Teče, voda, Teče

Discussion in 'Movies, Music & Media' started by lilinka, Apr 10, 2008.

  1. lilinka

    lilinka Member

    Hi Everyone,

    I was wondering if anyone knows the words to the Moravian folk song

    Teče, voda, Teče

    I believe it was a favorite of President Masaryk...

    I am looking for the Czech words, and also the English translation.

    Thanks! [/b]
     
  2. eso

    eso Well-Known Member

    There is more variants of this song.

    One of them is:

    Teče voda, teče od potoka k řece,
    namluvil si mladý hulán modrooké děvče.

    Ach, matko, matko má, nevím si s tím rady,
    naučil se za mnou chodit jeden hulán mladý.

    Ach, dcero, dcero má, zanechej hulána,
    huláni do pole odjedou, ty zůstaneš sama.

    ---

    Water flows from stream to river,
    young uhlan paired off with blue eye girl.

    Oh, my mother, I don't know what to do,
    one young uhlan started to meet me.

    Oh, my daughter, leave the uhlan,
    uhlans will leave to battlefield and you will stay alone.

    /uhlan = any of a body of Prussian light cavalry originally modeled on Tatar lancers/


    ---

    Or here for example, different version performed by The Milwaukee Children's Choir:

    http://youtube.com/watch?v=-d9Lg69P7w8
     
  3. lilinka

    lilinka Member

    Thanks eso, very kind of you.

    The variant I am looking for is the one on YouTube, as I recognise the melody.
    Do you by any chance know the words for this one? My Czech is not so good.

    It sounds like it something like:

    Tece voda tece
    bez Velinsky krajir
    komo (??) nechal (??) [komo z mna zanechal ??]
    starodavny frajir

    (What is a frajir--like lover or boyfriend?)

    Cheers
     
  4. eso

    eso Well-Known Member

    Ok, this one is in old Moravian dialect.

    And more versions exist too. I found this one:

    1. Teče voda teče přes velický majír,
    něhal si ma něhal starodávný frajír.

    Water flows through Velecky farm,
    You abandoned me, my old lover.

    2. Něhal si ma něhal dobre ty víš komu,
    co ty reči nosil do našeho domu.

    You abandoned me, you know well to whom,
    who brings that rumour to our house.

    3. Vráť sa milý vráť sa z tej kysuckej vody
    Odnesls mi klúčik od mojej slobody.

    Return to me, my love, from Kysuce water,
    You took away key to my freedom.


    And now - even in original isn't clear what exactly happened.
    It's clear that boy abandoned girl and she is sad (she maybe is sitting by the stream).
    But who brought these rumors to girl's house? Was it another girl (probably from Kysuce village), who lured away our girl's boy?
     
  5. Alexx

    Alexx Well-Known Member

    It is rather slovak, dialect used in Kysuce region (northwest part of Slovakia), I guess.
     
  6. wer

    wer Well-Known Member

    No, this is definitely not Slovak (see the word “přes”). But there exist even Slovak variants of this song.

    The song is from the region of Horňácko, that’s a Moravian region along the river of Velička (“Velický” is adjective derived from this river’s name).

    It’s quite clear, but you were mislead by your wrong interpretation of the word “řeči”. It doesn’t mean “rumors” but “courting”. The song is about a girl who is unhappy because her parents arranged her marriage with another boy.

    And “abondon” seems to be to strong word, “leave” is better. The usual folklore motif for a boy leaving a girl is the conscription.
     
  7. meluzina

    meluzina Well-Known Member

  8. lilinka

    lilinka Member

    Thanks to all for your input.

    I'm pretty sure when I first heard it the word was "krajir" rather than "majir". I remember being told it was an old word for "countryside"...

    And the 2nd line, whatever is was, meant "for whom have you left me?" ...starodavny frajir (Not sure what that would be in Czech)

    I guess there are many variations!

    I found the following version also...(Sorry for my ignorance, but is this Slovak?)


    Teče voda teče cez Velecký majir
    prečo si ma nehal starodávný frajír

    Nehal som t'a nehal šak dobre vieš komu
    čo ty reči nosi do našeho domu

    Do našeho domu pod naše okénka
    čo som sa naplakal sivá holubienka

    Vrat' sa milý vrat' sa od kysuckej vody
    odniesol's mi klúčik od mojej slobody

    Skúr sa Stará Turá v kolečko obráti
    sloboděnka moja ta sa nenavráti

    Už sa Stará Turá v kolečko obracá
    sloboděnka moja ta sa nenavracá
     
  9. Alexx

    Alexx Well-Known Member

    OK, that one definately is slovak. Not very "standard", some would be a little different in modern slovak:

    nehal -> nechal
    Skúr -> Skôr
    našeho -> nášho

    But it may be some dialect again, I am really not an expert in slovak dialects.
     
  10. Sova

    Sova Well-Known Member

    Hmm... the only thing I remember about Kysuce was all the jokes I heard in Žilina about people from Kysuce (very similar to "Aggie" jokes in Texas).
     
  11. lilinka

    lilinka Member

    Is it true what I heard, that this was a favorite song of President Masaryk? (Or Jan Masaryk?)

    What would be the right way to say line 2 as I remember it:

    For whom have you left [or did you leave] me...starodavny frajir?


    Sorry if it wasn't right to ask here, I'm new...I also asked under the "translation" category.

    Thanks!
     
  12. wer

    wer Well-Known Member

    No, it’s definitely shifted in the direction to Slovak, but still it is not Slovak. There are still some exclusively Czech features. It is in a Moravian dialect, but the most striking Bohemisms/Moravisms are adjusted to a Slovak dialect (Slovak rather in the geographical sense).

    Japonec sa motá okolo salaša, ide bača a pýta sa ho:
    „Počúvaj, čo sa tu moceš, ako sa voláš?“
    „Ja som Kim Tsu Tchan,“ hovorí Japonec.
    „Ty si debil, a nie Kysučan! Ja Kysučanov veľmo dobre poznám!“

    It is said so, but who knows? There is a lot of urban legends about Masaryk. This respects Masaryks origin at least.

    For/to whom have you left me, my old love(r).

    Or maybe, there could be even “give up” instead of “leave”.
     
  13. wer

    wer Well-Known Member

    Oh, sorry, now I see you want to translate it from English to Czech.

    It more or less corresponds to the lines 2 and 3 in eso’s version:

    Teče voda teče přes velický majír,
    The water flows through the farmplace/manor on the river of Velička

    něhal si ma něhal starodávný frajír.
    You have left me (, you have), my old lover

    Něhal si ma něhal dobre ty víš komu,
    You did give me up, you know well to whome,

    co ty reči nosil do našeho domu.
    to that one who brought the speeches to our home.
     
  14. lilinka

    lilinka Member

    Thanks very much to all for your replies. That's a sad song!

    I was still wondering how to say in Czech:

    "For whom did you leave me?"

    [I don't want to say it to anyone! I do have a memory of another 1st verse version that was translated to me this way...]

    Would that start with "Komu..."?
     
  15. lilinka

    lilinka Member

    Japonec sa motá okolo salaša, ide bača a pýta sa ho:
    „Počúvaj, čo sa tu moceš, ako sa voláš?“
    „Ja som Kim Tsu Tchan,“ hovorí Japonec.
    „Ty si debil, a nie Kysučan! Ja Kysučanov veľmo dobre poznám!“



    wer, could you share the joke in English? Thanks! Can't figure it out

    :?
     
  16. Alexx

    Alexx Well-Known Member

    Here you can see, how czech and slovak are similar, with all those czech dialect along slovak borders, and slovak dialects in the other side of the border, even I am not sure if it still czech or already slovak :)

    Japanese guy is tottering around the sheepfold, shepherd is going around and asks:
    "Hey, you, tottering guy, what's your name?"
    "I am Kim Tsu Tchan," says Japanese guy.
    "You are moron, not Kysučan! I know Kysučan's very well!"

    :idea: Kysučan = inhabitant of Kysuce region
     
  17. Petr_B

    Petr_B Well-Known Member

    According to quick Google query it seems the song "Teče voda teče" is supposed to be one of the two favorite songs of T.G. Masaryk, together with "Ach synku, synku". But I've learned that just now. Till today, I heard only about him liking "Ach synku ..."

    By the way, that joke has a serious flaw: "Kim Tsu Chan" is NOT a Japanese name at all. Kim is Korean, not sure about surname, could be either Chinese or Korean or some other country/language. :p
     
  18. Sova

    Sova Well-Known Member

    :lol:
     
  19. magan

    magan Well-Known Member

  20. Yvan

    Yvan Well-Known Member

    This is a fantastic version :

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAGX2naotME

    PCCB Boys choir

    LES PETITS CHANTEURS A LA CROIX DE BOIS (The Little Singers of Paris)
    http://pccb.fr/

    Folk song is from the moravian-slovakian borderland, from the small town Velká nad Veličkou:

    1. Teče voda, teče cez velecký majír,
    /: prečo si ma nehal, starodávný frajír. :/

    2. Nechal som ťa, nechal, šak dobre vieš komu,
    /: čo ty réči nosí do našeho domu. :/

    3. Do našeho domu, pod naše okénka,
    /: čo som sa naplakal, sivá holubienka. :/

    English translation :

    1. Water stream flows through Velecky mill...
    Why have you forsaken me, my old flame?

    2. I let you over to him, whom you know well -
    the one who wears the rumors in our house.

    3. In our house, under our windows too,
    and I cried so much, my little dove gray...
     

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