Spanish Music Lyrics

Some say love is the universal language. I would have to disagree with that statement to a point. I think music is the universal language. Listening to music gives you a connection to the people, the culture behind it. Whether or not you understand the lyrics you can feel the emotion and figure out the meaning behind what is being said. Music can set the mood or convey a feeling that you are unable to verbalize. This is so powerfully true with Spanish music with its power- and meaningful Spanish music lyrics.

Think about it, when you hear an artist singing and all of a sudden they throw a line in the song sung in Spanish. It evokes a certain feeling in you. We have all sung La Bamba and many of us are guilty of La Isla Bonita as well. You sing, but do you know what it means or where it came from? This brings up two very good points about Spanish lyrics.

Point one, Spanish music lyrics tell you a story, and they tell it with emotion. Spanish music is as diverse as Spanish history is. There isn’t another European country that is a melting pot of so many unique musical elements. Each element coming from somewhere in Spain’s past.

In the beginning the meshing of the cultures impacted every aspect of life especially the music. With influences from Greece, the Moors, Jewish, and Spanish christian music lyrics, the music became sacred and regional music began to become popular. This was then stopped when the government declared a prohibition on this type of music.

The Renaissance brought about instrumental music which was influenced by the Arabs and the introduction of the Spanish guitar. Once the reconquista ended, there was polyphonic singing introduced complementing voices singing together. This influence came from France. As the era progressed and musicians migrated, Spain lost its anonymity and found a place firmly set on the musical map.

The next two centuries, the 17th and 18th brought about one of the greatest manifestations of Spain’s musical talents. It was called the zarzuela or the Spanish opera. It became a cultural phenomenon and it is still so today. It was during this time that classical music saw a decline and an emergence of popular and folk music in the various regions through Spain.

The twenty century saw the rise of pop music and rock-n-roll. Thanks to the end of the Civil War in Spain and British and American pop groups the dictator of Spain could not keep this music out. And now today we have Spanish music and lyrics being infused everywhere. Think of Shakira, Enri

que, Christina Aguilera, Ricky Martin and yes J. Lo.

Going back to all of singing those beautiful lyrics with out knowing what we are saying, listening to Spanish music sung in Spanish can help us all learn to speak Spanish. Music makes different areas of our brain work, and that helps us retain what we are hearing. Wouldn’t it be nice to know what they were saying, instead of just feeling the lyrics? The added benefit also is that you get the correct accent on the words. Give it a try and see what you learn.