but it literally means “player.” In Norway, a classical or folk musician is called a spelmann. My informant learned the song living Norway in high school when he was learning folk dance, and when they were done dancing he’d “jump up and kick the hat off the stick!” To understand this song, it’s important to know that it is about a musician who had to trade his violin in order to feed his family. Here, he gets it back:

Main Piece

“Per Spellmann han hadde ei einaste ku, Per Spellmann han hadde ei einaste ku,

Per Spellmann (Player) had only one cow, (repeat)

Han bytte bort kua fekk fela igjen, han bytte bort kua fekk fela igjen,

He traded away the cow to get the fiddle back, (repeat)

Det gode, de gamle, fiolin, det fiolin, det fela mi!

The good, the old, violin, violin, that fiddle of mine, (repeat)

Per Spellmann han spelta aa fela hu laat, (repeat)

Per Spellmann played and the fiddle laughed

Saa gutterne dansa, aa jenterne graat, (repeat)

The boys danced and the girls cried.

Det gode, de gamle fiolin, det fiolin, det fela mi!”

Analysis:

This old Norwegian folk song tells us a great deal about the culture and beliefs of Norway’s people. Its basic concept–a man trading his violin to support his family and trading it back for his last cow–is not hard to understand, but it’s very valuable. It might seem that the man simply doesn’t love his family very much, but this isn’t the case. At first, he does trade away his instrument for them, showing how much he cares. But in the end, he trades his last possession of value–his only cow–to get his fiddle back. Although it’s sad for his family, the song shows that this culture values happiness over everything because life is nothing without it. This cultural value is still reflected in Norway’s present-day laws, which factor citizens’ happiness into other national measures of success, ensuring that the people are well taken care of.