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25 - Translating the Texts of Songs and Other Vocal Music

from Part V - Translation in Practice: Arts

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 March 2022

Kirsten Malmkjær
Affiliation:
University of Leicester
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Summary

Chapter 25 focuses on the translation of songs and other vocal music. Translations of songs may be required for various purposes – for singers to sing, for announcers to speak, for CD listeners to read, for singing students to study, and for display as surtitles at a performance. Since no translation is ideal for every purpose, translators need to choose strategies and options that best suit the end-users. Particularly complex is the ‘singable translation’ (singable in the target language) which is intended to fit a pre-existing melody – here translators are subject to unusual constraints, such as the need to achieve the right number of syllables and a workable rhythm. Often, a singable translation may include so many changes that the term ‘adaptation’ is more accurate than the term ‘translation’.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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