Verdemar… the lament of despair, cried over her dead body, over her dreamed-up but never real coming back. The 1943 tango of Di Sarli’s, with the letras by Contursi, is one most of the saddest and most heart-wrenching classic pieces of the Golden Age. Classic – and of the most mysterious ones at the same time.Verdemar, the aqua green-blue tint of sea water, also known as turquoise, is a very unusual nickname for a girl. Was she for real? How did she die? The other unusual color in the verses, the yellow of her hands – is it a medical symptom, a clue of sorts? Jaundice?
El Señor del Tango Carlos Di Sarli, was also cruelly known as El Tuerto (the One-Eyed) in BsAs, where he was considered a yeta, a jynx by his contemporaries, for his dark sunglasses hid his surviving eye as well as the one lost to a childhood gun accident. Intriguingly, Verdemar is dedicated to his dear friend and a distinguished ophthalmologist, Dr. Ernesto Bernasconi Cramer… and the lyrics, as if speaking to an ophthalmologist, tell of pupils rather than the more usual “eyes”. Is it a clue to the true story? Could a white road taken by the searching spirit hint at a real Bahia Blanca (White Bay), Di Sarli’s hometown? We could never figure it out.
Orquesta Carlos Di Sarli, canta Roberto Rufino
Orquesta Carlos Di Sarli, canta Oscar Serpa
Orquesta Miguel Caló, canta Raúl Iriarte
| Verdemar… Verdemar… Se llenaron de silencio tus pupilas. Te perdí, Verdemar. Tus manos amarillas, tus labios sin color y el frío de la noche sobre tu corazón. Faltas tú, ya no estás, se apagaron tus pupilas, Verdemar. Te encontré sin pensarlo y alegré mis días, olvidando la angustia de las horas mías. Pero luego la vida se ensañó contigo y en tus labios mis besos se morían de frío. Y ahora… ¿qué rumbo tomaré? Caminos sin aurora me pierden otra vez. Volverás, Verdemar… Es el alma que presiente tu retorno. Llegarás, llegarás… Por un camino blanco tu espíritu vendrá Buscando mi cansancio y aquí me encontrarás. Faltas tú… Ya no estás… Se apagaron tus pupilas, Verdemar. | Turquoise… Verdemar Oh, your eyes are overflowing with silence! You are lost, Verdemar Your hands have turned yellow, no color on your lips, With cold of darkness creeping across your silent heart You're gone, you're lost, Light has faded from your pupils, Verdemar I have met you, not thinking what joy it will bring me I've forgotten the anguish of my waking hours Why your fate so soon turned so ruthless and cruel ! On your lips, kiss of mine has been killed by the cold. And now… What course will I follow? Paths of eternal darkness will get me lost again Don't leave, Verdemar! Tis the soul which foretells your coming home. Oh come back, please come back Along the white light road, your spirit will return To search for my despair, to find me at this point But today you're gone, Light has faded from your pupils, Verdemar |
Other notable translations by Alberto Paz and Derrick del Pillar
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