I told you that today I'd tell you about going to see Estrella Morente in Córdoba.

I want to tell you about the end of the show...

when she sang Volver as an encore.

A bit further down in the post you can see a video of her performing it and looking very beautiful.

She does it as a bulerías. I discovered that it was originally a tango, not the flamenco kind, the Argentinian kind, by Carlos Gardel and that the words were written by Alfredo Le Pera.

We'll get to the song in a moment,

But first, about the show in Córdoba.

The show ended. The fín de fiesta had happened. The were many bows. And many saludos to the audience. And the público, the audience, was going completely bonkers for Estrella...

So she came out and started singing Volver as her encore.

Then she proceeded to leave the stage and go out into the audience.

She walked up the aisle of the Gran Teatro de Córdoba, stopped right in front of my seat, and sang directly to me. Never mind that I was on the aisle and perhaps could have been anyone.  

It was still incredible

And besides, Stefani said we had a connection.  Tee hee. 

And I wasn't anyone, I was me. She was singing to me. I turned bright red. I had no idea what to do. As far as I know I just smiled and looked at her and listened.

Right before that, as she started up the aisle, I somehow knew she was going to stop and sing to me. Don't think I'm weird. Perhaps I just had a feeling or perhaps I saw her looking at me...

Before the concert I sensed that I would see her up close

It was a sensation that came and went. And I didn't mention it to anyone. I thought maybe it was because when David, Father David, went to see her perform in Spain he ended up randomly sitting with her family and then going backstage to meet her after the show ... Things like that always seem to happen to David. 

So she stayed there singing to me for a little bit then she continued on. A woman stood up in her chair and came out into the aisle. It was intense. So Estrella took her hand and sang. Then she gave the woman the microphone and danced. Then people from the balconies started calling to her. She looked up and sang to them.

As I mentioned, the público was very excited

She walked up and down the aisle singing. Then continued singing as she left to the lobby.

And that was that.

Volver Alfredo Le Pera

Yo adivino el parpadeo
de las luces que a lo lejos,
van marcando mi retorno.
Son las mismas que alumbraron,
con sus pálidos reflejos,
hondas horas de dolor.

Y aunque no quise el regreso,
siempre se vuelve al primer amor.
La vieja calle donde el eco dijo:
Tuya es su vida, tuyo es su querer,
bajo el burlón mirar de las estrellas
que con indiferencia hoy me ven volver

Volver
con la frente marchita,
las nieves del tiempo
platearon mi sien

Sentir 
que es un soplo la vida, 
que veinte años no es nada, 
que febril la mirada
errante en las sombras
te busca y te nombra.

Vivir
con el alma aferrada
a un dulce recuerdo, 
que lloro otra vez.

Tengo miedo del encuentro
con el pasado que vuelve
a enfrentarse con mi vida.
Tengo miedo de las noches
que, pobladas de recuerdos,
encadenan mi soñar.

Pero el viajero que huye,
tarde o temprano detiene su andar.
Y aunque el olvido que todo lo destruye,
haya matado mi vieja ilusión.
guardo escondida una esperanza humilde, 
que es toda la fortuna de mi corazón

Volver
con la frente marchita
las nieves del tiempo
platearon mi sien.

Sentir 
que es un soplo la vida, 
que veinte años no es nada, 
que febril la mirada
errante en las sombras
te busca y te nombra.

Vivir
con el alma aferrada
a un dulce recuerdo, 
que lloro otra vez.

To Come Back

I foresee the flickering
of the lights that from afar,
marking my return.
They are the same that lit,
with their pale reflections,
deep hours of pain

And even though I didn't want to return,
one always goes back to his first love.
The old street where the echo said: 
Yours is her life, yours is her love,
under the jeering gaze of the stars
that with indifference see me return.

To return
in going forward
the snows of time
have whitened my temples

To feel 
that life is a breath,
that twenty years is nothing,
how restless the look
that wandering in the shadows
looks for you and names you.

To live
with the soul clinging
to a sweet memory
that I cry once again.

I fear the encounter
with the past that comes back
to face my life.
I fear the nights
that, populated with memories,
shackle my dreams.

But the traveler who flees,
sooner or later stops his walking.
And although forgetfulness, which destroys all,
has killed my old dream.
I hold hidden a humble hope,
that all is the fortune of my heart

To return
in going forward
the snows of time
have whitened my temples.

To feel 
that life is a breath,
that twenty years is nothing,
how restless the look
that wandering in the shadows
looks for you and names you.

To live
with the soul clinging
to a sweet memory
that I cry once again.

Here is a video of Carlos Gardel singing his original version.

I referred to this translation to help me in some of the trickier parts, even though parts of the song I interpreted differently.  I used his translation of this line:

platearon mi sien - whitened my temples

Comments

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