SANREMO, ITALY
一個始於1951年的音樂盛事, 由接近摩納哥 Monaco 的一個義大利城市 Sanremo 舉辦和命名的歌曲創作比赛 "Sanremo Music Festival"。
這比賽純以歌曲創作為主, 並可邀請歌手為創作人的作品來演譯; 由這盛事中, 曾發掘了很多樂壇新星, 如失明的 Andrea Bocelli 就是其一。1960年, 一首經典歌曲與一位女歌手, 同時在當年的 "Sanremo Music Festival" 誕生, 就是 Mina Mazzini 與及意大利作詞家 Giorgio Calabrese 與作曲家 Tony De Vita (1932–1998) 兩人的作品 "PIANO" (SOFTLY)。
MINA MAZZINI -Anna Maria Quaini or Mina Mazzini, OMRI (25 March 1940), known as Mina, is one of the most successful Italian singers of all time. She was a staple of Italian television variety shows and a dominant figure in Italian pop music from the mid-1960s to mid-1970s, known for her three-octave vocal range, the agility of her soprano voice, and her image as an emancipated woman. - Wikipedia
P I A N O - Mina Mazzini 1960
Piano
mentre ti allontani,
cerca che il tuo passo
non mi svegli
mentre tu te ne vai.
Niente
non ti chiedo niente
oggi ed oltre il tempo tu sarai
accanto a me.
Nel ricordo va
non ti chiederò
di restare ancora ma
fa piano
che non ti senta.
Piano, piano.
Va
non ti chiederò
di restare ancora ma
fa piano
che non ti senta.
Piano, piano.
Fa piano
piano, piano.
當年這獲獎的義大利歌曲 "PIANO" (英譯 SOFTLY), 就是後來各歌手再翻唱的英文經典 "SOFTLY, AS I LEAVE YOU"。歌詞由 Hal Shaper 撰寫, 最為樂迷認識的版本是 Matt Monro 與及 Frank Sinatra 的演譯。
1984年五月十四日, Frank Sinatra 離世的消息在電視公佈時, 伴隨着圖片與文字, 亦以此曲作背景音樂, 像似由他親自跟樂迷說永別: "Softly, as I leave you ...."
FRANK SINATRA : "Softly, as I leave you"
1975年十二月十三日, Elvis Presley 在拉斯維加斯 Las Vegas 的演唱會中, 對觀眾說了一個令人傷感又動人的愛情故事:『 在彌留之際, 妻子三天日夜待在床邊, 因太睏倦而睡着, 他知道快要離世又不想打擾她, 唯有用盡僅餘的氣力, 慢慢從床邊的几上拿下紙筆, 把最後的遺言留給摯愛的妻子, 之後 .... 』
" Softly, I will leave you softly
For my heart would break if you should wake and see me go . ... "
For my heart would break if you should wake and see me go . ... "
及後 Elvis Presley 稱, 這是個真實的故事, 並非歌曲創作之源, 所發生的正如歌詞中的描繪。這現場版本, 歌者是樂隊的成員, 一位愛爾蘭籍的高音和唱歌手 Sherrill Nielsen, 而 Elvis 祇加上感人的故事獨白, 這更賺人熱淚 !
SOFTLY, AS I LEAVE YOU
Vocal: Sherrill Nielsen
Story Spoken: Elvis Presley
Softly, I will leave you softly
For my heart would break if you should wake and see me go
So I leave you softly, long before you miss me
Long before your arms can beg me stay
For one more hour or one more day
After all the years, I can't bear the tears to fall
So, softly, I will leave you there
As I leave I you there
As I leave I you there