Branduardi was born in Cuggiono, a small town in the province of Milan, but early moved with the family to Genoa. He was educated as a classical violinist in the local school of music. At the age of 18 he composed the music for the Confessioni di un malandrino (Hooligan's Confession) by Sergei Yesenin, still one of his finest songs.
He is married to Luisa Zappa, who wrote the lyrics for many of his songs. Luisa and Angelo have two daughters, Sarah and Maddalena, both musicians.
Angelo's first album was never released, and resulted from a co-operation with Maurizio Fabrizio, composer and gifted performer. The first released album, Angelo Branduardi '74 was arranged with Paul Buckmaster.
La Luna ("The Moon"), including "Hooligan's Confessions" and the fine, delicate song giving the LP its name, is a prelude to the success of the following works. Alla Fiera dell'Est (English edition: Highdown Fair, 1976) was Angelo's first vastly popular album, followed by La Pulce d'Acqua ("The Water Flea", 1978) and Cogli la Prima Mela (English edition, Life is the Only Teacher, 1979). In those albums Branduardi exploits themes and patterns from ancient music, mostly Renaissance and early Baroque. The very song Alla Fiera dell'Est ("At the Eastern Fair") is still popular among Italians of every age, who test themselves to send in memory all the fable-like, repetition-based lyrics.
Lyrics have a broad spectrum of inspiration: a Danse macabre, the theme of Satan's mistress, Chinese, Native American and Druidic tradition, the apocryphal Gospels. Concertation owes much to the talents of Maurizio Fabrizio, and exploits unusual instruments for pop music: dulcimer, Pan flute, lute, clarinet, among others - mixed with more standard guitar-bass-and-drums.
Subsequent albums are mark by an increasing desire towards experimentation and differentiation. Branduardi (1981) has a more intimate tone, Cercando l'oro ("Searching for Gold", 1983), has very sophisticated and delicate arrangements (starts with a String Quartet), Branduardi canta Yeats (1985) is a tribute to William Butler Yeats. Pane e rose ("Bread and Roses", 1988) is a still inspired, but increasingly dark picture of life and death. Though similar in style to the early ones, 1980s Branduardi's songs seemed to have lost the strong, rythmical energy that backed masterpieces like "Ballo in Fa Diesis Minore" or "Cogli la prima mela". Il Ladro (1991) marks a very delicate point of Branduardi's life, edging on depression, echoed in a dark, almost cemeterial, style of singing.
The album Si puó fare 1993 brings back Branduardi to normality, but the artist is now struggling to evade the minstrel character which is now too strict for him. In 1994 he publishes Domenica e Lunedì ("Sunday and Monday"), dedicated to Franco Fortini.
In 1996, during the celebrations for the restoration of the Duomo of Spilimbergo after the catastrophic 1976 earthquake, he records the extraordinary album Futuro Antico, in which he poses as an early Baroque musician, reusing, mixing, wording pre-existing material along with his own. This experience, together with musicians and musicologists, will continue with Futuro Antico II and Futuro Antico III.
In 1998 Branduardi teams with Italian stand-up comedian and writer Giorgio Faletti for Il Dito e la Luna ("The Finger and the Moon").
He reworks earlier musical themes with writings of and about St. Francis to produce L'Infinitamente Piccolo; he writes a musical on the same topic (Francesco).
In 2003 a new album, Altro ed Altrove ("Other and Elsewhere"), in a time period marked by a rise of racism and intolerance, brings together (mainly) love stories from several cultures.
Discography
* 1974 Angelo Branduardi
* 1975 la luna(France: Confession d'un malandrin, 1981)
* 1976 Alla fiera dell'est (France: A la foire de l'est - UK: Highdown Fair, 1978)
* 1977 La pulce d'acqua (UK: Fables and fantasies, 1980)
* 1979 Cogli la prima mela (France: Le demoiselle)
* 1980 Gulliver,la luna e altri disegni
* 1980 Concerto
* 1981 Branduardi '81
* 1983 Cercando l'oro (France: Tout l'or du monde)
* 1983 State buoni se potete (Soundtrack for the movie with the same name)
* 1986 Branduardi canta Yeats
* 1988 Pane e rose (France: Du pain et des roses)
* 1990 Il ladro
* 1992 Musiche da film
* 1992 Si può fare France: Ça se fait)
* 1994 Domenica e lunedì (France: La menace, 1995)
* 1996 Camminando camminando (Live collection)
* 1996 Futuro antico I
* 1998 Il dito e la luna (Lyrics by Giorgio Faletti)
* 1998 Studio Collection (Collection)
* 1999 Futuro antico II
* 2000 L'infinitamente piccolo
* 2002 Futuro antico III
* 2003 Altro ed altrove
* 2005 The Platinum collection (Collection)
==LINKS==
*http://www.angelobranduardi.it/
*[http://www.branduardi.info Branduardi.info
*[http://guide.supereva.com/angelo_branduardi/ Guida di Angelo Branduardi
*[http://www.angelo-branduardi.com ABcom - Il sito internazionale di Angelo Branduardi
*[http://www.europamici.com EuropAMICI di Angelo Branduardi
*[http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/branduardi-ans/ Branduardi-ans -Mailing List Ufficiale- Gruppo di discussione su Angelo Branduardi e la sua musica.
Sous le tilleul
Angelo Branduardi Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
vous trouvez bien le repaire
vous qui passez regardez les herbes
écrasées par nos jeux et par nos pas
devant le bois chantait le rossignol
et tu coupais des fleurs pour faire ta couche.
Tu rirais si tu passais par là
Avec même rire sur la bouche.
où se mêlaient les fleurs et l'herbe,
dans les roses vous pouvez repérer
là où je posais ma tête.
On vous a surprise dans mes bras
ce n'était pas pour nous grande honte
c'est à toi que je voulais donner
pour qu'on puisse t'appeler mon nom d'homme.
Sous le tilleul, là sur la lande,
le lys a jeté ses racines
si vous venez vous verrez enlacées
toutes les fleurs mêlées aux racines.
Un été vous vous étés en volée
vers une autre contrée, une autre nature
c'était vrai, j'aimais un épervier
dans votre cœur caché, tant pis pour moi.
Toi qui va à la chasse aux nuages
tu cours après le vent des mirages
mais la beauté est un oiseau sauvage
elle se meurt si on l'attache.
Ainsi fait dans sa course le monde
Le vent, la mer, les nuages dans leur ronde
The song "Sous le tilleul" by Angelo Branduardi, speaks of a place under a linden tree where lovers used to meet. The first stanza paints a picture of the location where the couple used to spend their time, surrounded by crushed grass and flowers, with the sound of a nightingale emanating from the nearby woods. The second stanza reveals that the couple was caught in each other's arms amongst the roses, with the singer confessing that she wanted to give her lover her name. The final stanza describes how the lily has since grown amongst all the mixed flowers and roots under the linden tree, and ends on a melancholy note of the singer knowing that her love was unrequited.
The song's lyrics capture the fleetingness of time and love, with the imagery of flowers and nature reflecting this theme of impermanence. There is a sense of nostalgia throughout the song as the singer reminisces about their past love, while simultaneously expressing sadness and acceptance of their current reality.
Line by Line Meaning
Sous le tilleul, là sur la lande,
Under the lime tree, there on the heath,
vous trouvez bien le repaire
You'll find a resting place,
vous qui passez regardez les herbes
You who pass by, look at the grass
écrasées par nos jeux et par nos pas
Crushed by our games and our steps
devant le bois chantait le rossignol
Before the woods, the nightingale sang
et tu coupais des fleurs pour faire ta couche.
And you cut flowers to make your bed
Tu rirais si tu passais par là
You would laugh if you passed by there
Avec meme rire sur la bouche.
With the same laughter on your lips.
Sous le tilleul, là sur la lande,
Under the lime tree, there on the heath,
où se mêlaient les fleurs et l'herbe,
Where flowers and grass were intertwined,
dans les roses vous pouvez repérer
In the roses, you can locate
là où je posais ma tête.
Where I rested my head.
On vous a surprise dans mes bras
You were caught in my arms,
ce n'était pas pour nous grande honte
There was no great shame for us,
c'est à toi que je voulais donner
It's you I wanted to give
pour qu'on puisse t'appeler mon nom d'homme.
So that we could call you by my name of man.
Sous le tilleul, là sur la lande,
Under the lime tree, there on the heath,
le lys a jeté ses racines
The lily has thrown down its roots
si vous venez vous verrez enlacées
If you come, you'll see intertwined
toutes les fleurs mêlées aux racines.
All the flowers mixed with the roots.
Un été vous vous étés en volée
One summer, you flew away
vers une autre contrée, une autre nature
Toward another land, another nature
c'était vrai, j'aimais un épervier
It was true, I loved a hawk
dans votre cœur caché, tant pis pour moi.
Hidden in your heart, too bad for me.
Toi qui va à la chasse aux nuages
You who go hunting for clouds
tu cours après le vent des mirages
You chase after the wind of illusions
mais la beauté est un oiseau sauvage
But beauty is a wild bird
elle se meurt si on l'attache.
It dies if you tie it up.
Ainsi fait dans sa course le monde
Thus the world runs its course
Le vent, la mer, les nuages dans leur ronde
Wind, sea, clouds in their dance
Contributed by Addison N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.