Alceu Valenca was born in countryside Pernambuco, Northeast Brazil. He is considered the most successful artist in achieving an aesthetic balance between traditional northeastern Brazilian music and a broad range of electronic sounds and effects from pop music. One can find traces of maracatu, coco and "repentes de viola" (improvising fast-paced Brazilian folk music) in most of his songs. Alceu was able to utilize the electric guitar the electric bass, and lately even a synthesizer was added to his broad scope of musical instruments.
Because of that, Alceu was able to recreate Northeastern traditional music, like baiao, coco, toada, maracatu, frevo, caboclinhos, embolada and repentes: all sung with a sometimes rock sometimes alternative sounding music background. His music and his themes are intangible, universal and unlimited. However, his aesthetic basis is genuinely Brazilian Northeastern music.
O Tempo E O Vento
Alceu Valença Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Bateu asas e voou
Já estou contando as horas de rever o meu amor
Faz tato tempo
E hoje lembrei de você
Sem dor no peito
Relembrei o que passou
Nos molhamos no sereno
Como cobra no veneno
Misturamos nosso amor
Eu viajei por muito tempo morena
Como o rio viajou
Carregando essa tristeza morena
Navegando minha dor
Mas o tempo foi passando
Você nunca mais voltou
E hoje a volta das lembranças
Me feriu e magoou
Faz tanto tempo
E eu só escuto em meu caminho
Na voz do vento
Teu cantar no meu quintal
E sei que o tempo
Foge do ressentimento
Pois o amor no pensamento
É quese sobrenatural
The first two lines of the song, "Meu passarinho foi embora / Bateu asas e voou" (My little bird flew away / Flapped its wings and went away), reveal a sense of loss and longing for someone dear. The singer is counting the hours until they can be reunited with their loved one. The second stanza describes a past moment of passion and love shared between the singer and their partner. Despite the time that has passed, the memory of this moment is still sharp and vivid in the singer's mind.
The third stanza reveals that the singer has been on a journey, much like a river carries its content to new places. The river in this case is a metaphor for the singer's hurt and sadness. The phrase "como cobra no veneno" (like a snake bitten by venom) emphasizes the powerful nature of the emotions that the singer is feeling. The fourth stanza suggests that the singer is struggling to move on from the past and the loss of their love. The phrase "foge do ressentimento" (flee from resentment) suggests that the singer recognizes the importance of forgiveness and letting go in order to overcome their pain.
Line by Line Meaning
Meu passarinho foi embora
My little bird has flown away
Bateu asas e voou
He flapped his wings and flew away
Já estou contando as horas de rever o meu amor
I'm already counting the hours until I see my love again
Faz tanto tempo
It's been so long
E hoje lembrei de você
And today I remembered you
Sem dor no peito
Without pain in my heart
Relembrei o que passou
I remembered what happened
Na grama fina
On the fine grass
Nos molhamos no sereno
We got wet in the dew
Como cobra no veneno
Like a snake in venom
Misturamos nosso amor
We mixed our love
Eu viajei por muito tempo morena
I traveled for a long time, my love
Como o rio viajou
Like the river traveled
Carregando essa tristeza morena
Carrying this sadness, my love
Navegando minha dor
Sailing through my pain
Mas o tempo foi passando
But time passed by
Você nunca mais voltou
You never came back
E hoje a volta das lembranças
And today the memories return
Me feriu e magoou
They hurt and upset me
Eu só escuto em meu caminho
I only hear on my way
Na voz do vento
In the voice of the wind
Teu cantar no meu quintal
Your singing in my backyard
E sei que o tempo
And I know that time
Foge do ressentimento
Escapes from resentment
Pois o amor no pensamento
Because love in the mind
É quese sobrenatural
Is almost supernatural
Contributed by Josiah Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.