Galás is known for being a fiercely confrontational avant-garde performer and is noted for her wailing, four-octave vocal range. Galás was the daughter of Greek Orthodox parents and her singing was roundly discouraged, although her prowess as a classical pianist was nurtured; ultimately, her strict upbringing resulted in a reckless, drug-fueled youth prior to her entrance into the University of California's music and visual arts program. Galás made her performing debut in 1979 at France's Festival d'Avignon, which led to an invitation to assume the lead role in composer Vinko Globokar's politically charged opera Un Jour Comme un Autre. In subsequent solo performance art pieces like Wild Women with Steak Knives and Tragouthia Apo to Aima Exon Fonos, Galás further honed her unique, shattering vocal style, inspired by the Schrei ("shriek") opera of German expressionism (a form employing a system of four microphones and a series of echoes and delays).
She worked with many avant-garde composers including Phillip Glass, Terry Riley, John Zorn, Iannis Xenakis and Vinko Globokar. She made her performance debut at the Festival d'Avignon in France as the lead in Globokar's opera, Un Jour Comme Une Autre which deals with the death by torture of a Turkish woman. The work was sponsored by Amnesty International. She also contributed her voice to Francis Ford Coppola's film Dracula (1992) and appeared on the film's soundtrack.
Her work first garnered widespread attention with the controversial 1991 live recording of the album "Plague Mass" in the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine in New York. With it, Galás attacked the Catholic Church for its indifference to AIDS using biblical texts. In the words of Terrorizor Magazine, "The church was made to burn with sound, not fire." Plague Mass was a live rendition of excerpts from her same-titled trilogy which began as a response/homage/indictment to the multitudinous effects of AIDS upon the silent class - of which her brother was a member. During the period of these recordings, Galás had "We are all HIV+" tattooed upon her knuckles; an artistic expression of disillusionment and disgust with the ignorance and apathy surrounding the AIDS epidemic. Her brother, who died during the trilogy's final production, reportedly appreciated her efforts.
Susan McClary (1991) writes that Galás, "heralds a new moment in the history of musical representation," after describing her thus: "Galás emerged within the post-modern performance art scene in the seventies...protesting...the treatment of victims of the junta, attitudes towards victims of AIDS...Her pieces are constructed from the ululation of traditional Mediterranean keening...whispers, shrieks, and moans."
In 1994, Galás collaborated with Led Zeppelin bass guitarist John Paul Jones. The resultant record, "The Sporting Life", while containing much of Galás's trademark vocal gymnastics, is probably the closest she has ever come to rock music.
Galás also performs as a blues artist interpreting a wide range of songs into her unique piano and vocal styles. This aspect of her work is perhaps best represented by her 1992 album, "The Singer" where she covered the likes of Willie Dixon, Roy Acuff, and Screamin' Jay Hawkins while accompaning herself on piano. For that album, she also recorded several traditional songs as well as the rarely heard Desmond Carter-penned version of Gloomy Sunday. Many of her selections both within and outside of blues repertoire have sometimes been categorized as 'homicidal love songs'. She also focuses on the death penalty. One program of songs, "Frenzy", has been dedicated to Aileen Wuornos and features the work of Phil Ochs and Hank Williams Sr.
Her latest song cycle is an interpretation of songs by Edith Piaf and Marlene Dietrich.
Official Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/songsofexile
Sono L'Antichristo
Diamanda Galás Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sono la salva
Sono la carne macellata.
Sono la sanzione
Sono il sacrificio
Sono il Ragno Nero.
Sono la Santa Sede
Sono le feci dal Signore.
Sono lo segno
Sono la petilenza
Sono il Antichristo.
(I am the token
I am the salvation
I am the hutcher's meat.
I am the sanction
I am the sacrifice
I am the Black Spicier.
I am the scourge
I am the Holy Fool
I am the shit of God.
I am the sign
I am the plague
I am the Antichrist.)
Dios, por qué me has condenado?
maupes apaxves!
lamma lamrna sabacthani!
Esta es mi sangre.
Este es mi cuerpo.
Estas son mis venas.
Estoy ciego.
Dios, no puedo ver!
maupes apaxves!
lamma sabacthani!
Aves de la muerte,
Quítenme la vida!
The lyrics to Diamanda Galás's song Sono L'Antichristo are intense and filled with strong imagery. The song is a parade of powerful statements about identity and the singer's place in the world. The lines "Sono la prova/ Sono la salva/ Sono la carne macellata" (I am the token/ I am the salvation/ I am the hutcher's meat) suggest a profound feeling of alienation and a sense of being used and discarded by society. The singer is both the proof of humanity's existence and salvation but also a piece of meat to be used and discarded.
The following lines "Sono la sanzione/ Sono il sacrificio/ Sono il Ragno Nero" (I am the sanction/ I am the sacrifice/ I am the Black Spicier) suggest that the singer is both the punishment and the offering. The "Black Spicier" is a reference to an ancient Roman custom where a black spider was thrown into a fire as a representation of evil. This suggests that the singer sees themselves as embodying evil and being willing to offer themselves up as a sacrifice.
The lines "Sono lo segno/ Sono la petilenza/ Sono il Antichristo" (I am the sign/ I am the plague/ I am the Antichrist) takes it to another level altogether. The singer is now claiming to be an embodiment of the Antichrist, the ultimate figure of evil in Christian mythology. The like "Dios, por qué me has condenado?" (God, why have you condemned me?) suggest that the singer may be struggling with their identity and place in the world, but ultimately they accept who they are and embrace their role as the Antichrist.
Line by Line Meaning
Sono la prova
I am the token
Sono la salva
I am the salvation
Sono la carne macellata.
I am the hutcher's meat.
Sono la sanzione
I am the sanction
Sono il sacrificio
I am the sacrifice
Sono il Ragno Nero.
I am the Black Spicier.
Sono il scherno
I am the scourge
Sono la Santa Sede
I am the Holy Fool
Sono le feci dal Signore.
I am the shit of God.
Sono lo segno
I am the sign
Sono la petilenza
I am the plague
Sono il Antichristo.
I am the Antichrist.
Dios, por qué me has condenado?
God, why have you condemned me?
maupes apaxves!
I do not understand!
lamma lamrna sabacthani!
Why have you forsaken me?
Esta es mi sangre.
This is my blood.
Este es mi cuerpo.
This is my body.
Estas son mis venas.
These are my veins.
Estoy ciego.
I am blind.
Dios, no puedo ver!
God, I cannot see!
lamma sabacthani!
Why have you forsaken me?
Aves de la muerte,
Birds of death,
Quítenme la vida!
Take my life!
Contributed by Callie A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Chris Manolo
Genial, única, apocalíptica, nunca igualada. Genius yet scary.
Morgana LeFey
The most authentic artist woman I know. I love her without limits. Genius and greek goddess. Wow!
J.M. S.
@KremIsis half Canadian and half Greek ;)
KremIsis
she is, you know, born in San Diego. Just saying.
Diego Anderson Sebold
MARAVILHOSO!
Wren & Rhodes
The most emotive piece of music i ever heard
Anastasia
Mi terrorizza e allo stesso tempo mi affascina... fantastica
Tjuv Fiskarn
Saw her at Roskilde festivale 1987. pure MAGIC! Loved her ever since. Husband hate this music, but who cares,,,? ;)
Stella Adams
♥ I love you Diamanda!!! \m/
stefano stefano
un uso della voce unico...incredibile...sperimentazione pura