Last week we had two new ladies join us from Germany. It was
nice having them join the group. Now we have 3 German women! I guess we’ll have
to learn some German songs soon! :)
Last week we started with our Global Voices theme song (the
chorus to “We Are The World”) and then sang an old familiar song “Stand By Me.”
As many of you know, “Stand By Me” emphasizes that we all need each other in
this world and we can lend a helping hand to those around us. Then we sang two
new songs, both from Africa. One was “Funga Alafia,” a greeting/welcome song
from Ghana, and the other one was a South African hymn “Siyahamb ekukhanyen kwenkhos,” which literally means “We
Are Walking In The Light Of God.” Because we are a secular group, I changed
some of the English lyrics from “God” to “Peace.” Some of the verses were:
“We are
walking with the hope of peace”
“With are loving with the hope for peace”
“We are singing with the light of peace”
Even though the African Zulu words look very hard to learn
and pronounce, it’s a lot easier if you learn by listening to the song and get
the feel for it without looking at the words. Here is how the words break down
when you sing them:
African words: Siyahamb' ekukhanyen' kwenkhos'
Broken down: Siya hambe kukha nyen-ee kwen khos
It is a fun
song to sing! I think we all enjoyed both of the African songs. I encourage you
to look up some recordings on youtube. :)
The last
song we learned was “Everyday People” by Sly and the Family Stone. This song is
a groovy tune from 1969, but has some very meaningful lyrics in it.
I think I’m
finally starting to strike a better balance between singing more and talking
less, and introducing more multicultural songs. :)
At our
meeting tomorrow night (11/3/14) we will be reviewing some of our previous
songs: “Imagine,” “Funga Alafia,” and “Siyahamb ekukhanyen kwenkhos” –
we’re still mastering the lyrics in these two different African languages! We
will also be learning two new songs and maybe more: “Die Gedanken Sind Frei”
and “Swimming to the Other Side.” I’m really enjoying learning these songs!
Here are some recordings below:
“Die
Gedanken Sind Frei”- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbwQXVcbkU0
“Swimming to
the Other Side” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCcQPDQfOL8
I would love some help from our German members with some of the German lyrics! I look
forward to seeing those of you who can make it tomorrow! :)
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