Decision-making in Song Translation: An Approach to the Spanish Translation of David Bowie´s Song ‘Space Oddity’

Authors

  • José Manuel Barberá Ubeda "Universitat Jaume I" Spain

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24310/TRANS.2019.v0i23.4206

Keywords:

song translation, music-text linkage, singable, David Bowie, Space Oddity
Agencies: José Manuel Marco Borillo, UJI, Director de la tesis

Abstract

Theoretical background on the topic of ‘song translation’ shows complexity in the approach and difficulty in achieving solid singable translations, particularly in canonized songs, without reducing their original values. In this article, the issues to tackle and decisions to make are classified in a 3-level scheme. That model is applied to a corpus of Romance language translations of David Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’ song lyrics, after analyzing the original song. Particular focus is put on singable ‘proper’ translations into Spanish. The results show the consequences of different choices at each level in the translatological characteristics of the final product.

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Author Biography

José Manuel Barberá Ubeda, "Universitat Jaume I"

Ya introducido en el perfil de usuario

Doctorando en traducción creativa, tesis sobre las traducciones al español de las canciones de David Bowie

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Published

2019-11-09

How to Cite

Barberá Ubeda, J. M. (2019). Decision-making in Song Translation: An Approach to the Spanish Translation of David Bowie´s Song ‘Space Oddity’. TRANS – Revista De Traductología, (23), 149–167. https://doi.org/10.24310/TRANS.2019.v0i23.4206

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