Cancion Mixteca - By José López Alavez
Lyrics:
(Spanish)
¡Que lejos estoy del suelo donde he nacido!
inmensa nostalgia invade mi pensamiento;
y al ver me tan solo y triste cual hoja al viento,
quisiera llorar, quisiera morir de sentimiento.
¡Oh Tierra del Sol! Suspiro por verte
ahora que lejos yo vivo sin luz, sin amor;
y al verme tan solo y triste cual hoja al viento,
quisiera llorar, quisiera morir de sentimiento.
(English)
How far I am from the land where I was born!
Immense nostalgia invades my thoughts;
And seeing myself so lonely and sad like a leaf in the wind,
I want to cry, I want to die from this feeling.
Oh Land of the Sun! I yearn to see you!
Now that I'm so far from you, I live without light and love;
And seeing myself so lonely and sad like a leaf in the wind,
I want to cry, I want to die from this feeling.
Song Analysis
for Cancion Mixteca by José López Alavez
The song Cancion Mixteca is a pronounced Mexican folk song, written and
composed by the Oaxacan musician José López Alavez.
López Alavez composed the melody of the song in the year 1912, and added the
lyrics later in 1915.[1] Cancion
Mixteca is López Alavez’s best work in his life time, because this song
reminds thousands of Mexicans around the world about their roots back home.[2]
José López Alavez
was from Huajuapan de Leon, Oaxaca.
He composed the song Cancion
Mixteca because of his feelings of homesickness for his home town of Oaxaca
after moving to Mexico City. [1] The song is a hymn to his birthplace along with the nostalgia felt by Oaxacans who has never
forgotten their roots. In contemporary times, the song became an anthem
both for the Oaxaca and Mexican citizens living abroad[2].
The
song is important especially to the people from Oaxaca, because López Alavez
was from Oaxaca. Oaxaca is located southwestern Mexico, which boarders the
state of Guerrero to the west, Puebla to the northwest, Veracruz to the north,
Chiapas to the east. It is one of the 31 states of the federative entities of
Mexico. Oaxaca is well known for its indigenous people and culture. There are
sixteen officially recognized groups of indigenous people in the area, with
Zapotecs and Mixtecs taking the majority of the indigenous population.[3]
The song is popular especially among the natives who were abolished from their
home and stripped from their traditions.
Cancion Mixteca belongs to the genre of
Ranchera[5], which is a genre of the traditional music of Mexico
originally sang by only one performer with a guitar. This genre dates back to
the years of the Mexican Revolution in the early 20th century, which
was around the time López Alavez composed this song.[4] The lyrics
expose his immense feelings of love and patriotism about his home country. His
words are very strong, as the song progresses, he gets more vigorous,
emphasizing on the loneliness and depressions he felt with his conditions. He
repeatedly mentioned he would rather die than living under such an excruciating
condition. These lyrics are very deep and bitter, however, they spurt sympathy and
common feelings among the many people who are away from their native lands.
Thus, the song leaves a strong impression inside many of its listener’s hearts.
This song has been sang by many different
singers, because their common feelings with José López Alavez.
The melody of the song is soft, and harmonious. This is different from many of
the patriotic songs, since they are more sorrow and sad in their melodies. The
rhythm of the song seems more romantic. For me, it feels like he is singing
about a long lost lover that he reminisces every day. Even though I don’t
understand Spanish, but the way the lyrics are sang, they sound like he was
singling about a sweet sorrow love. I guess you can relate that with the
meaning of the lyrics, because López Alavez loved his country. In his eyes, I
believe that his country was like his long lost lover that he mourned and
grieved about every day. I really enjoy listening to the song because of its
relaxing melody and slow singing.
I was not born in Canada, therefore, I
feel I can relate to the song in some ways. I am from China and I came to
Canada when I was 13. I don’t feel as much sorrow as López Alavez depicted in
his music. I love Canada, for me, I consider it as a second home, and I feel I
am welcome and comfortable living in this country. However, I can understand
some of the pain López Alavez was describing. First of all, my homeland China
is about a 14 hour flight from Canada. Therefore, I don’t get many
opportunities to go back to China and visit my other relatives living there. I
feel I’m slowly cut off from those relatives as time goes by because of the
little opportunities I get to go back. Secondly, I understand to a certain
extend about the pains that López Alavez felt; about how he didn’t feel the new
land as home, and probably he had problems fitting in as well. I remember when
I first came to Canada, language was my biggest problem. I didn't feel like I
was able to communicate with the other kids, and I felt I was not fitting in to
the groups. That was a tough time, and I really missed my old friends back in
China. I came to Canada with my mother. I believe it was very hard for her
being a single mom and starting a new life in a completely foreign land. Thus I
did not want to worry her about my difficulties in school. Sometimes, I did
feel alone and also wanted to cry, but things got better as time went by.
Now, I don’t have as much problems
communicating in English as when I first came here, and I have made many
friends. I am becoming more and more accommodated into this country and its
cultures. I consider Canada as my second home, because my family and friends
are here, and that is where my life is right now. However, sometimes I still
feel foreign. Many of my customs and traditions have not changed because it is
part of my identity and my roots, even though they may not fit into the western
culture. However, I do honor them because it is part of who I am. I do miss my
country occasionally, especially the food and festivals back home, but I do
love Canada as my second home, and I am very happy of where I am right
now.
In conclusion, Cancion Mixteca is a memorable song with deep meaning along with a
soft melody. I connected with the song, because I am a person who is living
away from my native country as well. The feelings, however, are not as strong
as the lyrics depicted Cancion Mixteca,
and also with some other perspectives. I can understand somewhat the homesick
feelings that López Alavez felt when he was writing this song. It was a good
song, and it really brought back some of the memories from my past when I was
writing this report.
References:
[1]“Cancion mixteca”.
Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cancion_mixteca
[2] Juan Antonio Ruiz Zwollo(1995-2012),
Oaxaca’s Tourist Guide,Retrieved from: http://oaxaca-travel.com/guide/cultural.php?getdoc=true&lang=us&doc=home§ion=&atractivo=10.10.08.17
[3] “Oaxaca”.
Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oaxaca
[4]Brenner, H. (1996). Música ranchera. Das
mexikanische Äquivalent zur Country and Western Music aus historischer,
musikalischer und kommerzieller Sicht (Música ranchera: El
equivalente mexicano de la música country y la música del Oeste)
(Musikethnologische Sammelbände 14). Foreword by Thomas Stanford. Tutzing:
Verlag Hans Schneider, 1996 Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranchera
[5] Mariachi Publishing Company (1997-2012) , Cancion Mixteca: Retrieved from : http://www.mariachi4u.com/lyrics/Cancionmixteca.htm
Thanks yuxing
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