Caterina Valente (born January 14, 1931 in Paris) is an Italian-born singer… Read Full Bio ↴Caterina Valente (born January 14, 1931 in Paris) is an Italian-born singer, dancer, and actress. She comes from an Italian artist family; her father Giuseppe was a well-known accordion player, her mother, Maria Valente, a musical clown. She had three siblings, of whom Silvio Francesco was also active in show business.

In 1952 she married juggler Erik van Aro (Gerd Eric Horst Scholz). He recognized her talent and accompanied her in her initial years of worldwide success, although they later divorced. In 1953, she made her first recordings with Kurt Edelhagen. Soon afterwards she achieved great success with songs like "Malagueña", "The Breeze and I", and "Dreh dich nicht um" with the Werner Müller orchestra. In 1955 she was featured on the "Colgate Comedy Hour" with Gordon MacRae. Between 1966 and 1972 she was a frequent guest on the Dean Martin Show. In 1972, she married the British pianist Roy Budd; they had a son, Alexander, but they divorced in 1979.

In Germany she was a major performer of Schlager music. There she recorded Cole Porter's "I love Paris" i.e. "Ganz Paris träumt von der Liebe", which sold more than 500,000 copies in (1954.) Like in other countries where she was popular, some in Germany mistakenly consider her a German singer.

Over the years, she has recorded or performed with many international stars, including Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Ella Fitzgerald, Woody Herman, the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, Buddy Rich, Sy Oliver, Claus Ogerman, and Chet Baker.

In 2001, she released a new album Girltalk with harpist Catherine Michel. She is also the mother of singer Eric van Aro, Jr.

Melancolia
Caterina Valente Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Saudade
Saudade
Saudade

Vein melancolia chora seus gins
Ne sis mios gia solidão
Vein melancolia vein veru bei
Che você faço coração

Está alegria distância
Deve si unir ao lamento
De si momento tristeza
Saudade
Saudade

Vein melancolia chora seus gins
Ne sis mios gia solidão
Vein melancolia vein veru bei
Che você faço coração
Está alegria distância
Deve si unir ao lamento
De si momento tristeza
Saudade
Saudade

Está alegria distância
Deve si unir ao lamento
De si mo momento tristeza
Saudade
Saudade
Saudade
Saudade
Saudade
Saudade
Saudade
Saudade
Saudade
Saudade
[Sfumando]
Saudade
Saudade

Oh oh Saudade
Saudade...

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Caterina Valente's song "Melancolia" are in Portuguese and describe the feeling of longing, or "saudade," and the melancholic state it brings upon a person. The opening word "saudade" is repeated throughout the song as a way of emphasizing this theme. The singer describes how this feeling brings tears and sadness, and how the loneliness and distance that come with it should be joined with the lament.

The lyrics also touch on the singer's heartache, with the lines "Vein melancolia vein veru bei, Che você faço coração," which roughly translates to "Melancholy comes very close, What do you make of my heart?" The singer seems to be asking what they can do about the pain they are experiencing, while acknowledging that the distance between them and the cause of their saudade only adds to the sadness.

Overall, the lyrics of the song do an excellent job of conveying the complex emotions of saudade and the melancholy it brings. The use of repetition and emotive language allows the listener to empathize with the singer's pain and feel a connection to the theme of the song.

Line by Line Meaning

Saudade
The feeling of longing or nostalgia

Vein melancolia chora seus gins
My melancholy heart cries for its sorrows

Ne sis mios gia solidão
In my loneliness, I seek for companionship

Vein melancolia vein veru bei
My melancholy heart is truly sad

Che você faço coração
You make my heart ache

Está alegria distância
This joy is far away

Deve si unir ao lamento
It must be united with sadness

De si momento tristeza
Of this moment of sadness

Saudade
The feeling of longing or nostalgia

Vein melancolia chora seus gins
My melancholy heart cries for its sorrows

Ne sis mios gia solidão
In my loneliness, I seek for companionship