Lost in Translation ?

   One of the most important project we've been working on so far, during this journey and before that, is linked to music. You might have seen that already on our so-called Global Discoclub !

   The idea is to discover, listen to, compile and collect music from everywhere. One goal is to learn about artists & bands, and see how relevant they are to the region both historically and culturally, the other is to share something with people we meet.

   Culture is what connects people together.

Ask your neighbor about their favorite band and you'll see. Ask a colleague what they were listening as a child, and you'll understand. Ask a stranger what song they would take on a desert island, and you'll start an hour long conversation. Try it at home !

   That said, we recently had a conversation with a person from Northern Poland (część Michał !), that pointed out that as much as he wanted to help us with our research - and he gave us a few of his favorite Polish bands, djękuję bardzo !! -, he didn't really get it, since most of the relevance and beauty of a song is derived from understanding it. We do not speak Polish, as we don't speak... most languages on Earth. We didn't get the nuances of the songs he was playing. We didn't get the play on words and cleverness of the writing. It is true. 

   It is indubitable that not understanding the language of the songs you're listening to makes you lose meaning. But I'd argue that's not too much of a problem. I'd argue it's actually quite secondary, in many cases, and that's what this article is about.

   Now, first of all, the voice is an instrument. A complex instrument that is, as it conveys meaning in more ways than one. Of course, syllables put together can express complex ideas, tell stories, all these things. It seems obvious to repeat it, and I'm not trying to argue that words don't mean anything. What is interesting though, is that the voice conveys meaning in other, non-verbal ways. The strength one gives, tempo one takes, notes that one hits when singing participate to convey emotions - meaning - to a song, regardless of the words spoken.

   Take for example the song by Belgian artist Jacques Brel : even not understanding the lyrics, you will probably get the emotions throughout the song - especially this one moment.

   The sonorities of the language can become beautiful in themselves : I doubt anyone reading this speaks Tamasheq, for example (pardon me if you do), yet the music of Tinariwen speaks to many regardless of the meaning of their songs. The melody of the language itself becomes meaningful, evoking their history, origins and a revendicated "otherness" to our ears.

   Many people evoke French being the "language of love", or Spanish as a "beautiful language" without understanding the words spoken, because of cultural reasons.

   The melody of a language, of course accompanied by an orchestra, diverse instruments, becomes quite often an intricate part of why a song sounds the way it does, and why translation rarely gives the same impression.

   Now, I'd like to remind whoever is reading that, that most people on Earth do not speak English as a native language either. Yet listening to English speaking songs has been and is the norm in many places - even though local music is still produced and listened to - regardless of the proper understanding of it. You should picture teenager Etienne, who spoke only French, listening and enjoying (and singing phonetically!) some songs from Dire Straits, what a blast ! Teenager Etienne didn't understand anything for real, though, but it didn't stop him from listening to it.

    Most of the World does that, actually, but since the UK and the US have such a cultural hegemony, it's not questioned. You should see this song by Italian singer Adriano Celentano that decided to prove that Italian people would listen to anything as long as it sounds "american" and recorded a gibberish "american song" in 1973. And you know what ? It was super popular !

   Not very surprising, to be honest, as even with an understanding of the words, many would not really realize what songs are about in their own languages. How to explain people singing Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car" like this is a cool song to play at parties otherwise ? Have you ever listened to the text ? 

   The goal is not either to find the most meaningful songs and understand all the nuances. Most of the time, people are quite eager to tell us what the songs they recommend are about. They like to explain why this or that lyric was clever and for what reason. It becomes an interactive game of listening, and you are actually learning some of the language as well as about the person you're getting the music from.

   It is a great way of learning languages, by the way. I have learned and memorized so many words and expressions in Danish thanks to songs. Not understanding can be a quite temporary matter, actually.

   I'd go even further : once you've learn the key words, once you got the chorus translated, not only will you have learned it, but you will also hear it, every time you're going to listen to the song. I'll take for example so many Nepalese songs, once my friends translated for me, once they took the time to explain those words that were so touching to them, I would not be able to listen to the songs without instantly understanding those words, without these words touching me as well. Writing these words in English, or in French for that matter, would simply not ring it the same way. And I still don't speak Nepalese. 

   Music is more than just voices anyway. Again, nothing new, but it is important to note it.

New melodies can be heard every time you hear something you didn't know. Melodies are influenced by the musical cultures of the artists that write them - and here we are talking what they heard, in which era, what movement they are placing themselves into, what traditions they would follow or oppose themselves to. And here we are not even talking about instruments, which of course are also susceptible to be influenced by the artist's origin.

   Traditional instruments, popular ones, a specific combination of instruments. All those things contribute to create a specific identity to the artists you'll be listening to. Regardless of whether or not you understand the words they speak.

   Listen to Debout sur le Zinc, or Ricardo Vilca and tell me it has no value in musical terms because you don't understand the lyrics ! Try that !

   To finish, I would also like to say that curiosity is never a bad thing.

   In the introduction to this article, I wrote that "Culture is what connects people together". That's not necessarily true. As well as other social constructs, and can as well be used to build walls and isolate people from each other. Food, language, music.

All these things can be used to exclude people that are different. "You don't eat like us, you don't speak like us, you don't listen to things we do, you are not like us."

   But they can also serve as bridges between people. "Hey, this is quite nice, what is it about ? It reminds me of something !" That's what I choose to believe, that's what I choose to write about.

Culture is what has the power to connect people together.

Etienne, April 12024