I would like to post a video on a song that my daughter Bosba Panh. Khmer soprano age 13, is singing about the fall of 1975 and the pain left on the families. It is a beautiful song with meaningful lyrics in Khmer and English.
-------------------------------------bosbaPANH — November 17, 2009 — Bosbapanh, Khmer Soprano age 12, opened her 2009 concert with this song to announce the imminent drama of a family of teachers, who has to relocate as the French redefined the frontiers of Indochina. Using the melody of the Concierto d'Aranjuez composed by Joaquim Rodrigo, in 1939 in the turmoil of the Second World War, the song evokes both the happy days before the war and the tragedies that follow. Bosbapanh is reminded of the story of her grand mother who died after the evacuation of Phnom Penh in 1975 and witnessed the death of most of the family members. This is a tribute to Bosbapanh's grand mother and all mothers, the foundation of our families.
Neak Mê (Our Mothers
Sung by Bosba Panh (Niece of the internationally-acclaimed film director Rithy Panh)
Below is the lyrics:
Over the mountains
Across the rivers
Through the thunder
The wind brings back our words, our screams
At sunset, Neak Mê
The junk leaves the port
The grand river Kompong Tonle whimpers
Now the temple is beyond repair
No roof left, all swallowed by fire.
To meditate too much on the passing seasons
We store up years
Since this early morning of April
When they arrived
Yelling, singing, aiming
Writing on walls
They shot and they wrote
Words that made us tremble
The vines of roses grow from the stains
And on these walls, blood-red petals
Break out every April
The roses climb among the bruises and
Turn so red that they pierce us
The well is dry and empty
Rice fields are burnt by the sun
During the parched prang season of April
Counting the rhythm of the seasons
Dozens of years pile up
Since these early hours of April
When they arrived
Their chests covered with roses
Like deaf-mutes
Barefoot, with tense bodies
In their fiery eyes
Begins the strange smile of the powerful
One can guess the trails of blood
So violently red on these walls
But these are only roses.
13 comments:
It's hard to understand her song, sometime it rhyme roughly and nonsense at all. The composer of this song must be not know khmer language good enough to write a song. Try to find a good writer to do this job before put it into a song.
It's not the song or the singer it is your listening skill that needs to be polished. You need to learn harder to listen on every word of the lyric and the rhyme again and again and again to appreciate it.
It's certainly not the song nor the singer, it's your listening skill.
It reminds me of the great suffering I faced as a young child during the KR period. Almost every Khmer lost their loved ones. It is a great tragedy!
Here again, another man who doesn't know Khmer language properly and understand smooth and rough rhyme. It may be sound nice if one is water buffalo listen to it.
Singer sounds like Bosba Pan. Thanks for sharing
May be some Cambodians want to know the Thais are searching their origins through the western Scholars.
http://www.jack-wallace.com/g7social_t3_04.htm
http://www.flickr.com/photos/10186213@N07/2747281071/
Don't forget,Sihanouk did play a role in khmer rouge's victory.And now he is preah virak ksat.Did he have any remorse ?.
1;41pm.
You are wrong about that. It was your Yuon troops who drove in and chanting "Sihanouk Sihanouk.." No other Khmer words but only Sihanouk, Sihanouk.."
Then your Yuon drove in as saviors or invaders chanting "Bol Bort Bol Bort..." means "Pol Pot.."
What the fuck you try to cover up your dirty tactics in my country for?
I saw myself,all were destroyed since 1970 including Pagoda,temples,and monks transformed to soldiers with vietcong.Please tell ECCCC the truth!
What is that ?
I'am not smart enough to understand that song.
Kill the KR bitch!
8:52,
Appreciate the fact that they'd post their song to share with us. If you think you can do better, then do it. Stop whining like a little bitch! There is absolutely nothing wrong with the song. You just need to understand the native language.
Thanks KI for posting the song. Happy New Year to all!
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