Abigail Washburn: Building US-China relations ... by banjo

Translator: Marta Gago Pesado Reviewer: Carme Paz

If you had caught me straight out of college

Se me atopasen ó rematar a universidade,

in the halls of the Vermont State House

na Vermont State House

where I was a lobbyist in training

onde facía prácticas para formar parte de grupos de presión

e me preguntasen que ía facer coa miña vida

and asked me what I was going to do with my life,

I would have told you

eu contestaríalles

that I'd just passed the Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi,

que xusto aprobara o HSK,

the Chinese equivalency exam,

o exame oficial de chinés,

and I was going to go study law in Beijing,

e que ía estudar dereito en Pequín

and I was going to improve U.S.-China relations

e que ía mellorar as relacións entre os EE.UU. e China

through top-down policy changes

a través de cambios políticos de carácter vertical

and judicial system reforms.

e mediante reformas do sistema xudicial.

(Laughter)

(Risos)

(Applause)

(Aplausos)

I had a plan,

Eu tiña un plan.

and I never ever thought

E en ningún caso

it would have anything to do

pensei que tería algo que ver

with the banjo.

cun banjo.

Little did I know

Non esperaba

what a huge impact it would have on me one night

o forte impacto que ía recibir unha noite

when I was at a party

cando estaba nunha festa

and I heard a sound coming out of a record player

e escoitei un son a través dun tocadiscos

in the corner of a room.

que soaba dende un recuncho do cuarto.

And it was Doc Watson

Era Doc Watson

singing and playing "Shady Grove."

cantando e tocando "Shady Grove".

♫ Shady Grove, my little love ♫

♫ Shady Grove, my little love ♫

♫ Shady Grove, my darlin' ♫

♫ Shady Grove, my darlin' ♫

♫ Shady Grove, my little love ♫

♫ Shady Grove, my little love ♫

♫ Going back to Harlan ♫

♫ Going back to Harlan ♫

That sound was just so beautiful,

Era un son tan fermoso,

the sound of Doc's voice

a voz de Doc Watson

and the rippling groove of the banjo.

e a cadencia ondulante do banjo.

And after being totally and completely obsessed

E despois de estar totalmente obsesionada

with the mammoth richness and history

coa colosal historia e riqueza

of Chinese culture,

it was like this total relief

da cultura chinesa,

era un completo acougo

to hear something so truly American

escoitar algo tan estadounidense

e tan impresionante.

and so truly awesome.

I knew I had to take a banjo with me to China.

Souben entón que tiña que levar un banjo a China.

Así que, antes de ir á facultade de dereito en China,

So before going to law school in China

I bought a banjo, I threw it in my little red truck

comprei un banjo, metino na miña furgoneta vermella

and I traveled down through Appalachia

e viaxei pola rexión de Appalachia,

and I learned a bunch of old American songs,

e aprendín moitas cancións norteamericanas tradicionais.

and I ended up in Kentucky

E rematei en Kentucky,

na Convención Internacional da Bluegrass Music Association.

at the International Bluegrass Music Association Convention.

And I was sitting in a hallway one night

Unha noite estaba eu sentada nun vestíbulo

e acercáronseme dúas mozas.

and a couple girls came up to me.

And they said, "Hey, do you want to jam?"

"Gustaríache improvisar uns temas?", dixeron.

And I was like, "Sure."

"Claro", contesteilles.

So I picked up my banjo

Así que collín o meu banjo

and I nervously played four songs that I actually knew with them.

e, nerviosa, toquei con elas 4 pezas que coñecía.

E un produtor discográfico achegóuseme

And a record executive walked up to me

and invited me to Nashville, Tennessee to make a record.

e invitoume a ir a Nashville, Tennesee, para gravar un disco.

(Laughter)

(Risos)

It's been eight years,

Xa hai oito anos diso.

and I can tell you that I didn't go to China to become a lawyer.

O certo é que non fun a China para estudar dereito.

In fact, I went to Nashville.

De feito, fun a Nashville.

And after a few months I was writing songs.

E logo duns meses xa estaba compoñendo.

And the first song I wrote was in English,

A primeira canción compúxena en inglés

and the second one was in Chinese.

e a segunda en chinés.

(Music)

(Música)

[Chinese]

[Chinés]

Outside your door the world is waiting.

Fóra, o mundo está agardando.

Inside your heart a voice is calling.

No teu corazón unha voz está chamando.

The four corners of the world are watching,

Os confíns do mundo están vixiando,

so travel daughter, travel.

así que viaxa, pequena, viaxa.

Go get it, girl.

Faino, ti podes, nena.

(Applause)

(Aplausos)

It's really been eight years since that fated night in Kentucky.

Xa pasaron oito anos dende aquela noite en Kentucky.

Toquei en milleiros de espectáculos

And I've played thousands of shows.

And I've collaborated

e colaborei con moitísimos músicos

with so many incredible, inspirational musicians around the world.

inspiradores e incribles, por todo o mundo.

And I see the power of music.

E vexo o poder que ten a música.

I see the power of music

Vexo o poder da música

to connect cultures.

para conectar culturas.

I see it when I stand on a stage

Véxoo cando estou nun escenario,

in a bluegrass festival in east Virginia

nun festival de música bluegrass no leste de Virxinia

and I look out at the sea of lawn chairs

e miro o mar de cadeiras fronte a min

and I bust out into a song in Chinese.

e arranco cunha canción en chinés.

[Chinés]

[Chinese]

And everybody's eyes just pop wide open

E todo o mundo fica cos ollos moi abertos,

like it's going to fall out of their heads.

coma se lles fosen saír das órbitas.

And they're like, "What's that girl doing?"

E todos pensan "Pero que fai esa rapaza?".

And then they come up to me after the show

E despois do espectáculo, achéganse a min

and they all have a story.

e todos teñen algunha historia.

They all come up and they're like,

Todos veñen:

"You know, my aunt's sister's babysitter's dog's chicken went to China

"Pois a galiña do can da coidadora da irmá da miña tía foi a China...

and adopted a girl."

e adoptou unha nena."

And I tell you what, it like everybody's got a story.

Saben que? Todo mundo ten unha historia.

It's just incredible.

É incrible.

And then I go to China

Logo fun a China

and I stand on a stage at a university

e, sobre un escenario na universidade,

and I bust out into a song in Chinese

cantei unha canción en chinés

and everybody sings along

e todo o mundo cantou comigo.

and they roar with delight

e berrábanlle cheos de ledicia

at this girl

a esta moza,

with the hair and the instrument,

con este pelo e con este instrumento,

and she's singing their music.

que lles cantaba a súa música.

And I see, even more importantly,

E vexo, sobre todo,

o poder da música para conectar os corazóns.

the power of music to connect hearts.

Like the time I was in Sichuan Province

Como cando estiven na provincia de Sichuan

and I was singing for kids in relocation schools

cantándolles ós nenos das escolas de recolocación

in the earthquake disaster zone.

na zona catastrófica posterior ó sismo.

And this little girl comes up to me.

Unha rapaza achégase e dime:

[Chinese]

[Chinés]

"Big sister Wong,"

"Irmá Wong"

Washburn, Wong, same difference.

Washburn, Wong, tanto ten.

"Big sister Wong, can I sing you a song

"Irmá Wong, podo cantarche unha canción

that my mom sang for me

que me cantaba a miña nai

before she was swallowed in the earthquake?"

antes de que fose engulida polo sismo?"

And I sat down,

E sentei,

she sat on my lap.

ela sentou no meu colo.

She started singing her song.

Comezou a cantar a súa canción.

And the warmth of her body

Sentín o seu corpo tépedo

and the tears rolling down her rosy cheeks,

e vin as bágoas caéndolle polas meixelas.

and I started to cry.

Comecei a chorar.

And the light that shone off of her eyes

E a luz que brillaba nos seus ollos.

was a place I could have stayed forever.

era un sitio onde podería ter ficado para sempre.

And in that moment, we weren't our American selves,

Nese intre, non eramos nin estadounidense

we weren't our Chinese selves,

we were just mortals

nin tampouco chinesa.

Eramos soamente dúas mortais,

sitting together in that light that keeps us here.

sentadas xuntas nesa luz que nos mantén aquí.

I want to dwell in that light

Eu quero vivir nesa luz,

convosco e con todo o mundo.

with you and with everyone.

And I know U.S.-China relations

E sei que as relacións entre os EE.UU. e China

doesn't need another lawyer.

non precisan doutro avogado.

Thank you.

Grazas.

(Applause)

(Aplausos)