She met Abi Ofarim, a guitarist and dancer, in 1959 and subsequently married him. With her husband and without him she began to sing Hebrew and international folk songs.
In 1960 Esther got a small role in the film Exodus. In 1961 Esther won the Song Festival in Tel Aviv, where she sang "Saeni imcha bemachol" and "Neama". Two years later, Esther made the 2nd place at the Eurovision Song Contest with "T'en vas pas", representing Switzerland.
From then on, her duo with her then husband Abi Ofarim began take off. In 1966 they had their first hit in Germany with "Noch einen Tanz". Their greatest success in Germany was "Morning of my Life" in 1967, which was written by the Bee Gees. In 1968 the Ofarims had their international breakthrough with "Cinderella Rockefella", which hit the top of the charts in a number of countries including the UK. They played many live concerts in New York and London, and in 1969 they toured around the world.
As result of problems in both business, and personal relations, they divorced in 1970 [1] (in German).
Esther started her solo career with several albums and concerts. In 1984 she played in Joshua Sobol's piece "Ghetto", produced by Peter Zadek in Berlin (Germany). There she sang some songs, including "Frühling" and "Unter deinen weissen Sternen". The play was extremely successful, which was attributed in part to Esther's strong presence.
Since 1998, Esther Ofarim has been performing several concerts each year, especially in Israel and Germany. This includes annual concerts in the Hamburger Kammerspiele.
Ofarim's songs were prominently featured in the 2004 Israeli film, Walk on Water.
Pamparapam
Esther Ofarim Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Vendedor de bilibizes
Escarvador de las yindrizes
EI rabino Abuaf.
Pamparapam Maurice capelo.
Pamparapam Maurice baston
Pamparapam Maurice grevata
Franco sos de soy no vienes
Remata esta franquedád
Vistite una bragueta
Va y vendre caxcaval.
Pamparapam Maurice capelo.
Pamparapam Maurice baston
Pamparapam Maurice grevata
Telas de mi corazón
En la trombica ja hielida
La nehlica dezmazalada
No se que le demandava
EI rabino Abuaf.
Pamparapam Maurice capelo.
Pamparapam Maurice baston
Pamparapam Maurice grevata
Telas de mi corazón
The song "Pamparapam" by Esther Ofarim tells a story using a series of lyrical verses. The first verse introduces various characters - a seller of trinkets called havadizes, a buyer of the same named bilibizes, and a digger of roots called yindrizes - all seemingly regular folks in a busy marketplace. However, at the end of the verse, the tone changes as a rabbi named Abuaf is introduced, which adds an element of intrigue.
The chorus follows, featuring the repeated line "Pamparapam Maurice capelo" along with the endings "baston" and "grevata," which are likely parts of clothing or accessories. These lines seem to be more nonsensical and are perhaps meant to add a sense of playfulness to the song.
The final verse brings the story full circle, as the rabbi from the beginning is referenced again. However, this time, the lyrics reveal a bit more about him - his state of mind is unclear as he interacts with a distraught woman named nehlica. Again, there is a somewhat mysterious element to the story that is left unexplained, leaving room for interpretation.
Overall, the song seems to be a mix of colorful characters and whimsical language that doesn't necessarily have one central meaning. Instead, it feels more like a snapshot of a bustling market and the people who inhabit it.
Line by Line Meaning
Van y vienen havadizes
They come and go, these strange people
Vendedor de bilibizes
A seller of trinkets and novelties
Escarvador de las yindrizes
A digger of ruins and old things
EI rabino Abuaf.
That Rabbi Abuaf.
Pamparapam Maurice capelo.
Maurice's hat goes pamparapam.
Pamparapam Maurice baston
Maurice's cane goes pamparapam.
Pamparapam Maurice grevata
Maurice's tie goes pamparapam.
Telas de mi corazón
The fabrics of my heart
Franco sos de soy no vienes
You are Franco and I am not like you
Remata esta franquedád
End this frankness
Vestite una bragueta
Wear a trouser
Va y vendre caxcaval.
Go and sell your cheese.
En la trombica ja hielida
In the frozen trumpet
La nehlica dezmazalada
The broken necklace
No se que le demandava
I don't know what he was asking for.
EI rabino Abuaf.
That Rabbi Abuaf.
Pamparapam Maurice capelo.
Maurice's hat goes pamparapam.
Pamparapam Maurice baston
Maurice's cane goes pamparapam.
Pamparapam Maurice grevata
Maurice's tie goes pamparapam.
Telas de mi corazón
The fabrics of my heart
Contributed by Gavin R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Cory Abouaf
Thank you for posting. This song is about my great ancestor Rabinu Abouaf.
Ingeborg Helmer
Amazing all the languages she can sing
Tyrni Sanddorn
The language is called Ladino, and was spoken by the Jews who were expelled from Spain in 1492 and lived mainly in the Balkans, Greece and Turkey.
I found the German translation of the song:
Ein Gerücht jagt das andere:
Der Nüsseverkäufer
Gräbt immerzu nach Unanständigem;
Der Rabbiner Abuaf.
Pamparapam Maurice mit Haaren
Pamparapam Maurice mit Stock
Pamparapam Maurice mit Krawatte
Dinge meines Herzens
Obwohl du frei bist, kommst du nicht
Verkauf doch diese Freiheit!
Zieh dir Hosen an
Und gehe Käse verkaufen!
Nichts als Unannehmlichkeiten auf der Nase.
Die Verwirrung wird immer größer.
Ich wüsste gerne, was er denn nun will.
Der Rabbiner Abuaf.
unavitadellamusica
this is NOT the translation, but different words to make it suitable being sun in another language. The words are different (der Rabbiner Abouaf zum beispiel wird nicht inder Ladino Version genannt, Und so auch viel Anderes)
TrueToOneSoul@gmail.com
Hi there - many thanks for this Song´s translating and telling me something about "LADINO" ---- Hope you further enjoy this RARE Song .......
Thx for your positive voting .
unavitadellamusica
This seems to be a song in LADINO, but NOT"Ladinisch", which would be the language of people in South Tyrol (Sued Tirol),
Dejan Milosavljevic
Lepi Boban,pamparapam... 😂😂
TrueToOneSoul@gmail.com
... für DIEJENIGEN, die noch LADINO verstehen .........