Being Portuguese, engulfed in Fado ...

ROSA DA NOITE
voice: Carlos do Carmo
Poetry: Ary dos Santos

 

Vou pelas ruas da noite                   (  I walk along the streets of night,
com basalto de tristeza,                     with a basalt of sadness,
sem passeio que me acoite.               without a sidewalk that will take me in,
Rosa negra à portuguesa.                   Portuguese black rose... )

É por dentro do meu peito, triste,      ( It is inside my heart, sad,
que o silêncio se insinua, agreste.        that the silence speaks, wild.
Noite, noite que despiste                      Night, night that has undressed,
na ternura que me deste.                      in the tenderness given...)

Um cão abandonado,                         ( a lost dog,
uma mulher sozinha.                           a woman, alone,
Num caixote entornado                       in a street bin, pouring
a mágoa que é só minha.                     the sorrow, that is only mine ...)

Levo aos ombros as esquinas,           ( I carry street corners on my shoulders,
trago varandas no peito,                           I bring balconies on my heart,
e as pedras pequeninas                            and the little pavement stones,
são a cama onde me deito.                       are the bed in which I lay ...)

És azul claro de dia,                             ( blue light at day,
e azul escuro de noite,                           and dark blue over night,
Lisboa sem alegria,                               Lisboa (Lisbon) joyless
cada estrela é um açoite.                      each star in the sky is a whip ...

A queixa duma gata,                           ( the complaint of a cat,
o grito duma porta.                              the shout of a door,
No Tejo uma fragata                            At the river, a small boat
que me parece morta.                         that looks dead to me...)

Morro aos bocados por ti,                   ( I die slowly for you,
cidade do meu tormento.                    city of my torment.
Nasci e cresci aqui,                            Borned and raised here,
sou amigo do teu vento.                      I have befriended your wind...)

Por isso digo: Lisboa, amiga,              ( For this I say: Lisboa (Lisbon), friend,
cada rua é uma veia tensa,                each street is a stressed vein,
por onde corre a cantiga                    in which the songs runs
da minha voz que é imensa.               of my voice, that is immense ...)


These are the full lyrics of one of my favourite Fado performers and poet: Rosa negra, sang by Carlos do Carmo, lyrics by one of my favorite Portuguese poet Ary dos Santos.


The title translates "Black Rose" and engulf us in a deep nostalgic, sad but beautiful analogy between the city of Lisbon at night and the emotional portrait of a lonely man who wonders the streets.
has he walks along, he takes inside imagery of the city and makes it its own sadness by seing in these his own sad, disilluded, nostalgic experiences 


(ex. - a lost dog,
         a woman, alone,
         in a bin spilled over,
         the pain, that is mine only ...


         the complain of a cat,
         the scream of a door
         Down the river, a boat
         that looks dead to me ...)


these is so much beauty and true in these words...
One of my great cultural regrets is that I can not really explain, share or introduce Fado to a non portuguese person ... 
The beauty of the words in its cultural context and the feeling induced is something I believe cannot be fully, quintessentially explained outside being Portuguese ...


Here it is for being Portuguese and for finding sadness beautiful ...