Being sick and stuck at home, I went on a Chopin rampage the other day, having watched the movie "Impromptu" with Hugh Grant as Chopin- he did a really good job (Thank you Mel-chan for sharing with me!). I looked up songs inspired by, referencing, or based on Chopin. Among the list was Jay Chou, who appears to be greatly influence by Chopin. Consequently I found this song, 夜曲 from his album titled "November's Chopin". I try to say 'ye qu' because evidently, that's how it's pronounced but I forget and say 'やきょく' because that's how it is in Japanese...
This is the first time I sought out and listened to a song (knowingly) by Jay Chou. Roomie had the song; intrigued, looked it up and was thoroughly moved... Soft, dark, and depressing but beautiful nonetheless. Here are some of the lyrics:
为你弹奏萧邦的夜曲 For you [ I ] play Chopin's Nocturne
纪念我死去的爱情 To commemorate this deceased love of mine
跟夜风一样的声音 Just like a wind in the night
心碎的很好听 So heartbreakingly beautiful
手在键盘敲很轻 [ I ] gently stroke the keys
我给的思念很小心 The longing that I gave was very tentative
你埋葬的地方叫幽冥 You are buried in a place called the afterlife
为你弹奏萧邦的夜曲 For you [ I ] play Chopin's Nocturne
纪念我死去的爱情 To commemorate this desceased love of mine
而我为你隐姓埋名 And for you I've become anonymous
在月光下弹琴 Playing the piano under the moonlight
对你心跳的感应 The feeling of your heartbeat
还是如此温热清晰 Is still so warm and clear
怀念你那鲜红的唇印 I remember the scarlet imprint of you lips
Lyrics were obtained from: http://www.jay-chou.net/lyrics_view.php?a_id=11&s_id=1
This is the first time in a very long time that I've needed a very, very thorough translation with a set of lyrics. Most of the stuff I listen to is classical, followed Japanese and English, which I can muck through alright. Next would probably be French, totally manageable for me with a basic dictionary. But though I can read most of the characters and get a general feel of the song, I can't understand Chinese grammatically. Last night it was all I would listen to, as it was the only thing that would drown out the extremely intense angst and anxiety I was contracting from reading the most recent Corda chapters... It made me much less frenzied spastic, but took me down a couple steps too far as it reminded my of my uncle; the first anniversary of his death will be soon next month...
There were other songs I liked; most of them are based off of Étude Op. 10 No. 3, my favorite being "Dans la nuit" and "So Deep is the Night". The former I like best because of the lyrics (mais oui, en français mes cheries) and the latter for the musical part of the song itself most closely identical to the original etude. Among amusing inspirations/references, is "I like Chopin" by Gazebo; like Jay Chou's album, the songs don't actually contain any of Chopin's melodies. If you can stand 80s music, I suggest checking it out. I myself am not a fan of the 80s sound, but I do like the song somewhat, strangely enough.
One of the prompting factors to go on this whole rampage in the first place was seeing "The Minute Waltz" (a showtune-type song by Barbara Streisand from the 60s based upon Waltz Op. 64 No. 1) used as a song during a ballroom dancing competition a while back.
On an aside... I was very happy when I went itunes shopping since I have giftcards from Christmas that I haven't used yet. I didn't actually purchase anything yet. but I found an album I want to gift to Rady XD It doesn't come as a physical CD so you'll have to let me know if you can accept the purchase or not. I'm not sure if it means you have to have an itunes account etc. Also, in that search, I found Ishida-san's name in a revival radio show from '96! Just started at the beginning of the month, so I'm very, very happy about that. Also in my train of searching, I was hoping to find Masaru Okada (岡田 将) in there somewhere. Amazingly I did, so I'll be buying one of his performances from a recent competition. In case you don't know who he is, here is one of Okada-san's biggest achievements:
5th Liszt Competition, 1999
Number of contestants: 39
1. Masaru Okada, Japan
2. Mariangela Vacatello, Italy
3. Yundi Li, P.R. of China
From the competition website: http://www.lisztcompetition.nl/read/53/prize_winners_1986-2008?sublist=5931
It makes me incredibly happy to know just how wonderful and successful this guy is (he beat Yundi Li!)! I still can't believe this is they guy they are using for Tsuchiura's pianist... incredible... (no wonder I'm in love with his La Campanella... and everything else, haha). Well... even with his amazing performance history, I'm even happier to say that I adored his piano before I found out he was a recognized and accomplished performer... that love of music doesn't have to go by names or titles or notes on a page, or who or where the performer is from... but what is conveyed through the music itself, and the thoughts and emotions attached to it.
