Translating Song: Lyrics and Texts (Translation Practices Explained)

This engaging step-by-step guide prescribes effective strategies and tactics for translating a wide range of songs and other vocal music, from classical to contemporary. Focusing on best practice and with a variety of language examples, the book centres on four key themes:

• translating songs for a range of recipients and within different contexts (skopos theory)
• translating songs for reading on paper or on screens (surtitles and subtitles)
• "singable translations" and the Pentathlon Approach
• translating expressive texts.

With a substantial introduction, six insightful chapters, further reading and a glossary of key terms (also available at https://www.routledge.com/9781138641792 and on the Routledge Translation Studies Portal), this lively and clear student-friendly guide is essential for students, researchers and practitioners involved in or studying the practice of translating music. This will also be an engaging read for musicians and all those interested in the study of music.

Peter Low is senior adjunct fellow in the School of Languages at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, and a council member of the New Zealand Society of Translators and Interpreters. As a translator of vocal music, he has placed over 150 translations on the LiederNet Archive (www.lieder.net/lieder/), has devised surtitles for six operas, and has made singable translations of dozens of songs, both classical and popular.