August 10, 2009

Emotional

I do not like to post links to songs I like because there would be too many of them and it is generally very boring for the readers.

This post will be an exception for a thai song that deeply moves me everytime I hear it. I first heard it when it was the the theme tune of a Thai TV programm about schools in the poorer areas of Thailand. And I burst into tears when my thai-swiss friend sang it in a karaoke in Saphan Kwai many years ago. This "rongrian khong noo" is simply one of the best songs I have ever heard.

It tells the life of schools in the mountains, far from anything and without too much money, where a lonely teacher dedicates himself body and soul to the education of the mountain children. It tells the will of the thai state to bring education into the remotest parts of the country, it tells the sadness of traditional life and culture being forgotten and in the same time the hope for a better life for these poor children.

It tells the feelings of my father and mother seventy years ago in the Alps ...

The lyrics of this thai song are simple and incredibly touching, and the tune is also fantastic especially in the version linked below with an amazing flute player. May I say that tears still come into my eyes because of such a beautiful melody ...



My School by Phongsit Khamphee
โรงเรียนของหนู (พงษ์สิทธิ์ คำภีร์)

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for this Link. I love this song too. Touch my heart.
And i hope the next seven weeks until my vacation feel like one day because i need the thai feeling again urgently.
Jan

Anonymous said...

This is amazingly beautiful.
Would you by any chance have a translation of the lyrics in English or French? It would mean the world to me.

Kind regards,
Wouter

ilz said...

I looked for a translation on the net and could not find a complete one. So here is the best that I can guess - neither thai nor english being my mother language, consider this as a first attempt.

The cold wind blowing gently seems beautiful and clear.
The cold wind is blowing beautifully
Home is far away in the wilds
School is behind the mountain.
There are only us and no one else...

When hot it is extremely hot
When cold it will reach my heart
There is no cloth to cover my body
The school has only one teacher
He sacrifices himself
Puts up with being far from well-being
I ask for your sympathy
Am aware of my thai friends
Thai are different one from another

My school
Is far far away
I would like you to turn your head and look at
My school

Anonymous said...

LLZ, I thank you very very profoundly.
Kind regards.

ilz said...

A more professional translation has been posted on the great ThailandQA forum where I had asked for it. Please send your thank you to the translator if you go there.

The link is
http://www.thailandqa.com/forum/showthread.php?p=192592