Does anyone know where I could find information on Spanish lullabies? I recently attended a performance of Blood Wedding and heard a lullaby that I cannot get out of my head. I'm particularly interested in ones from Andalucia or that go into the gypsy heritage of certain songs.

Thanks in advance.

Now that's a tough one! I belive Lorca said that the lullabyes he wrote were based on ones he heard as a child from his nanny, and I think at some point in his life he may have started to collect them and write them down, but I'd need to check on that.

Which one has stuck in your head? Is it about the horse and the river (con su cola larga por su sala verde)?

Bodas de Sangre, Poema trágico en tres actos y siete cuadros This is a link where you may be able to find what you are looking for. www.fut.es/~picl/libros/glorca/gl003900.htm

I've only seen the movie by Carlos Saura, not the theatrical performance. Paz y bien

I know a few that my parents used to sing to me, but I am not sure if they are Spanish or south american

Sheba

I found this about the horse and the river that El Boqueron mentions (including some notes that someone has written about it):

Nana, niño, nana
del caballo
que no quiso el agua.
El agua era negra
dentro de las ramas.
Cando llega al puente
se detiene y canta.
¿Quién dirá, mi niño
lo que tienen el agua,
con su larga cola
por su verde sala?

O'C/G-L
Lullaby, my baby
once there was a big horse
who didn't drink water.
The water was black there
under the branches.
When it reached the bridge
it stopped and sang.
Who can say, my baby,
what the stream holds
with its long tail
in its green parlour?

D/Z
Sleep, my child, and dream
About the giant horse
Who didn't want the water.
The water, deep and black
In among the branches.
Arriving at the bridge,
The water stops and sings.
Who can say, my child,
What the water holds?
- With its flowing tail
Along its verdant hall.



HERE COME THE NOTES:

"A notable feature of the Spanish original is the predominance of open vowel sounds, often within a line-'agua', 'llega', 'detiene' - , but in particular in the form of assonance at the end of alternate lines: 'ramas', 'canta', 'agua', 'sala'. The effect is to slow down the lines when sung, and, accompanied by the melody to which this canción de cuna appears to have been set, which is marked 'molto lento',(9) they would clearly have that lulling, soothing quality which all lullabies must have if the child is to go to sleep. In comparison, both translations seem clumsy and lacking in any kind of flow. While the words of a song on the page often give little idea of what they would sound like when set to music, there is in O'Connell/Graham-Luján and Dewell/Zapata little that seems likely to be enhanced by music: the line length is irregular and there is no attempt to produce an assonance-like effect or to use rhyme, which would surely create that musical quality necessary to put the baby to sleep."

Have you found any more Andalucian/Gypsy lullabies?

Jo-Anne





[This message has been edited by Jo-Anne (edited 02-21-2001).]

That's "la nana del caballo grande".
I know the version of Camarón, I don't remember now, maybe it's in "la leyenda del tiempo" LP but I'm not sure.
I have to advice that it's a very personal version and too flamenco, you have to be fan of real flamenco to enjoy it, if you have listen to Camaron before you can make an idea.

I've checked it, is in that LP, maybe you can listen the song in www.fnac.es page or look for it in any other page

Muchas gracias to everyone for the help, especially PacoM. The link really helped to figure out the lyrics to that song. I appreciate it greatly.