She was born Orietta Galimberti on 1 June 1945 in Cavriago, in the Reggio Emilia region of Italy. Her father was an opera buff and he encouraged his daughter to sing from a very early age. She went on to study music and singing.
In 1961, she tied for first place with Iva Zanicchi in a song contest and was offered a recording contract with the Karim label. However, her first two 45s, Non ci sarò and Se non avessi più, both issued in 1962, failed to attract much attention.
The following year she switched to the Polydor label, where she would remain for the next 15 years.
Serenata surbana – originally a South American tune – became her debut release for the new label, though she achieved greater notoriety in 1964 with her version of Soeur Sourire’s Dominique. Its success even prompted a whole album of covers of the Belgian nun’s songs. (Imagine.)
It was a surprise, then, when Polydor opted to issue the poppier Tutto è finite fra noi as the follow up 45. The real gem of the release, however, was the B-side, Vai, Bobby, vai, a cover of Lesley Gore’s US hit Run, Bobby, run.
Perdendoti, a version of Brenda Lee’s Losing you, backed with Scorderai (Dusty Springfield’s Stay awhile), became Orietta’s final single of 1964.
A win at the Un disco per l’estate in 1965 with Tu sei quello gave the singer her first big hit, reaching number two in the charts that July. It also marked a change in style – big ballads were in, pop was consigned to B-sides. In this case, another Gore song, No more tears, retitled Se per caso, became the flip.
Similarly, the beat gem Le ragazze semplici lingered on the reverse of the ballad Voglio dirti grazie, her winning song from the Rose festival of 1965.
Orietta’s popularity afforded her a place at the prestigious San Remo contest in January 1966, where she performed Io ti darò di più, which made it to the final, though it didn’t win. However, she lost out in a chart war with Ornella Vanoni, who had also performed the song at the contest.
Polydor were keen to promote their new star abroad, and Orietta was whisked into the studio to
re-record some of her hits for the Spanish market. Her San Remo entry became Yo te darìa mas for her first Spanish-language release. (A similar push was made in France the following year, though without any great success.)
At home, further ballads, Quando la prima stella and Dove, non so (the theme from the film Dr Zhivago), consolidated her success. A second LP was also issued, which included her hits to date and some new material, notably Quando partirai, a version of Brit girl Lesley Duncan’s When my baby cries.
From then on, Orietta trod the well-worn path of song contest after song contest.
1967 brought success with Io, tu e le rose (at San Remo), Solo tu (at Un disco per l’estate), Ritornerà da me (Festivalbar) and Io potrei (Rose festival). In the UK, Cliff Richard enjoyed a top ten hit with his cover of her Solo tu, All my love.
If Orietta was disappointed to be eliminated before the final of the 1968 San Remo contest with Tu che non sorridi mai, she found consolation by finishing second at Un disco per l’estate with the catchy Non illuderti mai. The song went on to enjoy a 12-week run in the top ten of the charts during the summer that year.
She also enjoyed some success with Se m’innamoro di un ragazzo come te, from the Canzonissima, and even appeared as a nun in the film Zum, zum, zum.
The hits continued for the remainder of the decade with the dramatic Quando l’amore diventa poesia (from the 1969 San Remo festival), L’atalena (Un disco per l’estate) and Una bambola blu (Canzonissima).
The collective social conscience of the early 1970s saw Orietta tackle some tough issues through her songs, including feminism, prostitution and immigration.
In 1973, she moved into performing folk songs – enjoying success with the results – before taking several acting roles in films such as 1978’s Quando c’era lui... caro lei!
After a foray into performing songs for children, she returned to the San Remo stage in 1986 with Futuro.
In the 1990s, Orietta became a familiar face on Italian TV screens as a presenter, and she continues to issue the occasional album.
Historia De Un Amor
Orietta Berti Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
En el alma solo tengo soledad
Y si ya no puedo verte
Porque Dios me hizo quererte
Para hacerme sufrir más
Siempre fuiste la razón de mi existir
Adorarte para mí, fue religion
El calor que me brindaban
El amor y la pasión
PUBBLICITÀ
Es la historia de un amor
Como no hay otro igual
Que me hizo comprender
Todo el bien, todo el mal
Que le dió luz a mi vida
Apagándola después
Ay, qué vida tan oscura
Sin tu amor, no viviré Ya no estás más a mi lado, corazón
En el alma solo tengo soledad
Y si ya no puedo verte
Porque Dios me hizo quererte
Para hacerme sufrir más
Es la historia de un amor
Como no hay otro igual
Que me hizo comprender
Todo el bien, todo el mal
Que le dió luz a mi vida
Apagándola después
Ay, qué vida tan oscura
Sin tu amor, no viviré
Ya no estás más a mi lado, corazón
En el alma solo tengo soledad
Y si ya no puedo verte
Porque Dios me hizo quererte
Para hacerme sufrir más
The lyrics of Orietta Berti's song 'Historia de un Amor' speak of a heartbroken person who is consumed by loneliness and pain. The persona in the song is mourning the loss of a loved one who is no longer by their side. The opening line sets the tone for the entire song, stating “Ya no estás más a mi lado, corazón” which translates to “You are no longer by my side, my heart”. The line sets up a parallelism between the absence of the beloved and the feeling of emptiness that has taken over the persona's soul, leaving them with nothing but solitude.
The second stanza reveals that the persona is aware that they will never see the loved one again, which intensifies their pain. It goes on to express that the persona's reason to exist in this world was to love and adore the person who has left, which gives a sense of how important they were in the persona's life. The following line indicates that the persona found solace within the loved one's affection, and their love was their source of joy and passion.
Overall, the song tells the tale of an all-consuming love that is gone, leaving the persona with nothing but a black hole of emptiness. The lyrics paint a picture of someone who is struggling to come to terms with the fact that the person they loved is no longer with them, and that their life feels incomplete without them.
Line by Line Meaning
Ya no estás más a mi lado, corazón
You are no longer by my side, my heart.
En el alma solo tengo soledad
My soul is filled with only loneliness.
Y si ya no puedo verte
And if I can no longer see you
Porque Dios me hizo quererte
Because God made me love you
Para hacerme sufrir más
To make me suffer even more.
Siempre fuiste la razón de mi existir
You always were the reason for my existence.
Adorarte para mí, fue religion
To adore you was my religion.
Y en tus besos, yo encontraba
And in your kisses, I found
El calor que me brindaban
The warmth you provided me.
El amor y la pasión
Love and passion.
Es la historia de un amor
This is the story of a love
Como no hay otro igual
Unlike any other.
Que me hizo comprender
It made me understand
Todo el bien, todo el mal
All the good, all the bad.
Que le dió luz a mi vida
That illuminated my life
Apagándola después
Only to extinguish it later.
Ay, qué vida tan oscura
Oh, what a dark life
Sin tu amor, no viviré
Without your love, I cannot live.
Writer(s): Carlos Eleta Almaran
Contributed by Joseph H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.