Translation/general summary in English please!
------------------------------------------------------
http://www.welt.de/data/2003/10/17/183604.html?s=2
"Die Punks von heute sind Memmen"
Elvis Costello über die Wut der Jugend, die Weisheit
des Alters und seine Brille
Elvis Costello trägt Anzug, Krawatte und komische
blaue Krokoleder-Halbschuhe. Er lümmelt auf dem
Hotelsofa wie ein Bauarbeiter nach der Schicht. Oder
wie der Punk-Rocker, der er in den siebziger Jahren
war. Seine neue Platte ist wieder eine gegensätzlich
geratene Sammlung von dezenten Balladen. Eingespielt
mit Streichern, Hörnern und Flügel. Costello singt
dazu den Bildungsbürger-Blues über altes Leid und neue
Liebe. Es klingt nach Gershwin, Schubert und Sinatra.
Mit dem 48-jährigen Briten sprach Josef Engels.
DIE WELT: Meinen Sie, man muss ein gewisses Alter
haben, um Musik mit Anspruch zu mögen?
Elvis Costello: Es gibt viele Arten von Musik, die
einen als Kind ungeduldig werden lassen. Musik, die
aus komplizierteren Formen besteht wie Jazz oder
klassische Musik. Als ich klein war, wurden mir
Chopin, Grieg, Mozart oder die Brandenburgischen
Konzerte vorgespielt. Das war nachvollziehbar wegen
der Melodien. Es lief auch viel Frank Sinatra, Peggy
Lee oder Mel Tormé im Haus. Man entfernt sich von
dieser Musik, wenn man älter wird. Du triffst deine
eigenen Entscheidungen und kaufst deine eigenen
Platten. Aber irgendwann entsinnt man sich wieder der
alten Dinge. Was ich sagen will, ist, dass die Musik
auf meiner neuen Platte nicht völlig unvorbereitet
kommt.
DIE WELT: Können junge Leute diese Musik verstehen?
Costello: Warum nicht? Sie mag sich denen
verschließen, die denken, dass authentische Gefühle
nur geschrien ausgedrückt werden können. Die anders
strukturierten Formen meiner Musik würden sie nicht
verstehen. Es gibt da keine Gitarren, keinen Backbeat,
an dem man sich festhalten kann. Als ich ein Teenager
war, habe ich mich mit Musik, die mir eigenartig
erschien, auseinandergesetzt. Etwa Joni Mitchells
erste Platte, wo sie nur in klarem Sopran singt. Sehr
verstörend. Auch ihre Texte über den Verlust von
Idealen. Ich fand das trotzdem faszinierend. Man soll
nicht denken, dass junge Menschen unfähig sind, Musik
zu verstehen, die anders ist als das, was die
Industrie ihnen mit viel Lärm andrehen will. Ich wäre
jedoch nicht überrascht, wenn sie meine Musik trotzdem
nicht begriffen.
DIE WELT: Droht die Jugend derzeit, musikalisch zu
verrohen?
Costello: Ach was. Ich finde keine der zurzeit
angesagten Bands besonders einschüchternd. Bestimmt
nicht so einschüchternd wie sie gerne sein möchten.
Ich finde das alles ziemlich ängstlich, vorhersehbar
und memmenhaft. Die modernen Punkbands sind doch nur
Kopien. Ich will damit nicht sagen, dass heute nichts
von Wert passiert. Ich glaube nur nicht, dass es von
diesen Gruppen kommt. Die müssen noch härter werden.
DIE WELT: Sagen Sie doch mal: Was kann die Jugend von
Ihnen lernen?
Costello: Ich weiß doch nichts. Die können nix von mir
lernen.
DIE WELT: Doch: Wie man sich aus einem zornigen jungen
Mann in einen Klassiker verwandelt.
Costello: Meine Musik fing weit weniger wütend an, als
immer geglaubt wird. Es war sehr viel Verwirrung und
Zweifel in dieser Musik, vorgetragen mit großer
Überzeugung, die das Ganze entsprechend erzürnt
erscheinen ließ. Ich habe in späteren Jahren weit
bösere Songs geschrieben. Sie sorgten nur nicht für so
viel Überraschung, weil man sich daran inzwischen
gewöhnt hatte.
DIE WELT: Die neue Platte heißt "North" und ist oft
recht traurig.
Costello: Norden heißt eigentlich: nach oben. Es ist
ein optimistischer Titel. Ein Paradoxon, weil der
Norden normalerweise mit Kälte in Verbindung gebracht
wird. Glauben Sie mir: Es gab ernsthafte Diskussion
darüber mit der Plattenfirma.
DIE WELT: Es ist schon eher eine Herbstplatte.
Costello: Das stimmt.
DIE WELT: Haben Sie das Gefühl, im Herbst Ihres Lebens
zu sein?
Costello: Ich hoffe nicht. Ich werde 49, das ist doch
noch relativ jung. Ich glaube, es gibt noch genügend
Wechsel und Überraschungen in meinem Leben. Es ist
doch so: Wenn man nur die Platten kennt, die in den
letzten Jahren herausgekommen sind, weiß man nicht
viel von Musik. Ich zum Beispiel höre sehr viele
deutsche Kunstlieder, obwohl ich die Sprache nicht
beherrsche. Da geht es oft um die Natur und die
Jahreszeiten als Abbild des menschlichen Seins. Ich
habe auch schon vorher Stücke geschrieben, die sich
stark auf Schubert beziehen. Nicht, dass ich Schubert
zu imitieren versuchte ...
DIE WELT: Wann wurde das alles geschrieben? Bevor
öffentlich wurde, dass Sie sich von Ihrer Frau
getrennt und mit dem Jazz-Starlet Diana Krall verlobt
haben?
Costello: Es ist gefährlich, diese Platte in einen
chronologischen Zusammenhang mit meinem Leben bringen
zu wollen.
DIE WELT: Trotzdem - schmerzhafte Trennung und neues
Liebesglück sind als Themen offensichtlich.
Costello: Das Leben ist komplizierter, als es die
besten elf Songs jemals kundtun könnten. Ich erzähle
dir nicht alles über mein Leben, sondern habe nur
Lieder geschrieben, die teilweise auf meine
Erfahrungen basieren. Es sind immer noch Songs, keine
Polaroids. Die realen Erlebnisse sind oft nicht
erfreulich, daraus ließe sich wenig Unterhaltsames
machen.
DIE WELT: Ist wenigstens Ihre Brille echt?
Costello: Ich muss eine Brille tragen, seit ich 18
bin. Dass ich die nur zum Spaß aufhabe, ist auch so
eine Legende. Sehschwäche liegt bei mir in der
Familie. Da tragen alle Brille.
Elvis Costello: North (Deutsche Grammophon/Universal)
Termine: heute Offenbach, 22. Hamburg, 23. Köln, 25.
Berlin
Artikel erschienen am 17. Okt 2003
© WELT.de 1995 - 2003
German interview with Elvis
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Gillibeanz
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miss buenos aires
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Ooh, my German is rusty...
"Today's Punks Are Something"
Elvis Costello on the something of youth, the wisdom of age, and his eyeglasses
Elvis Costello is wearing a suit, a tie, and funny blue somethings. He somethings on the sofa like a housebuilder after the something. Or like the punk-rocker that he was in the seventies. His new record is a something something collection of decent ballads. Simply played with something, horns and something. In it, Costello sings like a something about old songs and new love. It sounds like Gershwin, Schubert and Sinatra. Josef Engels speaks with the 48-year-old Briton.
Die Welt: Do you mean that one must be a certain age to like music with something?
EC: There are many kinds of music that a child something something. Music can exist, in complicated forms as Jazz or classical music. When I was a child, Chopin, Grieg, Mozart and the Brandenberg concert were all played for me. That was something something melodies. There was also a lot of Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee and Mel Tormé in the house. One separates oneslf from this music as one gets older. You find your own differences and buy your own records. But at any time, you can remember the old things. What I want to say, is that the music on my new record isn't coming totally out of the blue.
DW: Can young people understand this music?
EC: Why not? Whoever thinks that authentic emotion can only be expressed by shouting, would like to shut themselves away. They don't want to understand the other structural forms my music takes.
Oh, the workday is over, I must go. Will someone else finish?
"Today's Punks Are Something"
Elvis Costello on the something of youth, the wisdom of age, and his eyeglasses
Elvis Costello is wearing a suit, a tie, and funny blue somethings. He somethings on the sofa like a housebuilder after the something. Or like the punk-rocker that he was in the seventies. His new record is a something something collection of decent ballads. Simply played with something, horns and something. In it, Costello sings like a something about old songs and new love. It sounds like Gershwin, Schubert and Sinatra. Josef Engels speaks with the 48-year-old Briton.
Die Welt: Do you mean that one must be a certain age to like music with something?
EC: There are many kinds of music that a child something something. Music can exist, in complicated forms as Jazz or classical music. When I was a child, Chopin, Grieg, Mozart and the Brandenberg concert were all played for me. That was something something melodies. There was also a lot of Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee and Mel Tormé in the house. One separates oneslf from this music as one gets older. You find your own differences and buy your own records. But at any time, you can remember the old things. What I want to say, is that the music on my new record isn't coming totally out of the blue.
DW: Can young people understand this music?
EC: Why not? Whoever thinks that authentic emotion can only be expressed by shouting, would like to shut themselves away. They don't want to understand the other structural forms my music takes.
Oh, the workday is over, I must go. Will someone else finish?
marcus kuley writes-
Subject: Re: German interview with Elvis
To: COSTELLO-L@LISTSERV.AOL.COM
I have a hunch that the writer's translation of EC's remarks are highly
inaccurate. I'm sure that the writer did not dare to call Diana Krall
a
'jazz starlet' to the face of Elvis.
So please don't blame me if the back translations strike you as dodgy.
> Translation/general summary in English please!
"Today's punks are cowards"
Elvis Costello on the anger of youth, the wisdom of age and his glasses
Elvis Costello is wearing a suit, tie and funny croc-leather shoes. He
is
lounging on a hotel sofa like a builder after his shift. Or like the
the
punk rocker which he used to be in the seventies.
"Seine neue Platte ist wieder eine gegensätzlich
geratene Sammlung von dezenten Balladen."
[This sentence doesn't make sense to me, I'm afraid.]
Recorded with strings, horns and grand piano. Costello is singing the
educated-person's-blues about old pain and new love. It sounds like
Gershwin, Schubert and Sinatra.
Josef Engels spoke to the British 48-year-old.
DIE WELT: Do you think that it takes a certain age in order to like
challenging music?
Elvis Costello: There are many kinds of music which make a child
impatient. Music which consists of complex elements such as jazz or
classical music. When I was young Chopin, Grieg, Mozart or the
Brandenburgischen Konzerte were played to me. One could appreciate it
because of the melodies. There was also a lot of Frank Sinatra, Peggy
Lee
or Mel Tormé at our house. One tends to drift away from this music as
one
gets older. You make your own decisions and buy your own records. But
at
some stage you remember those old things. What I mean to say is that
the
music on my new album did not come completely unprepared.
DIE WELT: Can young people understand this music?
Costello: Why not? It may not reach those who believe that authentic
emotions can only be expressed by screaming. Such people would not
understand the differently structured forms of my music. There are no
guitars, no backbeat which provides one with a guiding line. When I was
a
teenager, I did listen to music which I found disturbing. Take Joni
Mitchell's first album on which she sings exclusively in a clear
soprano.
Very disturbing. Her lyrics about the loss of ideals, too. I found this
fascinating in spite of this. One should not think that young people
are
incaple of understanding music that is different from the one that the
record industry is trying to flog off to them with much ado. However, I
shouldn't be surprised if they failed to understand my music anyway.
DIE WELT: Is the youth about to be brutalized in terms of music?
Oh no. I find none of the presently popular bands particularly
intimidating. Certainly not as intimidating as they would like to be. I
find all this stuff pretty timid, predictable and cowardly. Those
modern
punk bands are just copies. I am not claiming that nothing of merit is
happening today. I just don't believe that it is coming from these
groups.
They must get a lot harder.
DIE WELT: Please tell me: what can the youth of today learn from you?
Costello: I know nothing. They can't learn anything from me.
DIE WELT: Oh yes: how to turn from an angry young man to a
classic/classical/established artist?
My music started out much less angry than is generally believed. There
was
a lot of confusion and doubt in this music which was performed with
much
confidence which in turn made an angry impression. In later years, I
wrote
much more vicious songs. They just didn't cause as much sensation
because
people had grown accustomed to them.
The new album is called 'North' and is often quite sad.
Costello: North really means: up. It is an optimistic title. A paradox
because the north is usually associated with cold. Trust me: there was
a
serious discussion about this with the record company.
DIE WELT: It is a bit of an autumn album.
Costello: That's true.
Do you think that you are in the autumn of your life?
Costello: I shouldn't hope so. I'm about to become 49,
[When was this interview conducted, I wonder?]
that is still fairly young. I think that there will still be enough
changes and surprises in my life. It is like this: if you only listen
to
the records which were released in the last few years, you don't know
much
about music. I, for one, listen to a lot of German kunstlieder,
although I
don't understand the language. They often deal with nature and the
seasons
as a symbol of the human condition. Even before this, I have written
songs
which make a strong reference to Schubert. Not that I'm trying to
imitate
Schubert ...
When was all this written? Before your separation from your wife and
your
engagement with the jazz starlet Diana Krall became public?
Costello: It is precarious to try to establish a chronological
connection
between this record and my life.
DIE WELT: Nevertheless - painful separation and new love are the
obvious
topics.
Costello: Life is much more complex than the best eleven songs could
hope
to express. I do not narrate all my life to you. I have only written
songs
which are partly based on my experiences. These are still songs, not
polaroids. The real experiences are often unpleasant, little
entertaining
stuff could be created from this.
DIE WELT: Are your glasses real, at least?
I have had to wear glasses since age 18. It's a legend that I am just
wearing them for fun. Poor vision runs in my family. They are all
wearing
glasses.
Subject: Re: German interview with Elvis
To: COSTELLO-L@LISTSERV.AOL.COM
I have a hunch that the writer's translation of EC's remarks are highly
inaccurate. I'm sure that the writer did not dare to call Diana Krall
a
'jazz starlet' to the face of Elvis.
So please don't blame me if the back translations strike you as dodgy.
> Translation/general summary in English please!
"Today's punks are cowards"
Elvis Costello on the anger of youth, the wisdom of age and his glasses
Elvis Costello is wearing a suit, tie and funny croc-leather shoes. He
is
lounging on a hotel sofa like a builder after his shift. Or like the
the
punk rocker which he used to be in the seventies.
"Seine neue Platte ist wieder eine gegensätzlich
geratene Sammlung von dezenten Balladen."
[This sentence doesn't make sense to me, I'm afraid.]
Recorded with strings, horns and grand piano. Costello is singing the
educated-person's-blues about old pain and new love. It sounds like
Gershwin, Schubert and Sinatra.
Josef Engels spoke to the British 48-year-old.
DIE WELT: Do you think that it takes a certain age in order to like
challenging music?
Elvis Costello: There are many kinds of music which make a child
impatient. Music which consists of complex elements such as jazz or
classical music. When I was young Chopin, Grieg, Mozart or the
Brandenburgischen Konzerte were played to me. One could appreciate it
because of the melodies. There was also a lot of Frank Sinatra, Peggy
Lee
or Mel Tormé at our house. One tends to drift away from this music as
one
gets older. You make your own decisions and buy your own records. But
at
some stage you remember those old things. What I mean to say is that
the
music on my new album did not come completely unprepared.
DIE WELT: Can young people understand this music?
Costello: Why not? It may not reach those who believe that authentic
emotions can only be expressed by screaming. Such people would not
understand the differently structured forms of my music. There are no
guitars, no backbeat which provides one with a guiding line. When I was
a
teenager, I did listen to music which I found disturbing. Take Joni
Mitchell's first album on which she sings exclusively in a clear
soprano.
Very disturbing. Her lyrics about the loss of ideals, too. I found this
fascinating in spite of this. One should not think that young people
are
incaple of understanding music that is different from the one that the
record industry is trying to flog off to them with much ado. However, I
shouldn't be surprised if they failed to understand my music anyway.
DIE WELT: Is the youth about to be brutalized in terms of music?
Oh no. I find none of the presently popular bands particularly
intimidating. Certainly not as intimidating as they would like to be. I
find all this stuff pretty timid, predictable and cowardly. Those
modern
punk bands are just copies. I am not claiming that nothing of merit is
happening today. I just don't believe that it is coming from these
groups.
They must get a lot harder.
DIE WELT: Please tell me: what can the youth of today learn from you?
Costello: I know nothing. They can't learn anything from me.
DIE WELT: Oh yes: how to turn from an angry young man to a
classic/classical/established artist?
My music started out much less angry than is generally believed. There
was
a lot of confusion and doubt in this music which was performed with
much
confidence which in turn made an angry impression. In later years, I
wrote
much more vicious songs. They just didn't cause as much sensation
because
people had grown accustomed to them.
The new album is called 'North' and is often quite sad.
Costello: North really means: up. It is an optimistic title. A paradox
because the north is usually associated with cold. Trust me: there was
a
serious discussion about this with the record company.
DIE WELT: It is a bit of an autumn album.
Costello: That's true.
Do you think that you are in the autumn of your life?
Costello: I shouldn't hope so. I'm about to become 49,
[When was this interview conducted, I wonder?]
that is still fairly young. I think that there will still be enough
changes and surprises in my life. It is like this: if you only listen
to
the records which were released in the last few years, you don't know
much
about music. I, for one, listen to a lot of German kunstlieder,
although I
don't understand the language. They often deal with nature and the
seasons
as a symbol of the human condition. Even before this, I have written
songs
which make a strong reference to Schubert. Not that I'm trying to
imitate
Schubert ...
When was all this written? Before your separation from your wife and
your
engagement with the jazz starlet Diana Krall became public?
Costello: It is precarious to try to establish a chronological
connection
between this record and my life.
DIE WELT: Nevertheless - painful separation and new love are the
obvious
topics.
Costello: Life is much more complex than the best eleven songs could
hope
to express. I do not narrate all my life to you. I have only written
songs
which are partly based on my experiences. These are still songs, not
polaroids. The real experiences are often unpleasant, little
entertaining
stuff could be created from this.
DIE WELT: Are your glasses real, at least?
I have had to wear glasses since age 18. It's a legend that I am just
wearing them for fun. Poor vision runs in my family. They are all
wearing
glasses.
-
miss buenos aires
- Posts: 2055
- Joined: Wed Jun 04, 2003 7:15 am
- Location: jcnj
- Contact:
johnfoyle said:
The article said:I'm sure that the writer did not dare to call Diana Krall a 'jazz starlet' to the face of Elvis.
Now, I've provided ample evidence of just how rusty my German is, but I think "Jazz-Starlet" probably translates as "jazz starlet." (But considering the original interview was probably conducted in English, maybe he said "chanteuse" or something, which seems to be her official job description, then slipped in the "Jazz-Starlet" bit when he did his translation.)Bevor öffentlich wurde, dass Sie sich von Ihrer Frau getrennt und mit dem Jazz-Starlet Diana Krall verlobt haben?