“And yet the wind still blows/ sprays water on ships over prow/ and whispers songs among the foliage/ and kisses flowers, kisses and never picks them”
| Eppure soffia Pierangelo Bertoli E l’acqua si riempie di schiuma il cielo di fumi la chimica lebbra distrugge la vita nei fiumi uccelli che volano a stento malati di morte il freddo interesse alla vita ha sbarrato le porte un’isola intera ha trovato nel mare una tomba il falso progresso ha voluto provare una bomba poi pioggia che toglie la sete alla terra che è viva invece le porta la morte perché è radioattiva Eppure il vento soffia ancora spruzza l’acqua alle navi sulla prora e sussurra canzoni tra le foglie e bacia i fiori, li bacia e non li coglie Un giorno il denaro ha scoperto la guerra mondiale ha dato il suo putrido segno all’istinto bestiale ha ucciso, bruciato, distrutto in un triste rosario e tutta la terra si è avvolta di un nero sudario e presto la chiave nascosta di nuovi segreti così copriranno di fango persino i pianeti vorranno inquinare le stelle, la guerra tra i soli i crimini contro la vita li chiamano errori Eppure il vento soffia ancora spruzza l’acqua alle navi sulla prora e sussurra canzoni tra le foglie e bacia i fiori li bacia e non li coglie eppure sfiora le campagne accarezza sui fianchi le montagne e scompiglia le donne fra i capelli corre a gara in volo con gli uccelli Eppure il vento soffia ancora | And yet it blows Pierangelo Bertoli And the water fills with foam, the sky with fumes leprous chemistry destroys the life in streams birds that can hardly fly sick with death the cold interest towards life has barricaded doors an island whole has found in the sea a tomb false progress wished to experiment a bomb then rain that relieves the thirst of the earth which is alive instead brings it death because it is radioactive And yet the wind still blows sprays water on ships over prows and whispers songs among the foliage and kisses flowers, kisses and never picks them One day money discovered world war it gave to bestial instinct its putrid mark it killed, burned, destroyed in a sad rosary and all the earth was bound in a black shroud and soon the hidden key of new secrets will then cover in mud even the planets will want to pollute the stars, war among those alone the crimes against life they call errors And yet the wind still blows sprays water on ships over prows and whispers songs among the foliage and kisses flowers, kisses and never picks them and yet it strokes the fields caresses the mountain sides and ruffles of the women their locks races in flight the birds in flocks And yet the wind still blows Translation ©Matilda Colarossi 2023 |
Pierangelo Bertoli was born in Sassuolo, Modena. He was an Italian singer-songwriter and poet. Of humble roots, at the age of four, he developed poliomyelitis and lost the use of both legs. He started his career of singer at the end of 1973. His works deal mainly with the environment, antimilitarism, and social issues such as people who are marginalized by society.
You can hear the singer-songwriter perform the song here: https://youtu.be/nDPVolqGii0?feature=shared
I tried to follow the music, make the words play on the notes as they do in Italian, but it is an impossible task, at least for me. There is no way to reproduce the beauty I hear in his voice, in the words he wrote to express what, in 2023, is as crucial as it was when he wrote it in 1975.
This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
parallel texts: words reflected 