Found in translation

I have a confession to make.

When I read to myself, my lips move.

Seeing this, you might take me for a poor, under-educated person, not a commercial litigation lawyer.

But I'm savouring the words; relishing their mouth-feel; loving the sound of the phrases.

If you put this weird propensity together with my obsession with music, why have I never thought of songwriting?

Well, I can't write music.  I don't play an instrument like piano or guitar on which you can compose a song.

And what would I write about?  I've been in a stable, happy relationship for decades.  Life has spared me the anguish and heartache that good songs are made of.

But when my Brazilian friend Enéias asks me if I can translate some of his songs into English, I decide to rise to the challenge.  Translation?  That I can do.

Now I have to be a songwriter, because you can't translate word-for-word.  There must be poetry in the phrases.

At school I wrote poems of an introspective kind, but none of the verses rhymed.  Hah!  Just made a rhyme!

I did study poetry, and enjoyed it.  Perhaps I've got what it takes?

The only way to find out is to try.

The first song is a sweet little ditty about a kangaroo who travels to Brazil.  It sounds very charming in Portuguese, but no matter how I try I can't turn it into a song that would work in English.  Perhaps it's the concept itself that doesn't translate.  Then suddenly I realise - I'm that kangaroo!  It's hidden symbolism!  I put this to Enéias.  No, definitely not, he says.  It's a song about a kangaroo.  Now I feel very silly.  Fancy thinking the song was about me.  I'm giving up on this one.

Next is "Broken Samba".  This is easier.  With a love song there is more scope for various expressions of an idea.  I send him my version.  I've done a pretty good job, I think.

Enéias quickly sends me the next song, "A Great Love".   This song doesn't rhyme, and I have to decide what approach to take with my translation.  I start thinking about what sort of song I would like to listen to, or to sing.  Chances are, I could be singing it!  A rhyming song is easier to remember, and sounds better in English.  Now I have to decide where to put the rhymes, and which words to base the rhymes on.

I let the words, rhythms and rhymes spin around in my head until finally I've solved all the little problems and the translation falls into place.  It's like musical Sudoku.

Some principles I've discovered:

• If you can't do a literal translation, work out what is the strongest concept in the song, and base the rest of the lyrics around these.
• A word can rhyme with a phrase, not just with another word.
• You can use approximate rhymes; it doesn't need to be exact.
• It's the sound that counts, not the spelling.
• Say the first line out loud, counting the syllables on your fingers, create another with the same number.
• Look for interesting words that you don't often hear in songs - avoid the "violets are blue, I love you" syndrome.
• If you can't find the exact words you want, insert "filler-words" temporarily so you have a line with the right rhythm.
• The end of a line doesn't have to be the end of a sentence - it can spill over to the next line.  
• Listen to the original and find words that have similar sounds.  Are the vowels long or short?  Are the notes short or sustained?  Try and replicate the feel of the song in translation.  

Occasionally I message Enéias to probe for the meaning behind the song.  I want my translation to remain true to his intent.

Perhaps we can be an international songwriting duo, as well as performance partners.