Happy Summer Solstice!
To celebrate, take a listen to this podcast episode with Nadia Tarnawsky, a Ukrainian folk singer who works with traditional village music to turn the seasons, celebrate the land and officiate important festivities throughout the year. She is a wealth of knowledge and we talk about everything from why music such as the Polka is just propaganda, the role of singers within a village, and how history has shaped the singing tradition.
She also has generously shared a few recorded folk songs which we play within the interview and analyze the meaning and intention behind each lyric.
You can find more of Nadia’s work here:
www.nadiatarnawsky.com/workshops--concerts.html
The following are the translations of the songs shared within this podcast in the order that they are played if you would like to follow along.
(cover image by Mariya Prymachenko)
{Intro}
Oy day Bozhe vesnu pochat / God grant it that the spring may begin
Village of Lubyanka - Chornobyl zone - Kyiv region
Translated song lyrics:
Oh God, grant it that the spring may begin
So that we may wait for another summer
And in that summer may there be rye
For now the land is uncultivated
And they that loved me now fight against me
To those who faithfully love me
May God grant them good luck
To those who fight against me
May God grant them trouble
Provedu ya rusalochky / I will lead the rusalky
Polissia region/Song title as released on the album: “Provedu ya rusalochky”
Performed by the villagers of Orane (Chornobyl zone), Ukraine
Album title: Traditional Music of Polissia, vol. 1
© 1997 Ukrainian Experimental Laboratory of Folklore
Translated lyrics:
I will lead the rusalky past four pine forests
And I, a young girl, will return alone to my father’s yard
I will lead the rusalky to the pine forest
And I, a young girl, will return alone to my home
I will lead the rusalky to the ravine
And I, a young girl, will return alone to my mother
I have gathered both rue and mint
So that the rusalky do not come near us
{outro}
Oy letit strela / Oh lighting flew
Village of Richytsia - Chornobyl zone - Kyiv region
Translated song lyrics:
Lightning flies across the village
Oh Lele, goddess of Spring, water springs forth near the village
The lightning killed a young boy
Oh Lele, goddess of Spring, water springs forth near the village
The body lies there like white paper
Oh Lele, goddess of Spring, water springs forth near the village
No one dares to approach the body
Oh Lele, goddess of Spring, water springs forth near the village
The widow Domna Ivanovna is the only one who approaches
Oh Lele, goddess of Spring, water springs forth near the village
She carries the body to the church
Oh Lele, goddess of Spring, water springs forth near the village
The doors of the church open by themselves
Oh Lele, goddess of Spring, water springs forth near the village
The candles within light by themselves
Oh Lele, goddess of Spring, water springs forth near the village
A Celebration of Slavic Folk Songs