This lullaby was taught to me by my friend Vasudevan in Koottala, Kerala in India. It is in the Malayalam dialect, the main language of Kerala.
If you have a lullaby to share, I invite you to connect with me and take part in this project, please visit this page for more info…
Since childhood, I’ve loved languages. I fantasized about being fluent in at least 7 or 8 and the notion of being able to converse in every language was the ultimate dream. So far, I have learned to speak English, French and Cantonese (along with studies in German, Spanish and Indonesian) but I see that I won’t have time to study all existing languages.
Thus in 2008, I had the idea of learning a lullaby, nursery song or a simple ballad in each language that I would come across in this lifetime. It would be a way for me to express my love for all tribes and the unique consciousness each one offers. That year, I recorded my masseuse in Thailand singing a Thai lullaby and my language tutor in Bali singing an Indonesian nursery rhyme.
With this humble long-term project, I have 3 main intentions:
1) To taste a bit of the diverse lingual beauty that exists in the world, enjoying the different sounds rolling off the tongue.
2) To glimpse into the heart of far-off peoples and lands through the songs of childhood or songs of love that are present in every culture.
3) To create a teaching archive of these songs so that more people can learn to sing them as gestures of Peace and Friendship.
If you wish to share a lullaby or a sweet song that you know accurately in another language, please email me the following items:
1) A video file (with clear audio) of the song as sung by YOU (not others)
a) Frame the shot in medium closeup (Head + shoulders + part of chest).
b) This is a folk project so you don’t need to worry about “being” a performer. Just sing lovingly for a child to fall asleep…
c) Choose a song that is less than 3 minutes (shorten it by a few stanzas if needed).
d) Upload your video onto a video hosting site like youtube.com or vimeo.com and send me the link.
2) The full text of the song in English or French phonetic sounds
a) Give your best description or interpretation of the sounds using English or French spellings. e.g. Kizhi in Malayalam is spoken like “Kirree” in English phonetics.
b) Identify the name of the actual language.
3) If possible, also send the full text of the song in its original language.
a) Send as a PDF file if the characters cannot be displayed correctly otherwise
Fun Extras (not required):
1) A short statement about the history or origin of this song.
2) Some links to the song on youtube (done by others) as additional reference.
Note: My email address for this project is: Evolution@littlewoo.org
I’ve always had a fondness for lullabies… The idea that a human being would sing so tenderly to a child to soothe them into sleep has always touched me.
Here is a lullaby where I wrote the music in 1997 but shelved it until 2003, when I suddenly felt like writing the lyrics one day. (recording produced by Zufo in 2003)
To listen now, click here: http://littlewoo.org/mp3/littlewoo-the-dream.mp3
This simple yet beautiful Sufi chant was taught in a sound healing workshop I took with Simon Heather (UK Sound Healers Association) around the year 2000… It was explained that in the Sufi tradition, all poetry and art is devotional and is thus dedicated to the great “Beloved”. This chant expresses the Sufi mystic’s sweet yearning for the Divine and sounds like a cosmic lullaby…
Words:
Jamil Allah
Ishq Allah Jamil
Translation #1:
Oh Divinity, I yearn for your beauty.
Translation #2:
Divine God, Appear my Beloved.