What's in a name

Hello All,

Welcome to Blog number two.  So, here are two video links I would like you to watch/listen to, while following the words or score below.  Si.  Mi chiamano Mimi is Mimi's first act aria from "La Boheme" here sung by two Italian sopranos - Mirella Freni (from Modena) and Renata Scotto (from the coast of Liguria). Interestingly, they grew up only about 200 miles from one another and yet they don't always agree on what vowels are open and closed.  Notice right off the bat how different their [a] vowels are.  Having said that, I want you to notice all their vowels as well and how they handle the language in general.  It's not a short aria (a little over 5 minutes) but there is a lot of Italian which is good for us!  Start noticing how diphthongs are handled and glides and so forth – how words are connected to one another; almost as if sentences are made up of one long word.  Mostly I want you to get used to seeing words and knowing how they sound as well as learning about Italian style.  Please write on your own blog any observations you might have.  Your observations can be that you like one over the other but please say why that might be. 

The words and the translation are below.  I’ve also provided a link of the full score if you want to follow along with the score.

                                                        Enjoy - R

Renata Scotto

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7c7aH5NZ7uY

Mirella Freni

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBhnligD0tg&feature=related

Sheet music

https://www.smashwords.com/extreader/read/102055/1/si-mi-chiamano-mimi-pure-sheet-music-for-piano-and-voice-by-giacomo-puccini-arranged-by-lars-christian-lundholm

Sì. Mi chiaman Mimi,                  Yes, they call me Mimi,

ma il mio nome è Lucia.               But my name is Lucy

La storia mia è breve.                My history is brief

A tela o a seta                       With cloth or to silk

ricamo in casa e fuori...             I embroider at home or outside...

Son tranquilla e lieta                I am peaceful and happy

ed è mio svago                        And it is my pastime

far gigli e rose.                     To make lilies and roses

Mi piaccion quelle cose               I like these things

che han sì dolce malìa,               That have so sweet a smell,

che parlano d'amor, di primavere,     That speak of love, of spring,

di sogni e di chimere,                That speak of dreams and of chimera

quelle cose che han nome poesia...    These things that have poetic names

Lei m'intende?                        Do you understand me?

Mi chiamano Mimì,                     They call me Mimi,

il perché non so.                     And why I don't know.

Sola, mi fo                           Alone, I make

il pranzo da me stessa.               The same lunch for myself.

Non vado sempre a messa,              I do not always go to mass,

ma prego assai il Signore.            But I pray a lot to the Lord.

Vivo sola, soletta                    I live alone, alone.

là in una bianca cameretta:           There is a white little room

guardo sui tetti e in cielo;          I look upon the roofs and heaven.

ma quando vien lo sgelo               But when the thaw comes

il primo sole è mio                   The first sun is mine

il primo bacio dell'aprile è mio!     The first kiss of April is mine!

Germoglia in un vaso una rosa...      Rose buds in a vase

Foglia a foglia la spio!              Leaf and leaf I watch it!

Cosi gentile il profumo d'un fiore!   That gentle perfume of a flower!

Ma i fior ch'io faccio,               But the flowers that I make

Ahimè! non hanno odore.               Ah me! they don't have odor!

Altro di me non le saprei narrare.    About me I would not know how to tell

Sono la sua vicina che la vien fuori Sono la sua vicina che la vien        I am your neighbor who comes unexpectedly

fuori d'ora a importunare.            to bother you.

Parlare e mangiare

Hello All,

And welcome to Italian Diction.  Each week (or so) I will post a blog and you will write a response on your own blog to let me know you read mine and watched the videos.  Your responses will be due the following Monday by class time. 

Half of Italian diction is learning the rules for pronouncing the language.  That’s what we will dedicate the first half of the semester to.  The other half of Italian diction – and something we will work on all semester – is the actual pronunciation of the language.  Rules-wise, Italian diction will be the easiest one you’ll study.  But, I believe Italian is the hardest language to sound idiomatic in.  Partly, the difficulty lies in the fact that the consonants are closely related to the consonants in English but are substantially drier, crisper and generally produced farther forward in the mouth.  Mostly though, Italian pronunciation is difficult because it has such music of its own and it’s very hard for us to willingly make that music.  In truth, to our ears, when we speak Italian properly it almost seems as if we’re making fun of it.  One of the things you are going to find most difficult in this class is figuring out how to marry the music of the language with the rhythm the composer gives you.

So, first, let’s start with just getting the sound of the language in our ear.  To help with that, I offer you two videos dealing with two very beautiful things – Italian language and Italian food.  First up is opera singer Ambrogio Maestri teaching how to make pumpkin risotto.  Ambrogio is one of the reigning Falstaffs of our day.  He is from Northern Italy just south of Milan and has always made a practice of cooking risotto for his casts whenever he is on the road.  These risotti have become so popular he has put out a series of instruction videos to show people how it’s done properly.

The second video is of an English television series called “Two Greedy Italians” which follows two Italian immigrant chefs around Italy as they visit the towns and food of their childhood.  The show is an hour long but I only ask that you watch the first 7 minutes or so. 

In both of these videos, start to listen for the rhythm of the speech.  Ambrogio has a very sing-songy way of speaking which is beautiful and crisp.  Why do the two greedy Italians sound Italian when they speak English?  This isn’t an accident.  Any accent is a result of the way the speaker’s mother tongue is put together. 

I think we Americans tend to think of the French as the passionate fiery lovers of the “joie de vivre.”  We think of them as Pépé le pew.  But it’s really the Italians who seem to have figured out how to find the gioia in life.  You can see it in their gestures, you can hear it in the music of their language and you can taste it in their food.  Buon appetito!

R

Ambrogio Maestri

Two Greedy Italians