アナと音楽

The latest additions to my music collection, I was so happy when these arrived in the mail. :D On the left is the Japanese version of Frozen (Anna and the Snow Queen), and the right is Tangled (Rapunzel's Tower). Interestingly, Google automatically translates it to Frozen.

Unfortunately, the Rapunzel soundtrack is mostly the English versions of the songs, and background music, but it does include the Japanese version of When Will My Life Begin?, See the Light, and the song from the prologue (which includes the healing song she sings for the flower to heal her). I do love hearing the differences though. When Will My Life Begin, or 自由への扉 doesn't quite fit the melody at the start, and I've always been really curious how they handle the obvious on-screen things. In the English version, there's the following verse:

Then after lunch it's puzzles and darts and baking
Papier-mâché, a bit of ballet and chess
Pottery and ventriloquy, candle making
Then I'll stretch, maybe sketch, take a climb, sew a dress!

And Rapunzel is clearly doing things on screen related to those lyrics.

In the Japanese version the lyrics are like this:

昼間はパズルにダーツにおやつ
Hiruma wa pazuru ni dātsu ni o yatsuDuring the day, puzzles, darts and snacks
いたずら　バレエ　そしてチェス
Itazura barē soshite chesu (she doesn't say the -u in chesu)
Mischief, ballet and then chess.
焼き物　それからキャンドル作り
Yakimono sorekara kyandoru-tsukuriPottery, candlemaking
ヨガと絵画　運動　裁縫
Yoga to kaiga undō saihōYoga and painting, exercise and sewing

Notice the lines don't rhyme? But the lyrics do match the visuals. They replace "papier-mâché" with "mischief" as she's wearing a mask at the time.

In the French version, here are the lyrics:

Après-midi, c'est puzzles, fléchettes et cookies
Afternoon is puzzles, darts and cookies

Papier mâché, danse classique, échecs et mat
Papier-mâché, classic dance, chess and dull (???)

Poterie, théâtre de marionnettes et bougies
Pottery, puppet theatre and candles

Gymnastique, arts plastiques, corde, et Pascal m'épate
Gymnastics, visual arts, rope and Pascal amazes me (Pascal is her pet chameleon)

It does rhyme though!

But what I'm super super happy about is that the Frozen soundtrack comes with karaoke versions! Not just karaoke, but for all the songs that are duets, it has the plain song, and then a duet version with each side of the duet, so you can sing either side.

Now if  only I could sing. I had planned to record myself singing a couple of months ago, but I couldn't find our Singstar mics. :( I have reason to try harder this weekend though! :D I can sing Love is an Open Door by myself.

I really like the Japanese versions of these songs. They seem a lot softer. I don't know if that's because I'm more familiar with the language, so it sounds less foreign to me, or if Japanese just sounds softer than French in general.