In the comments section of Elina Garanča's legendary performance of the Habanera in New York, a Frenchman said something like this: "I have listened to this song many times and only now did I realize that the lyrics are in my own native language". This seems to be the case for most opera: singers are usually not native speakers of the many languages in which the lyrics are written and their main preoccupation is hitting the notes, not necessarily reciting the libretto with perfect pronunciation.
This brings us to Garifullina's rendition of Gardel's beloved Por una cabeza, written with lyricist Alfredo Le Pera for the 1935 film Tango Bar. As a native Spanish speaker, I can attest to the fact that about 75% of what she is saying is essentially unintelligible. Were it not for the fact that the song is one of the most popular pieces in the tango canon and perhaps one of the best-known Spanish-language songs that came out of Latin America, it would be extremely hard to ascertain what it is about just by listening to Aida. Something beautiful for sure, but obscure.
Leaving that aside, Garifullina's performance of the song as an encore at her Teatro Colón debut in Buenos Aires, on 16 August 2019, is a complete beauty. There must be something very special about hearing a superstar soprano who flew from the other side of the world to sing the songs of your heart in your very own theater. And this is no ordinary superstar soprano: it is easy to fall in love with Aida Garifullina. The theater sings the chorus along and roars in excitement as she sings the last phrase.
She is petite and playful and gorgeous, like the epitome of those Russian belles who combine Asian and Western features in their faces. I once had the fortune of meeting her for a fleeting moment at the Dubai Opera and was so star-struck that I could barely pronounce any words. She moved on quickly, like the full-fledged diva that she is, but I did get a glimpse of her tatar features that seem to combine all that is beautiful from the west and the east, the nimble sensuality of her body, how it is all amplified by her raw talent.
Well, her Spanish recitative is hard to follow, but all that is forgiven. I didn't even care that much for this song before I heard her sing it. Since I heard it from her lips, I can't think of any other version. I can't imagine any other voice, any other visage, any other figure better suited to remind me of the risk of falling in love with the wrong woman. That's what the lyrics are all about.
All the folly.
Her mouth in a kiss, deletes all the sorrow.
Soothes the bitterness.
And if she forgets me
Does it matter to lose this life a thousand times?
What to live for?
