My Hungarian World
I was born in the city of Debrecen in Hungary, and as a little girl I was whirled and fascinated by the intensity of the enchanting world of Hungarian folk music. In addition to my family circles where music has been present all the time I began to deal with Hungarian folk songs seriously with Sáriné Szebenyi Judit, my dear teacher. My “love for folk music” evolved to a culmination at the Folk Music Department of the Hungarian Music Academy, where I was a student of Vakler Anna, and I graduated in 2012 as a folk performer and teacher. In this chapter you can listen to a beautiful choice of entrancing melodies from four different Hungarian speaking regions: the Great Plains of Hungary, Transdanubia, Moldova and Transylvania.
1. Invoking
Nursery rhymes from the Hungarian Great Plains
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal,
Boros Gerzson Dávid: jew’s harp
1
I have a wonderbag
With all my treasures inside
My ball, my swing, my trundling hoop
Red roses and violets
Apples and all kinds of nuts
You are the one who has to find us all!
2
Rainbow stretches up in the sky
Far too far for my stetching hands
But if I bring a ladder I can reach
The rainbow there.
2. Rain falls bubbling
Folk songs from the Transdanubian region of Hungary
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal
Berta Alexandra: vocal, zither
Barvich Iván: harmonizing-tambura
Boros Gerzson Dávid: jew’s harp
1.
In my sweetheart’s garden there is a great cedar tree
A beautiful blood bay horse is tied to that tree
This horse has a ribbon for his bridle and a golden bite
My little angel, this is your horse
Short tailed swallow, pretty swarthy bride
How come you arrived here to this strange land
I couldn’t have made this trip on foot, a steam carriage has brought me here
As I have been lured by my sweetheart’s beautiful eyes.
2.
There is a mill on the bank of River Danube
To grind all the grief around, ejeha!
I have some grief in my heart
I’ll take it there to be ground to dust, ejeha!
Rain falls bubbling
The cock’s crowing, ejeha!
This cock is not a good cock
Crowing for midnight at the blush of the dawn, ejeha!
3.
In the middle of the village of Ürög,
There was a lass with bulging eyes,
Her eyeballs were popping out of their sockets
Like the eyes of a yeaning ewe.
Straight is the street of Ürög village,
You can’t find any good-looking lads there,
’Cause all the ones around are crooked fellows,
With gaping mouths.
Come on darling come this way, there is no mud around here,
And on my door I have no lock, but you’ll easily find there,
A golden handle to the lair,
And roses growing everywhere.
Around both windows and the door
That opens up
Though untouched by
Anything but a single sigh
Of some affectionate words
From the lips of my valentine.
4.
Put it down, take it up, strike it to the ground,
But then don’t throw it to the ground,
Ajnanana….
Cast some figures so unusually flashy,
That your heels would throw out sparks,
Ajnanana….
3. Love Songs from Bihar
Folk songs from Bihar County, Hungary
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal
Berta Alexandra: zither
Barvich Iván és Boros Gerzson Dávid: vocal
1.
The birds of the sky neither plough nor sow,
Yet they can live off the fields and the meadows,
I myself till the soil not and neither sow at all,
Yet I manage to get by among you all.
This bird of song won’t sing at all,
As her woeful heart aches,
She will sing a song someday,
About the curse I take.
2.
Last week I was strolling around your place darling,
In front of your house white mallows were blooming,
The flowers of the mallow have all fallen to the earth,
My sweetheart lives his life with someone else.
My dear sweetheart if you come around our place please pop in,
There is a bench in front of our house, please dare to sit down,
Buti f you do sit down, be careful not to fall down,
You were my lover but I don’t need you anymore.
3.
A street at Bakonszeg,
Full, full of tea roses,
Dismount, hussar, dismount your horse,
And please pick a flower from here.
Nay I won’t dismount,
I need no tea roses,
I won’t be yours,
and you, darling could never be mine.
4.
Homeward, homeward, homeward now,
Because it’s red daybreak now,
So sweet is the red blush of the dawn,
But I can kiss you only by night and not now.
Why couldn’t I have been created to be a straw of wheat,
’Cause this way I could be cut down at the time of the harvest,
I know that my lover doesn’t want me anymore,
We are against each other.
4. Take that away, swallow
Music strains from Moldova
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal, koboz
Berta Alexandra: vocal, zither
Barvich Iván: kaval, whistle
Boros Gerzson Dávid: jew’s harp
1.
Green forest, green parsley,
Love runs cold in your heart, darling.
It’s not only cold but it has disappeared from your heart,
Planting grief into my merry heart.
In front of my gate runs the River Tisza,
In the middle of the water there is a weeping willow.
The wind blows among the leaves,
I’ve been waiting for my sweetheart’s letter for a long time.
Take that away, swallow, take my letter to her,
And console my grieving heart.
Take that away, swallow, take my letter to her,
And console my grieving heart.
5. If I go up …
Folk song from Magyarszovát, Transylvania
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal
If I go up to that high mountain,
I will look up at the great sky of the stars,
Oh, starlit sky where could be my homeland?
Where is my grieving mother who painfully cries for me?
How I wish to be a tree in the forest,
Not any tree but an oak,
Because the oak burns with blue flames and without smoke,
My heart is never without grief.
How I wish to be a star in the sky,
Not any star but the one that consorts the Morning Star,
Before midnight I could compass the sky,
To discover who my sweetheart loves.
My Turkish World
Turkey has also become my home. I have had decisive encounters with this marvellous other world in several fields: language, music and most of all – human relations. The following tunes exemplify that there is a close relationship between the oldest layers of our Hungarian folk culture and that of the Turkish folk songs. Evidence of this fact was first prooved by Bartok Béla in his collection in 1936, and his research was continued by my mentor Sipos János ethnomusicologist. In this chapter you can listen to melodies from his collections. Nevertheless we have tried to weave them with Hungarian folk songs in a playful way.
6. Bridgemaster
Turkish folk song
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal, saz
Barvich Iván: kaval
Boros Gerzson Dávid: darbuka
Poplar creeking in the wind,
Nay it is poplar, they are fellers of the woods.
Are you at home, bridgemaster?
At home am I, but I’ve just arrived.
Let me go across your bridge!
Nay, I can’t let you come, ’cause the bridge will fall down!
If it falls down, we’ll grapple that!
How could you grapple this bridge?
With beads of rings and beading dew!
With beads of rings and beading dew!
How could you grapple this bridge?
With beads of rings and beading dew!
Where could you find the beads of rings?
God would give me some from his right hand!
7. A Jar of Apples
Strains from Hungarian and Turkish nursery rhymes
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal, saz
Barvich Iván: kaval
Boros Gerzson Dávid: darbuka, tambourine
1.
A jar full of apples,
Two jars full of apples,
Three jars full of apples,
Four jars full of apples,
Five jars full of apples,
Six jars full of apples,
Seven jars full of apples,
Eight jars full of apples,
Nine jars full of apples,
Ten jars full of apples,
Ten, ten, clear water,
If it is not clean, take it back,
There’s a donkey to drink it!
2.
Grinding, grinding poppy seeds,
Baking you a sweet yeast-leavened bread,
Reeling really reeling round,
I’ll give it to you, Johnny.
3.
Grinding, grinding poppy seeds,
Baking you a sweet yeast-leavened bread,
Reeling really reeling round,
I’ll give it to you, Johnny.
4.
You get on your bike,
You get on your bike.
Halfway you get off,
Halfway you get off.
Ayşének has a little lamb,
Ayşének has a little lamb.
With a curling horn,
With a curling horn.
5.
Hurry home honey,
Look at the Sun: it’s late now,
One o’clock, two o’clock,
I’ll drive you home if you don’t come.
6.
Hurry home honey,
Look at the Sun: it’s late now,
One o’clock, two o’clock,
I’ll drive you home if you don’t come.
7.
I was walking outside the town hall,
I was walking outside the town hall,
With my open red umbrella,
With my open red umbrella.
8.
Water’s leaking, leaking,
Water’s leaking, leaking,
Among the pebbles
Among the pebbles.
Lean here, let me kiss,
Lean here, let me kiss,
That sweet place between your eyebrows,
That sweet place between your eyebrows.
9.
A stalk walks with a nestling,
Putting it down then taking it up again,
Go, go, go!
Now, it’s here, jump!
8. On all the Roads
Parallel strains from Hungarian and Turkish folk music
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal, saz
Barvich Iván: kaval
Boros Gerzson Dávid: darbuka, tambourine
1.
Mother you asked Allah for some relief,
Mother you asked Allah for some relief,
Providence helped you to give birth to me,
And to cultivate the land by the sweat of your work.
You swathed me in white linen, Mother,
Singing lullabies to soothe us,
When we were ill, you shed your tears inside,
When we were crying, you dried our eyes, Mother.
2.
I would keep a lover but I can’t choose one,
I’m a poor girl and I don’t know anyone,
I’d like to visit the Spinnery but my mother doesn’t let me go,
And if I am crying about it she doesn’t understand.
We’ve got a dangerous, cunning dog: so no one can come in,
I’m all alone here by the fireplace,
Only God knows what I will become this way,
All the other lads don’t know a thing about me.
3.
I have felled the alder tree,
It fell on the road,
These are my songs,
They are all about my love.
Listen to the sound of the rain,
It’s calling you to love me,
Each drop dripping on my window,
Makes me suffer more and more.
This is the rain that took you away,
Took you away from me,
Our love was washed away by the flood,
Of this pouring rain.
The rain will fall again,
And takes you away from me,
My sweetest dreams,
Are mingled in her dreams.
4.
The bike is flying fast,
Dust emerges behind the wheels,
Get married, lad,
Because your youth will soon fly away.
Aj-haj spinning,
Have I become a bride again?
Now, let’s go!
Send me some lokum,
That should be yours as well,
Wave me with your handkerchief.
Don’t clad in white, you might get cold,
What are you thinking about, my love?
Let’s pray to Allah to give me to you.
Aj-haj…
Lentils galore,
I’m measuring that, wiping some off the top,
Örü will be a bride,
Let her live happily!
Aj-haj…
On all the roads and all the streets,
I’ve been looking for you, darling,
Nevertheless, sweet rose, I could not find you at all,
Under all the windows I’ve been listening for your sweet voice,
While in the end, thank God, I could find you at last,
While in the end, thank God, I could find you at last.
9. My little blue one
Folk songs from Turkey
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal, saz
Barvich Iván: vocal, harmonizing tambura
Boros Gerzson Dávid: vocal, darbuka
1.
My road led me to foreign country,
My heart cries sadly,
There is longing between us,
My heart cries sadly,
My heart cries sorowfully,
My heart cries destitutely.
2.
My blue one, my little blue one,
My blue one, my little blue one,
Let’s meet up in a quiet place somewhere, my blue one,
Let’s meet up in a quiet place somewhere, my blue one.
Oh Lord! I sacrifice myself for you!
Oh Lord! I sacrifice myself for you!
Please send him quickly, so that we find each other again, my blue one,
Please send him quickly, so that we find each other again, my blue one.
3.
Coachman, coachman!
I’m your passanger.
Coachman, coachman!
I’m your passanger.
Coachman go on! To where? To Pera!
Come on, come on, yallah, yallah,
Come on tıkır mıkır, yallah yallah!
Come on, come on, yallah, yallah,
Come on tıkır mıkır, yallah yallah!
My Moroccan World
Thanks to a couple of beautiful trips to Morocco and France the Moroccan bud seems to open in my heart at last. As I have had the opportunity to collect folk songs there, I could find sources that used to be inaccessible from my homeland. In the last chapter of my album I try to open this treasury. All these songs emphasize the importance of the proximity to God. It is a natural part of Moroccan culture. In this part you can hear traditional songs of the Berber people – or as they call themselves the Amazigh – and Arabic melodies as well.
10. Berber/Amazigh
Moroccan Berber folk song
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal
Aouaaa, patience my heart!
Iua-ua, there is a name, a name of God
Iua-ua, my God, plant it in my heart until I fulfil my fate
Iua-ua, in my heart there is no place for those ones
Iua-ua, who don’t belong to me
Iua-ua, please heal this world, my Lord!
Iua-ua, patience my heart!
Iua-ua, it’s a celebration today,
Iua-ua, a great celebration where I can find my friends.
Iua-ua, patience my heart!
Iua-ua, here are my friends,
Iua-ua, the berbers are here, so now we don’t miss a thing!
11. In thy name
Moroccan Berber folk song to God
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal
Barvich Iván: cello-tambura
Boros Gerzson Dávid: bendir
In thy name I start my poem, oh blessed God, please, be merciful with me!
You are the only one who can fulfil my desires without a mediator.
You give everything to those ones you want to and you give what you want
There is no one who is as mighty as you are.
So let my mouth speak about all the things that are happening round here
You should speak about the events accurately!
Talk about the past, about all the things that happened once
To inform those who haven’t heard about them!
God created the Earth, the lowland plains,
the rivers and the mountains too.
God created the sea, the sky and the water
The running animals and the flying birds.
God ordered the Sun to shine
The stars and the Moon to shine at night.
The one and only God made no mistakes at all.
12. Moroccan Espousal
Arabian and Berber wedding songs
Guessous Majda Mária: vocal
Barvich Iván: vocal, riq
Boros Gerzson Dávid: vocal, darbuka, bendir
1.
Oh, my God send your peace and greetings to Mohamed
and to Mustafa (the guided one)
Oh, my God send your peace and greetings to Mohamed
and to Mustafa (the guided one)
Oh, my God, oh, my God …
2.
Peace and greetings to God’s messenger, the Prophet clad in dignity!
The greatest honour is to God!
3.
Oh, my God send your blessing and peace to the Prophet,
The Arabian Prophet who is my master, Mohamed!
Oh, my God send your blessing and peace to the Prophet,
The Arabian Prophet who is my master, Mohamed!
The holy and mightiest name is the name I start my speech with,
Int he name of God I speak because he must know about our rejoice.
The bride is a beautiful flower, her bridal wreath is made of lilies-of-the-valley
The bridegroom must be very happy to say this woman is mine.
In the name of God I start my song this is the only way to kindness.
If we speak ’in the name of God’ it will scatter the sufferings
and defeats the soldiers of the Satan.
Oh, my God send your blessing and peace to the Prophet,
The Arabian Prophet who is my master, Mohamed!
Starting everything in the name of God will dismiss all your enemies
Bearing this in mind I begin my songs.
The bride is a beautiful flower, her bridal wreath is made of lilies-of-the-valley
The bridegroom must be very happy to say this woman is mine.
Let there be blessing on the traveller (Mohamed)
Let there be peace on the Messenger who interprets the words of God (Mohamed) Let there be peace on him while he’s writing down those words
Oh, my God send your blessing and peace to the Prophet,
The Arabian Prophet who is my master, Mohamed!
4.
Oh my God protect the one who gives us food
Let all the greed and jealosy avoid him!
Oh my God protect the one who gives us food
Let all the greed and jealosy avoid him!
Peace and greetings to God’s messenger, the Prophet clad in dignity!
The greatest honour is to God!
Oh my God protect…
Peace and greetings …
There are flowers on the top of the trees,
And a bridal wreath on the maiden’s head,
All the flowers are to fall down,
And this girl is to get married!
These folk songs were translated into English by BAJKÁN LÁSZLÓ
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