Do you remember the first foreign song you learned as a chil

[j u d i t h]

d? ...well, there was the end of the subject line.

Good morning!

The first foreign song I learned was French. I was about 4 years old I think and we learned it in kindergarten:

Le coq est mort

We learned the German version first so we knew what we sang about (strange lyrics for a children's song, eh?)

What about you? Thanks much!

[kokoyaya]

I can't remember the name but it sounds like that:

1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Once I caught a fish alive,
6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Then I let it go again.

Why did you let it go?
Because it bit my finger so
Which finger do it bit?
This little finger on the right.

[serenita]

That's a good question.
I realise i was taught my first foreign song at the age of 11 (at school, though.I use to sing heaps of crap foreign songs before that!)
The song was "hello-goodbye" from the Beatles, it's a silly one:
You say yes, i say no
You say why and i say i don't know
You say goodbye and i say hello, Hello-Hello!
I don't know why you say goodbye i say hello!
Still today, i'm convinced it was created for french people to learn english, as the other one "Michelle, ma belle".
Then at the age of 14, i learned spanish songs, and that was much more funny!

[Olivier]

What about you? Thanks much!

Well, I remember a kind of music box I was given, I do not remember who gave it, probably people my parents knew in England at the time, and it was turning inside and it showed in a little window pictures corresponding to the tune: I remember a cow jumping over the moon... My father, who was an English teacher, told me the words written around the pictures but I could not read yet, so I forgot them...

Then later on at about 6 I went with the school to a theme park near Paris where the street, the horses, the characters were from "western" movies, and we were given a small "vinyl" record that was really not vinyl but soft plastic, and then I listened to that "Clementine" song so often that I could sing it although I did not really understand, of course I had the thick southern US accent of the original: "Escvadin foora mine..." That was a nice song for children too, with the drowning girl "blowing bubbles mighty fine"...

-- Olivier

[Olivier]

Then at the age of 14, i learned spanish songs, and that was much more funny!

That reminds me of the first Spanish song I learnt at school in Nice:
La cucaracha, la cucaracha
Ya no puede caminar,
Porque no tiene, porque le falta
Marijuana que fumar!

-- Olivier

[Guest]

Whether or not French can be said to be "foreign" to English Canada:
I'm sure that I had learned "Frère Jacques" by the time I was, oh, one year old. I would hazard that this is the first foreign song learned by most English North American children, although please prove me wrong on this. That song was followed by a string of other French songs I never understood, then "My hat it has three corners" in German.

Here's another question: did anyone understand the meaning of their first song in a foreign language? And does anyone else remember the magic of reaching a level of proficiency in a foreign language where they suddenly realised they could work out the meanings of what they had been singing phonetically for so long? I remember this particularly with the French half of the Canadian national anthem:

"Tony stoiret unay popay-uh day ploobreoncex plwah..."
"Ton histoire est une épopée des plus brillants exploits..."

etc.

[Parasha]

And the above message was posted by me, but as usual, by the time I finish up and send it, the darn thing has logged me off!

Apologies

[serenita]

And does anyone else remember the magic of reaching a level of proficiency in a foreign language where they suddenly realised they could work out the meanings of what they had been singing phonetically for so long?

Definitely!And it still goes on, as my level gets better (in its own way...)Sometimes i just make the test: i'd recall a song as i use to sing it, and then correct the words with the new knowledge i've got of its language,it's very exciting!

Olivier, did you really learn that song at school?

[Valvador]

Well, it is not very original; The first foreign song I learnt is :

"I wish you a merry christmas
I wish you a merry christmas
I wish you a merry christmas
and a happy new year...!"

[j u d i t h]

I can't remember the name but it sounds like that:

1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Once I caught a fish alive,
6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Then I let it go again.

Why did you let it go?
Because it bit my finger so
Which finger do it bit?
This little finger on the right.

Hi Kokoyaya

I don't know that song, but it seems to be just perfect for children to learn the English numbers! Thanks for sharing!!

[j u d i t h]

That's a good question.
I realise i was taught my first foreign song at the age of 11 (at school, though.I use to sing heaps of crap foreign songs before that!)
The song was "hello-goodbye" from the Beatles, it's a silly one:
You say yes, i say no
You say why and i say i don't know
You say goodbye and i say hello, Hello-Hello!
I don't know why you say goodbye i say hello!

Hi Serenita!

Oh, those kind of "silly" songs are just perfect for an introduction of a foreign language, don't you think?

Didn't you learn any foreign songs in kindergarten or in your early school time?

Thank you!!

[serenita]

You got it!I just wasn't a child anymore when i learned that song and i could already speak english.
But, no i don't remember having been taught any foreign song at "kindergarten"(great!) perhaps that sentence for carnival: viva la fiesta! and the latin american music that followed it (with long wide skirts,etc...)
If i remember, i'll even sing it on this forum, i promise!!

[j u d i t h]

Whether or not French can be said to be "foreign" to English Canada:
I'm sure that I had learned "Frère Jacques" by the time I was, oh, one year old. I would hazard that this is the first foreign song learned by most English North American children, although please prove me wrong on this.

Hi Parasha!

Frère Jacques was my second foreign song! We learned the German, the English and the French version of that song in kindergarten!

That song was followed by a string of other French songs I never understood, then "My hat it has three corners" in German.

Oh, "Mein Hut, der hat drei Ecken"!!! I didn't know it was known outside Germany! It's a song game we used to sing in kindergarten as well!

Here's another question: did anyone understand the meaning of their first song in a foreign language? And does anyone else remember the magic of reaching a level of proficiency in a foreign language where they suddenly realised they could work out the meanings of what they had been singing phonetically for so long?

Very good question, Parasha! As I knew the German version of "Le coq est mort", I knew what the song was all about, but I didn't understand the French words of course. And my pronunciation wasn't the best for sure:

Lö kock e mor, lö kock e mor
Lö kock e mor, lö kock e mor
Ilnedira plü, kockodi kockoda
Ilnedira plü, kockodi kockoda......

Yes, and it's really fascinating when you find out what you have sung all the time without knowing anything about it!

Hehe, you made me laugh when I read your "phonetical Canadian anthem" !

And the above message was posted by me, but as usual, by the time I finish up and send it, the darn thing has logged me off!

Apologies

Who will ever understand computers?! (I won't!!!!)

Thanks, Parasha!

[j u d i t h]

If i remember, i'll even sing it on this forum, i promise!!

Oh, Serenita, I hope I won't miss that!

[j u d i t h]

Well, I remember a kind of music box I was given, I do not remember who gave it, probably people my parents knew in England at the time, and it was turning inside and it showed in a little window pictures corresponding to the tune: I remember a cow jumping over the moon... My father, who was an English teacher, told me the words written around the pictures but I could not read yet, so I forgot them...

Hi Olivier

That sounds to be a funny thing to play with!

Then later on at about 6 I went with the school to a theme park near Paris where the street, the horses, the characters were from "western" movies, and we were given a small "vinyl" record that was really not vinyl but soft plastic, and then I listened to that "Clementine" song so often that I could sing it although I did not really understand, of course I had the thick southern US accent of the original: "Escvadin foora mine..." That was a nice song for children too, with the drowning girl "blowing bubbles mighty fine"...

Hehe!!
A good way to learn a special dialect!
I learned to speak "skånska" (southern Swedish dialect) by listening to "skånska" songs! I had to listen quite often and carefully because usually I was unable to understand anything else but the first line, because I was lying on the floor laughing!!

Thanks for sharing, Olivier!