LINGUIST List 6.456
Mon 27 Mar 1995
Sum: Elvis in Latin
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, SUMMARY: ELVIS IN LATIN
Message 1: SUMMARY: ELVIS IN LATIN
Date: Wed, 22 Mar 95 11:51:06 CSSUMMARY: ELVIS IN LATIN
From: <TOOPSTWSUVM.UC.TWSU.EDU>
Subject: SUMMARY: ELVIS IN LATIN
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On March 3, 1995, I posted a query regarding a CD of Elvis Presley
songs in Latin. I am now in receipt of the CD, which the record
company, ViihdeSallap/Stop Records of Jyva"skyla", Finland, was kind
enough to send me simply in response to the query I posted on this
List. Before describing the CD, I would like to cite the following
message I received from Hannele Dufva of the Language Centre for
Finnish Universities of the University of Jyva"skyla":
) Dear Professor Toops,
) The Legend Lives Forever in Latin is recorded by Doctor Ammondt alias
) Associate Professor Jukka Ammondt working at the Dept. of Literature,
) University of Jyva"skyla", Finland. The CD is produced by Stop Records
) (SR-103) (tel: +358-41-66771; fax: +358-41-773) but I called Jukka and he
) told me that a contract with K-Tel International is being negotiated and
) that the record will probably be available on American market very soon.
) K-Tel International Finland (fax. +358-0-790653) will also probably
) answer any inquiries. The lyrics were, by the way, translated into Latin
) by Teivas Oksala, the professor of the Latin department, also famous for
) his broadcasts of news in Latin. I heard that he is also going to attempt
) at trying his talents as sports commentator in Latin (!) at an ice hockey
) match. Hope you will be able to get the CD! Please don't hesitate to
) contact me for further information.
) Hannele Dufva
) Language Centre for Finnish Universities
) University of Jyva"skyla"
) P.O. Box 35
) 40351 Jyva"skyla"
) dufvatukki.jyu.fi
) fax: +358-41-603521
Having listened to the CD several times now, I am very favorably im-
pressed both by the quality of the lyrics and by the quality of the
instrumentation. Most North American instructors of Latin, I believe,
will be pleased to learn that the pronunciation used by the vocalist,
Dr. (Jukka) Ammondt, is virtually identical to the reconstructed
"classic" pronunciation taught in North American schools and not that
of Church Latin. /c/ and /g/ are regularly pronounced as velars and
are not palatalized or "softened" to -ch- and -dzh- before front
vowels as they are in (Italian) Church Latin. Practically the only
deviation from North American classroom pronunciation is the monoph-
thongization of -ae- and -oe-, which Ammondt pronounces as long /e:/
(or even /a"/), rather than as /ai/ and /oi/, resp. V- is regularly
pronounced as a bilabial glide /w/, although at times it approaches
a bilabial fricative in Ammond's pronounciation; the same holds true
of the glide element in -qu. Ammondt occasionally produces a slightly
retroflex-sounding /s/, but, in any case, it is never voiced to /z/
even intervocalically. I was able to discern only one instance of
Finnish interference in Ammondt's pronunciation: in one song, one
occurrence of the word "dic" is clearly mispronounced /tik/.
The CD contains 7 tracks totaling 21 mins. 46 secs.:
I. Surrender / Nunc aeternitatis
II. It's Now or Never / Nunc hic aut numquam
III. Can't Help Falling in Love / Non adamare non possum
IV. It's Impossible / Impossibile
V. Wooden Heart / Cor ligneum
VI. Love Me Tender / Tenere me ama
VII. The Wings of Dream / Alae somnii
The last track (VII., above) is sung mostly in strongly accented
English. It might have been better to keep the lyrics all in Latin.
I was not provided with information of forms of payment the recording
company in Jyva"skyla", Finland, is able to accept. I would assume
that a mere credit card number (e.g., Visa, Mastercard) would suffice
to purchase one of these CDs, the price of which, according to the
customs label on the envelope in which mine was mailed, is 90 Finnish
markka. Again, to order CD #SR-103, write, call, or fax:
ViihdeSallap, Ltd. / Stop Records
P.O. Box 252
SF-40101 Jyva"skyla"
Finland
Ph: +358 41-666-771
Fx: +358 41-666-773
Gary H. Toops TOOPSTWSUVM.UC.TWSU.EDU
Associate Professor Ph: (316) 689-3180
Wichita State University Fx: (316) 689-3293
Wichita, Kansas 67260-0011 USA