The low voice of the partido-alto singer Clementina de Jesus was only disco… Read Full Bio ↴The low voice of the partido-alto singer Clementina de Jesus was only discovered outside her community when she was 62. Immediately acknowledged both nationally and internationally as a highly expressive singer, she still had time to participate in historic events like the Rosa de Ouro, Zicartola (at the Teatro Opinião), Noitada de Samba, and others. She has recorded and performed with artists of stature such as Nelson Cavaquinho, Turíbio Santos, Pixinguinha, João da Baiana, and many others. As a child, Clementina de Jesus listened to folkloric and religious music (jongo, partido-alto, ladainhas, etc.) sung by her mother. She remained an amateur for decades, participating in Carnaval blocos, and singing in church choirs and rodas de samba (samba get-togethers). After 20 years working as a maid, her career was launched in December 1964 by the classical guitarist Turíbio Santos at Kleber Santos' Teatro Jovem (Rio de Janeiro) in the show O Menestrel. A few months later, in 1965 when she was 63, Clementina de Jesus had her definitive public consecration after being featured in Hermínio Bello de Carvalho's musical Rosa de Ouro at the same theater. Performances, which also featured Araci Cortes, Paulinho da Viola, and Elton Medeiros, followed in Bahia and São Paulo. De Carvalho's first album was this live show, released in the same year as Rosa de Ouro, Vol. 1, followed by a second volume released two years later. On this album, Clementina de Jesus presented the virtually unknown genre of jongo with songs like "Benguelê" (Pixinguinha/Gastão Vianna) and "Boi Não Berra." She also performed sambas like "Sementes do Samba" (Hélio Cabral) and "Nasceste de Uma Semente" (José Ramos), and the lundu "Bate Canela." In August 1983 she was paid tribute by the Brazilian state government at Rio de Janeiro's Teatro Municipal. The gala event attracted many artists like Elizeth Cardoso, Beth Carvalho, Orquestra Sinfônica Brasileira, João Nogueira, Paulinho da Viola, Gilberto Gil, Dona Zica, Dona Neuma, accompanied by the bateria (percussion section) of the Mangueira samba school. In 1985 de Jesus was decorated by the French government. Also known as Quelé (a corrupted use of her name) and as Rainha Ginga (Ginga Queen), she had her majesty truly expressed through this award.

In 1966 she represented Brazil together with Paulinho da Viola, Elizeth Cardoso, and Elton Medeiros at the Black Arts Festival in Dakar and Senegal. In the same year she performed at the Cecília Meireles Hall (in Rio) José Maria Neves' Missa de São Benedito, for tamba (Hélcio Milito) and voice. Also in that year she recorded her first individual LP, Clementina de Jesus. Together with Pixinguinha and João da Baiana, she participated in the album Gente da Antiga, produced by Odeon in 1968. In the same year she also appeared on the LP Mudando de Conversa, a recording of the show of the same name, along with Ciro Monteiro and Nora Ney, produced at the Teatro Santa Rosa (Rio de Janeiro). In 1970 she had another LP released, Clementina Cadê Você?, edited by the Museu da Imagem e do Som (Sound and Image Museum, Rio de Janeiro), with corimás, jongos, modas, and sambas. In 1973 she had thrombosis, but five months later recorded the LP Marinheiro Só, which had songs by Paulinho da Viola and adaptations of popular songs like "Fui Pedir Às Almas Santas," "Atraca, Atraca," and "Incelença." In that year she also participated in Milton Nascimento's Milagre dos Peixes, recording "Escravo de Jó" (Milton Nascimento/Fernando Brant). In 1982 she was paid tribute by the Lins Imperial samba school, with the play Clementina -- Uma Rainha Negra. In the next year she recorded with Doca and Geraldo Filme the LP Canto dos Escravos, in which she interpreted slave songs from Minas Gerais collected by the researcher Aires da Mata Machado Filho. In 1985 she recorded Clementina e Convidados, which had her composition "Laçador" (co-written by Catoni). The album also had as guests Clara Nunes, João Bosco, Roberto Ribeiro, Martinho da Vila, Ivone Lara, Adoniram Barbosa, and Carlinhos Vergueiro. De Jesus also performed live with Nelson Cavaquinho in São Paulo, upstate Rio de Janeiro, and in Curitiba, Paraná. Her last live performance was in 1987 at the Teatro Carlos Gomes (Rio de Janeiro).

Sonho Meu
Clementina De Jesus Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Sonho meu, sonho meu
Vai buscar que mora longe
Sonho meu
Vai mostrar esta saudade
Sonho meu
Com a sua liberdade
Sonho meu

No meu céu a estrela guia se perdeu
A madrugada fria só me traz melancolia

Sonho meu
Sinto o canto da noite
Na boca do vento
Fazer a dança das flores
No meu pensamento
Traz a pureza de um samba
Sentido, marcado de mágoas de amor
Um samba que mexe o corpo da gente

E o vento vadio embalando a flor
Sonho meu

Overall Meaning

The song "Sonho Meu" by Clementina De Jesus is a beautiful and melancholic portrayal of the longing for a person who is far away. The lyrics express the sorrow of not being able to be with the person one loves and the hope that the dream of being reunited will come true. The imagery is vivid and poetic; for example, in the line "No meu céu a estrela guia se perdeu" (In my sky the guiding star is lost), the lost star represents the lost love that the singer is hoping to find again. The song is a mix of joy and sadness, hope and despair, and it captures the full range of human emotion.

The second stanza of the song is particularly poignant, as it describes the singer's loneliness and the comfort she finds in the beauty of nature. The wind carries the song of the night, and the flowers dance in her thoughts. The samba that she sings is imbued with the sadness of lost love, but it also has the power to move the body and the soul. The last line of the song, "Sonho meu," is repeated four times, emphasizing the importance of the dream that the singer holds onto.

Overall, "Sonho Meu" is a classic Brazilian song that showcases the power of music to convey deep emotions and to touch people's hearts. The lyrics are simple and yet profound, and the melody is haunting and unforgettable.

Line by Line Meaning

Sonho meu, sonho meu
My dream, my dream

Vai buscar que mora longe
Go fetch what lives far away

Sonho meu
My dream

Vai mostrar esta saudade
Go show this longing

Sonho meu
My dream

Com a sua liberdade
With your freedom

Sonho meu
My dream

No meu céu a estrela guia se perdeu
In my sky, the guiding star got lost

A madrugada fria só me traz melancolia
The cold dawn only brings me melancholy

Sonho meu
My dream

Sinto o canto da noite
I feel the song of the night