Esperanza me
June 28, 2015 2:58 PM Subscribe
I'm an amateur musician trying to learn Spanish. I'd like to kill two birds with one stone by learning some Spanish-language songs.
I've been listening to a lot of Spanish-language music but it's been hard for me to find the kind of music that is about right for my language level and my taste in music.
The perfect songs would be folk tunes with fairly straightforward musical structures. I like the Secret Sisters, Peter Paul and Mary, Nina Simone. Something like "If I had a hammer" would be about right - simple but not dull, fun to sing and play, repeated lyrics which make it easier to memorize.
Thank you in advance.
The perfect songs would be folk tunes with fairly straightforward musical structures. I like the Secret Sisters, Peter Paul and Mary, Nina Simone. Something like "If I had a hammer" would be about right - simple but not dull, fun to sing and play, repeated lyrics which make it easier to memorize.
Thank you in advance.
Best answer: Apologies in advance if these aren't great recommendations — I know what I like to listen to, but I'm probably not the greatest judge of musical level and language level.
That said, check out Jorge Drexler's album "Sea" (maybe a song like "Me Haces Bien"?) or something by Rosana (maybe "Contigo"?)
posted by veggieboy at 3:32 PM on June 28, 2015
That said, check out Jorge Drexler's album "Sea" (maybe a song like "Me Haces Bien"?) or something by Rosana (maybe "Contigo"?)
posted by veggieboy at 3:32 PM on June 28, 2015
Try some artists described as nueva trova or nueva canción. These are folk singers mostly from the 70s from Cuba, Argentina and Chile, like Silvio Rodriguez, Mercedes Sosa, or Atahualpa Yupanqui. The lyrics are usually story-telling in nature and the voice is very clear. Another option might be traditional Mexican songs. Los Lobos have some early albums of all Spanish language songs that are great, such as La Pistola y El Corazon, which I believe is all traditional songs. (For example, my favorite of those songs is Feria de las Flores.)
posted by vunder at 3:35 PM on June 28, 2015
posted by vunder at 3:35 PM on June 28, 2015
It's cheesy, but I learned the words to La Bamba in a Spanish lesson once, which was good because a. It was at a pretty basic level b. It's not so obscure that you never hear it, so I get to sing along when it comes on at parties, which is awesome.
posted by penguin pie at 3:54 PM on June 28, 2015
posted by penguin pie at 3:54 PM on June 28, 2015
Best answer: The first song that comes to mind for me is Guantanamera. This version may be clearer vocally.
posted by worldswalker at 4:03 PM on June 28, 2015
posted by worldswalker at 4:03 PM on June 28, 2015
I love Trio Los Panchos' version of this song, Quien Sera. The lyrics are haunting. You might try any of their other songs, too.
posted by DMelanogaster at 5:02 PM on June 28, 2015
posted by DMelanogaster at 5:02 PM on June 28, 2015
If you go on YouTube and look at "Beatles" & "Spanish", you'll find some early Beatles pop hits with Spanish translation. Maybe not the most perfect, but really easy to dive into.
posted by ovvl at 6:58 PM on June 28, 2015
posted by ovvl at 6:58 PM on June 28, 2015
Best answer: Julieta Venegas sings pop songs with simple lyrics: Limón y Sal, for example, is a cute love song all in present tense. All of the Otra Cosa album is very pop-y and lively, as well as relatively simple and clear. They are also really catchy (I love her!), so you're very likely to remember what you learn.
A bit more folk-indie (but also catchy) is Fernando Milagros, Gepe and more Gepe.
A bunch of pop/rock singers created two series of children's music based on indigenous cultures of different Latin American regions. The series are called Tikitiklip Precolombino and Tikitiklip con Elenco Artesanal (the characters are typical crafts from different regions). I'm not sure how well you'll understand them, but they're really worth listening to! Here is Colibrí y la lluvia, El Jilacata y la llamita, Quita y Pon con un hilo de voz, Arrurrú.
Pure folklore is Pascuala Ilabaca y Fauna, also very simple lyrics based on Andean carnival music, so it's also catchy and festive.
[This list may or may not reflect my own personal taste. But trust me.]
posted by ipsative at 7:14 PM on June 28, 2015 [2 favorites]
A bit more folk-indie (but also catchy) is Fernando Milagros, Gepe and more Gepe.
A bunch of pop/rock singers created two series of children's music based on indigenous cultures of different Latin American regions. The series are called Tikitiklip Precolombino and Tikitiklip con Elenco Artesanal (the characters are typical crafts from different regions). I'm not sure how well you'll understand them, but they're really worth listening to! Here is Colibrí y la lluvia, El Jilacata y la llamita, Quita y Pon con un hilo de voz, Arrurrú.
Pure folklore is Pascuala Ilabaca y Fauna, also very simple lyrics based on Andean carnival music, so it's also catchy and festive.
[This list may or may not reflect my own personal taste. But trust me.]
posted by ipsative at 7:14 PM on June 28, 2015 [2 favorites]
[On preview, ipsative, yes. Love Gepe as a suggestion as well.]
These are kind of weird suggestions so far, at least to my ears.
Really common for Spanish learners are:
Julieta Venegas, "Eres para mi"
Julieta Venegas, "Limon y sal"
Julieta Venegas, "Me voy"
Calle 13, "Muerte en Hawaii" (despite the title—if you want to learn to sing a bit faster)
Cielito Lindo, of which there are 1000 versions, but it's a classic.
It's less common, but the Chilean Nicole has a great song "Baila" that I think is right about the correct level.
posted by migrantology at 7:22 PM on June 28, 2015
These are kind of weird suggestions so far, at least to my ears.
Really common for Spanish learners are:
Julieta Venegas, "Eres para mi"
Julieta Venegas, "Limon y sal"
Julieta Venegas, "Me voy"
Calle 13, "Muerte en Hawaii" (despite the title—if you want to learn to sing a bit faster)
Cielito Lindo, of which there are 1000 versions, but it's a classic.
It's less common, but the Chilean Nicole has a great song "Baila" that I think is right about the correct level.
posted by migrantology at 7:22 PM on June 28, 2015
Pink Martini's Donde Estas, Yolanda is simple, catchy, and might be a good one. It will, however, get stuck in your head forever.
posted by routergirl at 8:13 PM on June 28, 2015
posted by routergirl at 8:13 PM on June 28, 2015
After a little more thought and some poking around, "Todavia cantamos" and "Gracias a la vida". I was also going to suggest "Somos el barco", but upon listening again, most of it is in English -- at least the Pete Seeger and PPM versions.
posted by worldswalker at 8:28 PM on June 28, 2015
posted by worldswalker at 8:28 PM on June 28, 2015
Most mariachi bands are easy enough to follow. They don't use big words that I recall. There are alternative Mariachi now, even all girl mariachi bands.
One of the real classic Latino singers would be Vicente Fernandez, who's still crooning. :)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vicente_Fern%C3%A1ndez
posted by kschang at 1:12 AM on June 29, 2015
One of the real classic Latino singers would be Vicente Fernandez, who's still crooning. :)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vicente_Fern%C3%A1ndez
posted by kschang at 1:12 AM on June 29, 2015
If you stick to the traditional Rancheras, you'll find probably hundreds of songs, all with a basic I-IV-V chord structure. In all likelihood, you're familiar with a couple of these already. A good place to begin would be "Cielito Lindo," "De Colores," or "Las Mananitas". Those are traditional songs, usually taught to kids. If you want more adult songs, some good artists to look for are Vicente Fernandez and Jose Alfredo Jimenez, each of whom have scores of songs with the same chord structure. For Fernandez, "La Ley Del Monte" and "Volver" are both very popular songs. For Jimenez, the big hits include songs like "El Rey" or "Camino de Guanajuato." There are literally dozens more songs for each of these guys, and dozens more artists who perform songs in the same vein and same structure, but those are good places to begin. Enjoy!
posted by Gilbert at 6:40 AM on June 29, 2015
posted by Gilbert at 6:40 AM on June 29, 2015
Checking back because I just thought of this, but learning Shakira's Spanish debut hit Estoy Aquí will make you a hit among your Latin American friends, who will sing along like there's no tomorrow.
And you will have gained practice in the 1st person singular of the pretérito indefinido.
posted by ipsative at 1:39 PM on July 6, 2015
And you will have gained practice in the 1st person singular of the pretérito indefinido.
posted by ipsative at 1:39 PM on July 6, 2015
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posted by sukeban at 3:32 PM on June 28, 2015