Aggiungi un Posto a Tavola: Sono Calmo

I’m Calm

Having sent Clementina home from the confessional, Don Silvestro returns to his evening milk. The telephone rings. The voice on the line is God, who says that he is not happy with the way things are going on Earth, and has decided to send another flood. Don Silvestro is to build an ark… At the end of conversation, after the Lord has hung up, Don Silvestro freaks out.

Calmo, mantenere la calma Calm, maintain calm
Perché se non mi calmo Because if I don’t calm myself
Mi viene il cardiopalma I’ll have a heart attack
Calmo! Calm!
Con la mente tranquilla With a tranquil mind
Adesso mi preparo Now I’ll prepare
Un po’ di camomilla* A bit of camomile [tea]
   
Eppure il telefono ha squillato And yet the telephone rang
La voce del Signore m’ha parlato The voice of the Lord spoke to me
M’ha detto, m’ha detto esattamente He said to me, he said to me exactly…
Si m’ha detto esattamente Yes, he said to me exactly…
Che m’ha detto esattamente??? What did he say to me, exactly?
Aiuto! non ricordo un accidente! Help! I don’t remember a darn thing!
   
Calmo! ipersuperstracalmo Calm! hypersuperextracalm
E per restare piu’ calmo And to stay calmer
Ora recito un salmo I’ll recite a psalm
Qui facit misericordiam 
Calmo io, é una parola I’m calm, it’s a word
Il Dio che atterra e suscita che affanna e che consola The God who strikes down and revives and causes to pant and consoles
Ha parlato con me spoke to me.
Si, vabbé lo so che prima di me, fece un discorso simile a Noé Yes, okay, I know that before me he made a similar speech to Noah
No eh? No, eh?
   
Signore, scusami Pardon me, Lord.
   
Grazie, il cuore é regolare Thank you, the heart is regular [in its beats]
Il polso? Benissimo, cammina The pulse? Just great, it goes [on]
Adesso, mi posso addormentare Now I can go to sleep
E venga ben venga domattina And tomorrow morning will be welcome
   
Calmo Calm
Calmo come una salma Calm as a corpse
Son contento e felice I’m contented and happy
Son felice e contento I’m happy and contented
Oramai m’addormento Now I’ll go to sleep
in una mare di calma in a sea of calm
Ecco, si m’addormento See, yes, I’m going to sleep
in un mare di calma in a sea of calm
Oddio! Oh, God!
Ho parlato con Dio! I talked with God!
   
* camomilla – camomile tea, frequently used as a soothing decoction to help people, particularly children, go to sleep.

next: Concerto Per Prete E Campane

Aggiungi un Posto a Tavola full song list

Learn Italian in Song: Il Ballo del Mattone

recorded by Rita Pavone
Rita Pavone - Rita Pavone: I Grande Successi Originali - Il Ballo del Mattone

Written by Verde / Canfora

Another silly song from the sixties.

Il Ballo del Mattone

The Dance of the Brick/Tile

Non essere geloso se con gli altri ballo il twist, Don’t be jealous if with the others I dance the twist
non essere furioso se con gli altri ballo il rock: Don’t be furious if with the others I dance rock
con te, con te, con te che sei la mia passione With you, with you, with you who are my passion
io ballo il ballo del mattone. I dance the dance of the tile
Non provocar la lite se con gli altri ballo il twist, Don’t provoke a fight if with the others I dance the twist
non provocar scenate se con gli altri ballo il rock: Don’t cause scenes if with the others I dance rock
con te, con te, con te che sei la mia passione With you, with you, with you who are my passion
io ballo il ballo del mattone. I dance the dance of the tile
Lentamente, guancia a guancia, Slowly, cheek to cheek
io ti dico che ti amo I say that I love you
tu mi dici che son bella You tell me that I’m beautiful
dondolando, dondolando sulla stessa mattonella! Rocking, rocking on the same tile!
(ripetere) (repeat)

Aggiungi un Posto a Tavola: Peccato Che Sia Peccato

It’s a Shame That It’s a Sin

This song, the second in the show, is built around a pun. Peccato means “sin,” but the phrase Che peccato is used like the English “What a shame!”

The singers are Don Silvestro, the priest, and Clementina, the mayor’s daughter, who has a crush on him (which he, secretly, reciprocates) and goes daily to confess sins that she hasn’t actually committed, just to have an excuse to talk to him.

Continue reading Aggiungi un Posto a Tavola: Peccato Che Sia Peccato

Aggiungi un Posto a Tavola – An Italian Musical

Add Another Place at the Table

I’m a huge fan of musical theater, grew up singing along with The Music Man, Camelot and Oliver. The first show I saw on stage was You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown, in what must have been a local or travelling production, in San Francisco, when we were on home leave in 1969. I knew all these shows by heart, and by now know (and have seen) many more – most recently, Spamalot.

Continue reading Aggiungi un Posto a Tavola – An Italian Musical

Deirdré Straughan on Italy, India, the Internet, the world, and now Australia