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Wedding Custom and Song in Occitan from France

A Troubadour Song about Spring from the 12th Century

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Wedding Custom and Song in Occitan from France

Thursday, January 8th, 2009

Guest blogger, Monique Palomares works with me on Mama Lisa’s World en français. Monique grew up speaking the Occitan language in southern France. Occitan was the language spoken by the troubadours – largely in southern France – but also in parts of Spain and Italy.

Recently, Peter emailed us asking about the lyrics of a Gascon Occitan song called “Lo torrin”. (Gascon is an Occitan Dialect.) Peter’s wife is learning how to play the “boha” (the Gascon bagpipe) and he wanted to sing along. He got the lyrics and forwarded them to us.

The song “Lo torrin” is a “wedding song” that the wedding party-goers would sing to the newlyweds. “Lo torrin” specifically refers to a garlic soup spiced with pepper. This soup was traditionally brought to newlyweds on the morning after their wedding night.

In this old tradition, the bride and the groom would ride around the village in a cart with their brand-new chamberpot, on their wedding day. It symbolized the start of their new life together and it also let people know about their wedding. Remember that at that time there were no bathrooms, only outhouses. Yet people wouldn’t go out at night to “go” in the outhouse (”la cabane au fond du jardin”*). During the evening meal and party the newlyweds would sneak out around midnight and they would go to sleep at some accomplice’s place (an aunt’s, a grandma’s…). Later in the night or early in the morning, the young people at the wedding (those in their late teens and their twenties) would search for them. When they found them, they’d get them out of bed so that they could eat the soup that had been cooked especially for them.

In some areas, they wouldn’t cook a soup, they would pour into a brand new chamberpot the leftovers of the drinks with chocolate and biscuits (nobody needs further description to guess what it was supposed to look like). This was supposed to help them recover from the wedding night.

When I was a child and in my neighborhood the bride and groom wouldn’t tour around the town with their brand-new chamberpot, but they’d still be gotten out of bed. Nowadays the tradition survives in some places. Since nobody now uses chamberpots, “pots de la mariée” (brides’ chamberpots) are still on sale for this event.

*”La cabane au fond du jardin” refers to the little wooden cabin used as toilets at the other end of the garden and it’s also the title of a spoof song imitating the style of the French singer Francis Cabrel.

Below, you can hear Jane Thomasson playing the “boha” and Peter Horton singing the first verse of the song. After that you’ll find the lyrics in Occitan, and then an English translation…

Click to Hear the first verse of Lo Torrin

Lo torrin
(Gascon Occitan)

Obritz la pòrta, obritz (x2)
La novèla maridada luron lonla (x2)

Vos portèm lo torrin (x2)
E la sopa ben pebrada luron lon la (x2)

Coma obrirei jo (x2)
Que soi dens mon lheit cochada luron lon la (x2)

Au pròche de mon marit (x2)
Que me ten tota embraçada luron lon la (x2)

Que me ten e me tendrà (x2)
Tota la nèit empenada luron lon la (x2)

Se perdèvi mas amors (x2)
Ont las anguerei o quèrre luron lon la (x2)

Seren per debat París (x2)
A dus cent cinquanta legas luron lon la (x2)

Dabans la pòrta i a (x2)
Un grand pè de heuguèra luron lon la (x2)

Dens ‘quera heuguèra (x2)
Un beròi nid de tortèla luron lon la (x2)

La tortèla i a cohat (x2)
E apèi s’es envolada luron lon la (x2)

En partint a feit rocó (x2)
E la bèra n’es plus bèra luron lon la (x2)

Obritz la pòrta, obritz (x2)
La novèla maridada luron lon la (x2)

Se no l’obrissètz pas (x2)
En ‘questa ora vos l’enfoncèm luron lon la (x2)

The “Torrin”
(English Translation)

Open the door, open it, (2 x’s)
You, bride (newlywed) luron lon la…

We bring you the tourrin*
And the soup spiced with pepper.

How would I open it
If I’m lying in my bed?

Close to my husband,
Who holds me in his arms**.

Who holds me and will hold me
Saddened, all night long.

If I lost my love
Where would I go for him?

He’d be, northwards, near Paris,
250 leagues from here.

In front of the door is
A big fern.

In this fern is
A pretty turtle dove nest.

The turtle dove hatched there
Then she flew away.

When she left, she went “coo”,
And the pretty one isn’t pretty any more.

Open the door, open, (twice)
You, bride.

If you don’t open it
Now we’ll break it open.

Click here for the Lo torrin Song Page – where you can access the Sheet Music, midi tune and French and Spanish translations.

Note: There are some other songs about getting married in Occitan and French, most of which are addressed to girls. They’re along the lines of Joan Baez’s song The Wagoner’s Lad: “Oh hard is the fortune of all womankind, she’s always controlled, she’s always confined, controlled by her parents until she is wife, a slave to her husband the rest of her life!”

Many thanks to Peter Horton for contributing the lyrics to “Lo torrin”and the sheet music (which came from the “Bohaires de Gasconha”), and for singing the first verse for us, accompanied by Jane Thomasson playing the “boha” (local bagpipe).

-Monique Palomares

UPDATE: Here’s a Recipe for Lo Torrin Soup!

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Posted in Countries & Cultures, Customs, Folk Songs, France, French, Languages, MP3's, Music, Occitan, Occitan, Occitan Songs from the Troubadours, Recordings of Songs, Sheet Music, Weddings | No Comments »

A Troubadour Song about Spring from the 12th Century

Sunday, April 9th, 2006

The troubadours were poet musicians who lived between the 11th through the 13th centuries. They spoke Occitan, a romance language that can still be heard in parts of southern France, Italy and Spain.

Monique of Mama Lisa’s World en français sent me a troubadour song about the Springtime. Here’s what she had to say about the song…

I translated Al’entrada del temps clar (When the Clear Days Come) into English. It’s an anonymous song from the 12th century about Spring, with the usual allegory of the young Spring Queen needing a young man in the dance of life, so she can renew. It’s a troubadour song which is a trobar lèu song, lèu meaning here light, easy.

Here’s Al’entrada del temps clar in the original Occitan language followed by an English translation. If you’re familiar with any of the romance languages, you might be able to recognize some words in the Occitan version.

A l’entrada del temps clar
(Occitan)

A l’entrada del temps clar, eya
Per jòia recomençar, eya
E per jelós irritar, eya
Vòl la regina mostrar
Qu’el’es si amorosa
A la vi’, a la via, jelós,
Laissatz nos, laissatz nos
Balar entre nos, entre nos.

El’ a fait pertot mandar, eya
Non sia jusqu’à la mar, eya
Piucela ni bachalar, eya
Que tuit non vengan dançar
En la dansa joiosa.
A la vi’, a la via, jelós,
Laissatz nos, laissatz nos
Balar entre nos, entre nos.

Lo reis i ven d’autra part, eya
Per la dança destorbar, eya
Que el es en cremetar, eya
Que òm no li vòlh emblar
La regin’ aurilhosa.
A la vi’, a la via, jelós,
Laissatz nos, laissatz nos
Balar entre nos, entre nos.

Mais per nïent lo vòl far, eya
Qu’ela n’a sonh de vielhart, eya
Mais d’un leugièr bachalar, eya
Qui ben sapcha solaçar
La dòmna saborosa.
A la vi’, a la via, jelós,
Laissatz nos, laissatz nos
Balar entre nos, entre nos.

Qui donc la vezés dançar, eya
E son gent còrs deportar, eya
Ben pògra dir de vertat, eya
Qu’el mont non aja sa par
La regina joiosa.
A la vi’, a la via, jelós,
Laissatz nos, laissatz nos
Balar entre nos, entre nos

When the Clear Days Come
(English)

When the clear days come, eya
To be joyful again, eya
And to annoy the jealous ones, eya
The queen wants to show
That she’s so amorous.
Go away, go away, you jealous ones,
Let us, let us,
Dance together, together.

She had a message sent everywhere, eya
That as far as the sea, eya
Let there be neither maiden nor young man, eya
Who shall not come to dance,
The joyous dance.
Go away, go away, you jealous ones,
Let us, let us,
Dance together, together.

The king comes, eya
To disturb the dance, eya
For he is very afraid, eya
That someone will want to steal,
The April Queen.
Go away, go away, you jealous ones.
Let us, let us,
Dance together, together.

But she wouldn’t let him do it, eya
For she needs not an old man, eya
But a graceful young one, eya
Who would well know how to comfort,
The delightful lady.
Go away, go away, you jealous ones,
Let us, let us,
Dance together, together.

Whoever would see her dance, eya
And her pretty body move, eya
Could well say, in truth, eya
That in all the world she has no equal,
The joyous queen.
Go away, go away, you jealous ones,
Let us, let us,
Dance together, together.

***

Monique further mentioned…

About the Occitan word that’s in the song, joia, in the troubadours’ time, the word had a very strong meaning of joy of life, it was a very deep feeling of happiness.

Many thanks to Monique for translating this song for us and for her interesting comments.

You can hear an MP3 of A l’entrada del temps clar. Follow the link, then click on the lightening bolt icon to hear the recording.

Come visit the Mama Lisa’s World’s Occitan Page for more Occitan Songs, and the Mama Lisa’s World Blog Occitan Page for more about Occitan.

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Posted in A l'entrada del temps clar, Countries & Cultures, Folk Songs, Languages, Occitan, Occitan, Occitan Songs from the Troubadours, Songs about Spring, Songs about the Seasons, Songs by Theme | 6 Comments »

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Wedding Custom and Song in Occitan from France

A Troubadour Song about Spring from the 12th Century