Another sevdalinka
Hvala unapred!


MUJO KUJE

Mujo kuje konja po mjesecu
Mujo kuje, a majka ga kune

Sine Mujo, ziv ti bio majci
ne kuju se konji po mjesecu
vec po danu i zarkome suncu

Mila majko, ne kuni me mlada
znas kad meni na um padne draga

I ja ne gledam sunca nit' mjeseca
nit' moj doro mraka nit' oblaka
nit' moj doro Drine vode hladne

this song just isn't made for the english language !
anyway, i'll give it a try


MUJO KUJE
Mujo is forging

Mujo kuje konja po mjesecu
Mujo is shoeing a horse in the moonshine (lit. on moon / is forging a horse)
Mujo kuje, a majka ga kune
Mujo is forging, and his mother is cursing him

Sine Mujo, ziv ti bio majci
My son Mujo, you shall be alive for your mother*
ne kuju se konji po mjesecu
you don't shoe a horse in the moonshine
vec po danu i zarkome suncu
but when it's day and on the hot sun

Mila majko, ne kuni me mlada
Dear mother, don't curse me (i'm) young
znas kad meni na um padne draga
you know me, when i think about my darling

I ja ne gledam sunca nit' mjeseca
i don't watch(notice) the sun nor the moon
nit' moj doro mraka nit' oblaka
nor the darkness nor the clouds my ...(don't know the meaning of "doro")
nit' moj doro Drine vode hladne
nor the cold water of the Drina my ....


* this is an popular expression for which i don't know an english equivalent that would sound good

Thanks! Hvala!
I will try to find out what the word "doro" means, I guess it's an old word/expression obviously not used anymore in Bosnia/Serbia. And even if I have some old words in my dictionary, mostly Bosnian-Turkish, I couldn't find "doro" in it.

Yes it's definitely not for English...


I believe doro is from dorat, meaning bay (horse)

nit' moj doro mraka nit' oblaka
nor does my bay (notice) the darkness nor the clouds

I suppose we can translate "ziv ti bio" as "long live" (like.. "long live America!")

But in this particular line.. complicated!
I guess most likely it would be something like:
My son Mujo, mother loves you,

Originally Posted by Spring

Yes it's definitely not for English...


I believe doro is from dorat, meaning bay (horse)

nit' moj doro mraka nit' oblaka
nor does my bay (notice) the darkness nor the clouds

I suppose we can translate "ziv ti bio" as "long live" (like.. "long live America!")

But in this particular line.. complicated!
I guess most likely it would be something like:
My son Mujo, mother loves you,

hey that gave me an idea
i guess, in this case "god bless you" wouldn't be a bad translation either.

"bless you" is not a bad idea at all!

maybe.. (just maybe )
My son Mujo, as your (loving) mother I bless you

Originally Posted by miki444

Mila majko, ne kuni me mlada
Dear mother, don't curse me (i'm) young

Doesn't mlada refer to his mother?

uh, now after you said it...could be possible...though it wouldn't make much sense to me.
i thought it was a poetical way of saying "ne kuni mene mladoga".
any other opinions on this ?

Miki44 you had right ... His mother is probably old, so it's "Don't curse me (i'm) young". It's difficult to translate cause it doesn't sound good in english, and also this is very old song and contains archaic words' constructions.

Yep I agree.. it's not "mlada" - bride in this case.. but

Mila majko, ne kuni me mlada = Dear mother, don't scold me, (I'm) young

Thanks!!!

I am an American choral director. I love Mujo Kuje, and arranged it for my choir World Harmony Chorus. What is the history of the song and what is its song type (is it Sevdah?)
How does Sevdah differ from emmeleia?

I used your comments to adjust the translation in English. My Bosanski is terrible. Let me know what you think:

Mujo is forging in the moonlight
And his mother is scolding him.

My son Mujo, bless you,
You don't shoe a horse in the moonlight.
But in the daytime when the sun is warm.

Dear mother, don't scold me, I'm young.
You know me, when I think about my sweetheart
I don't notice the sun or the moon
Nor does my horse notice darkness or clouds
Or the cold water of the Drina

Hm... I wouldn't compare sevdah and emmeleia, sevdalinka is a Turkish thing, emmeleia is Greek. Sevdalinkas are traditionally women's songs, addressing the issue of love and longing and some even have comic elements while emmeleia is a stately dance used in ancient Greek tragedy.

In musical sense, sevdalinka is characterized by a slow or moderate tempo and rich harmony, leaving a melancholic feeling with the listener.

... the people of Bosnia employ the words "sevdalinka" and "sevdah" interchangeably as the name of this music, although the word sevdah can also be used in other meanings.

As for your translation, I think it's great!

Is Mujo Kuje sevdah? I thought it wasn't slow and melancholic enough to be Sevdah.
Or could it be emmeleai, or some other type of music?

Like I said - it can't be emmeleia if for no other reason than because it's not Greek
It should be Sevdah / sevdalinka

It is definitely sevdalinka, and nothing else!
Great that you found this kind of music, there are probably another 20 songs in this category that are as good as Mujo Kuje.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3a0GvuYn9ag

Thanks! I love sevdalinka. I heard a lot of it in Tuzla in 1995-97.

Originally Posted by eastbaysings

I am an American choral director. I love Mujo Kuje, and arranged it for my choir World Harmony Chorus. What is the history of the song and what is its song type (is it Sevdah?)
How does Sevdah differ from emmeleia?

Hi, how did you get over the notes for Mujo Kuje when setting up the song? I am looking to buy all notes (for keyboard) when I am here, in Serbia and Bosnia, for my favorite songs. Best regards, Zahal

I'm not sure what you mean by "get over the notes?" Do you mean how did I write (engrave) the melody onto printable sheet music? I use Sibelius music software. I listened for hours to Safet's youtube performance and wrote each note into my computer using the music software. I also had sheet music: obrada: Tihomil Vidosic, revidirao Resad Arnautovic. I used only a bit of that melody and harmony. What a fantastic song form!

Hi! I am more thinking of buying the complete set of notes in some kind of store (if I find it), so I just can start playing. Like playing Fur Elise on the piano, if I get the notes on a sheet it will be quite easy. Then just some practice will be between my goal to master that certain song, in this case on a keyboard.