https://soundcloud.com/jamesdelsono/mai-am-un-singur-dor-one-wish-alone-have-i/s-zmTo2WLBRB9

A song my Dad used to sing to me as a lullaby when I was a kid (which, given its lyrics, was rather terrifying at the time, but there you go!). It's a popular melody upon a poem by the late 19th century Romanian poet, Mihai Eminescu. The voice recording (mine) is from 2018 - just added a new BIAB backing track to it right now.

I've sung it in the actual original language (Romanian), but enclose this English translation of the lyrics by Adrian George Sahlean - hopefully it'll help you in enjoying what I think is a stunning song - I've wanted to sing it for a long time, and now I have :-) I hope you like the song at least as much as I do.


MAI AM UN SINGUR DOR (ONE WISH ALONE HAVE I)
written by Mihai Eminescu
translated by Adrian George Sahlean
melody: unknown, attributed to Romanian folk singers

With yearning last I sigh
Alone, by the sea,
In quiet dusk to lie
And die from all free;

Where gentle is my dream
The forests are near,
The deep waters clear,
Below a sky serene.

I wish for no grave,
Rich coffin for the dead -
Just weave for me a bed
Of tender reeds that wave;

Weep not for me behind
Or speak words of choice -
Let autumn leaves unwind
In fall's withered voice;

Let brooks over rocks ride
And murmur lone tune
While the rising moon
On pointed firs will glide;

Let soft cowbells pine,
Cold winds the evening plow
And o'er the linden bough
Shed blossom divine.

In time's eternal hold
Let age on me grow,
And memories of old
Fall slow in sweet snow;

The stars that glow their smile
Through shadowy pine
As old friends of mine
Will linger here awhile;

With their fervent moan
Will waves sing songs of lust ...
As I'll be silent dust
And I'll be alone.

****** Song Summary *************
Title: Mai Am Un Singur Dor
File: Mai Am Un Singur Dor - 2020.SGU
Key=C , Tempo 120, Length (m:s)=4:18
No intro. 56 bar chorus, from bar 1 to bar 56. Repeat x3 choruses
No Melody
No Soloist track.
Song is saved with Volume, Pan, Reverb, Chorus, Bank0,
Style is _BALLAST.STY (Ballast 12-String Med Folk Waltz)

RealTracks in style: ~1122:Bass, Acoustic, CountryWaltz Sw 110
RealTracks in style: ~827:Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Country Waltz Sw 110
RealTracks in style: 3222:Guitar, 12-String Acoustic, Rhythm CampfireWaltz Sw 120
RealDrums [in style:GypsyJazzWaltzSw: a: GypsyJazzWaltzSwb: GypsyJazzWaltzSw

*******************

What a beautiful song! I find Romanian to be a language that seems to roll around the mouth so freely and elegantly, perfect for a song about the sea. And you have a great singing voice!

Strange that so many children's lullabies seem to be some of the darkest songs. I guess our parents were trying to toughen us up, or gently expose us to the harshness of the world in a sneaky sort of way.

Hi David! Thank you so much, really happy you liked the song! And the comment about my voice made my year :-)

I'll just say this: if my Dad was sneakily somehow trying to prepare me for the harshness of the world, it didn't work, haha ... I'm still the naive optimist I always was, haha. But I do know what you mean. The reason I decided to record this after all is that my Dad has a wonderful voice - I remember him singing it to me and wanted to record this whilst he's still around to hear it - I can't sing it like him, but I know he'll appreciate the effort :-)

And yes, Romanian is a beautiful language indeed, with a lot of incredible literature and poetry that is sadly lost to the world otherwise - another reason to share, right? :-)

Thanks again!

Wow, that was a pleasant surprise. Your singing was great, I loved the sound of the Romanian words. Never really heard them before. Very nice.

Thanks TuneMonger!!! I do love this song!

Magnificent, James.

Wow - thank you Ed!

James,

Cool to hear you singing in Romanian.

Scary lullaby...

It is, James. Now we know your origin. I've been wondering but hesitated to ask.
Your transition from mid to upper registers has really come along since I first heard your vocal work. Lullaby form, like the traditional hymn form, always seems to demand a bit of high, a bit of low. I continue to work on that lower register. At a certain point, my low notes are not even recognized by the tuner. Undeterred....

Nicely done - I hadn't heard the original, actually, so I checked it out. You definitely did justice to it - your vocals are tremendous and I thought the mix sounded top notch.

Thanks for sharing

Thanks for this, James. Such a beautiful song sung with such feeling.

floyd jane: Yes, it is rather scary for a lullaby, right? I simply must ask my Dad why he was singing it to me at bedtime ... :-)

Ed: your comments made me smile! Thanks for the kind words about the improvement of my voice (I still think I sing like the drain, haha - but, if so many of you like it, then I've probably done *something* right, haha ...). I've definitely got Romanian blood in me, though I've lived (for most of my life, at least) in the UK, so I feel more British than anything else, really ... but yes, I love Romanian works of art such as this poem and song ... glad you enjoyed them!

Deryk: thank you. Your words, especially about my voice, really mean a lot.

Marty: yes (despite my somewhat jocular comments about my Dad singing it to me when I was young, etc.), I do love this song and this stunning poem. So happy you enjoyed my version of it - thank you!

James: The accent we can't quite pin down is part of the fun. It has a kind of ring of nobility about it, a kind of sincerity hard to fake. (Who knows, maybe you are faking it) Just kidding. You can see by the responses that you are doing something right. (But, of course, you already knew that.) A Euro-Amero-Anglo thing to sing your baby to sleep. (Brahms & Mozart) Yet, suddenly, out of nowhere, you hit us with a Romanian lullalby.
(Now we find, Asia loves lullabyes)
The fact that you seamlessly moved into a lullabye may contain a message for all of us. As for me, nearly every day I find a keeper or two among the hymns of the 18th and 19th centuries. I find contemporary worship music (the anthems) fascinating. The fact that they grew out of what might be called, for better or worse, the Led Zepplin era, adds to the fascination.

The lyrics seem very poetic and beautiful, even though a little sad. The melody is nice and very soothing, I can hear why you would sing this to a child.

Hi James,

I bet you slept well after your father sang this beautiful lullaby!
Although I couldn't understand one word of what was sung (I read the translation of course) I think I would sleep with a smile after this song. No mather the topic about transience.
Well performed. I think your dad would be proud if he could hear it.

Hans

Dear James,

this was really beautiful! I think that you should sing way more often as you got a beautiful voice that seems to be most suitable for emotional ballads. Let 'em out, James !

Great idea to present your language here - I think it's the only one belonging to the Roman language family that most of us have never heard before, at least not sung. I like its smoothness a lot.

Stay healthy, all the best,

Stefan

Thanks everyone - you're all ever so kind! I'm really glad you enjoyed the song - I find it really beautiful, so I thought I'd share it here. I'm glad you think I've done it justice, too - that's the cherry on top of the cake!

Ed: the hymns of the 18th and 19th century are, I find, really, really, really beautiful. Do you know "Lead, Kindly Light"? It's a Catholic hymn, written by Cardinal Newman, I believe - and it's really one of my favourites. I'd love it if you did a version of it ... if not, I may try one myself for my next project? :-)

Hans: I remember being terrified of the lyrics as a child, haha. No sleeping soundly after THIS! haha ... but, as I grew up, I got to love the song :-)

Belladonna: yes, it's a really beautiful song, with stunning lyrics!!! :-)

Stefan: I think I WILL sing more often from now on, if I at all can - it's you people's "fault" for encouraging me, though ;-) Only kidding - thank you so much for such wonderful words!

Very pretty James!! You have a very nice voice....wonderful singing!! Take care. Greg

That was interesting and enjoyable to listen to.

As pointed out the lyric is a bit different from what
one would think for a lullaby. But you seem to
have come out of it OK

The Romanian take is assuredly different and likely the
first time we've every heard it. It appears to be
a beautiful language.

Thanks for sharing!

J&B

Thanks Greg, Janice and Bud!

Yes, I seem to have come out of it all in one piece ;-) Glad you enjoyed the song!